Intersectional female oppression in Chimamanda Adichie Purple Hibiscus

This paper seeks to interpret the concept of intersectional female oppression as depicted in Chimamanda Adichie’s Purple Hibiscus of 2003. The novel revolves around Achike’s family and addresses the theme of violence, oppression, gender and freedom which led to it receiving the Hurston-Wright legacy award in 2004 and Commonwealth writers’ price in 2005. Kimberle Crenshaw’s concept of intersectionality on female oppression and the way it distinguishes itself from other approaches on female oppression offers a useful framework to examine and understand the multifaceted and interconnected nature in the representation of female oppression. According to Crenshaw, intersectional oppression describes how black women experience compounded oppression from racism, sexism and gender which expounds the connected chains of oppression and exposes the disadvantages of addressing the unique struggles of women when their oppressions are interpreted from a discrete perspective. This paper aims to examine how different forms of violence and injustice interact to oppress the female characters based on their intersecting identities in Purple Hibiscus bringing to light the connected web of female oppression. While discovering different structures that triggered female oppression in a patriarchal society, this study also found that the oppressed female characters transitioned from silence to resistance, gaining empowerment and transforming their lives through their experiences.

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