IndexIntroductionDomestic Violence in Purple HibiscusImpact of Violence on the Achike FamilySexism and Abuse in Purple HibiscusConclusionWorks CitedIntroductionPurple Hibiscus by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie is a novel set in 1960s Enugu, which is a city in postcolonial Nigeria. The story revolves around Jaja and Kambili. The novel tells how Kambili endures an abusive father and begins to find herself in the political instability of the 1990s. Respected Nigerian author Chinua Achebe was one of Adichie's most significant motivations and impacts in writing this novel, and when she was a little girl Adichie's family even lived in Achebe's previous home. The first lines of Purple Hibiscus reference Achebe's novel Things Fall Apart. This essay will illustrate how themes such as domestic violence, family, and religion influence the concept of coming of age in Purple Hibiscus and give a deeper and more meaningful meaning to the novel. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get Original Essay Domestic Violence in Purple Hibiscus According to the United Nations, violence against women is any act that results in, or is likely to result in, physical, sexual or mental harm or suffering to women, including threats of such acts, coercion or arbitrary deprivation of liberty, whether occurring in public or private life… (Article 1). Domestic violence, therefore, occurs when one partner intentionally causes physical or mental harm to the other spouse or other family members. In Purple Hibiscus Eugene Achike a well known and respected man is revealed to be an extremely violent man in his family who is extremely controlling and inflicts pain on his wife Beatrice, children, sister and father both physically and mentally. Every family is different from each other, and this is seen in Purple Hibiscus: Ifeoma and her children are a very close-knit family, full of warmth, love and laughter towards each other and, on the other hand, some families are firmly controlled, formal, extremely materialistic but lacking in love, concern and care. The Achicke family falls into the second category. Eugene Achicke and Beatrice have two children named Jaja and Kambili. They are a typical family unit. The extended family consists of Ifeoma, also known as Eugene's sister, and her children, also, Papa-Nnukwu, known as Eugene's father. Co-selected in the family by work ideals are Sissi, the housekeeper, and Kevin, the driver and farmer. Through this family, Adichie portrays domestic life in a traditional African family with the foundation of domestic violence and abuse. Impact of Violence on the Achike Family On numerous occasions, Dad beats Beatrice, Jaja and Kambili. Each time he is incited by an activity he considers unethical. At one point, when Mom didn't want to visit Father Benedict with him because she was sick, Dad beats her and she gives birth prematurely. Another example is when Kambili and Jaja share a house with a "heathen" in Nnsuka, boiling water is poured on his feet as he admitted that he entered directly through sin. On another occasion, Kambili is kicked and severely beaten for possessing Papa Nnukwu's artwork until she is admitted to hospital. The painting represents his last link to the missing past, which he had only just begun to find. She was only connected to the history and culture that her father allowed her to see that was the newly colonized land in the nation of Nigeria. His father shaped his entire vision; however, whenKambili enters her adolescence and womanhood, she begins to shape her identity based on the information and experiences she has had. She has begun to explore the history that shaped her, but with Papa Nnwuku's death, Kambili loses firsthand contact with this history and now faces rebuke for all she knows. "Get up!" Dad said again. I still haven't moved. He started kicking me. The metal buckles of the slippers stung like giant mosquito bites. He spoke non-stop, without control, in a mixture of Igbo and English, like soft flesh and thorny bones. Impiety. Pagan cult. Hellfire. The rhythm of the kicks increased and I thought of Amaka's music, her culturally aware music that sometimes began with a calm saxophone and then transformed into vigorous singing. I huddled tighter, around the pieces of the painting; they were soft, feathery. They still had the metallic smell of Amaka's color palette. The burning was strong now, even more like a bite, because the metal had landed on the open skin of my side, on my back, on my legs. Kick. Kick. Kick. Maybe it was a belt now because the metal buckle seemed too heavy. Because I could hear a rustling in the air (211). This led Kambili to go to hospital. At the hospital, she began taking tablets and injections while her father stood by her and told her "my precious daughter." Nothing will happen to you. My precious daughter' (212). This suggests to the reader that he feels guilty for hitting his daughter, but in Eugene's eyes it is a form of parenting, so his children will not do something unethical. Kambili was beaten and punished by her father simply because she is in tradition and modernity. Furthermore, Eugene legitimizes the beatings he inflicts on his family, saying it is for their benefit. The beatings made his children silent. Kambili and Jaja are both astute beyond their years and are not allowed to have their own beliefs and opinions when they reach adulthood, their father plans everything for them as seen in the programs their father makes for them. The moment Ade Coker jokes that his children are overly calm, dad doesn't giggle. They fear God. Truly, Kambili and Jaja fear their father. Beating them has the opposite effect. They choose the right path because they fear the repercussions. They are not driven to develop and succeed, risking compromising themselves with disappointment when they don't. This primarily negatively affects Jaja, who is embarrassed that he is in many ways behind Obiora in both knowing and safeguarding his family. He ends up comparing religion to discipline and rejects her trust. Sexism and Mistreatment in Purple HibiscusThere is a hidden sexism at work in the mistreatment. When Mom reveals to Kambili that she is pregnant, she reports that she gave birth prematurely a few times after Kambili's conception. She says to Kambili, 'you know, after you came and I had miscarriages, the villagers started whispering. Members of our Ummunna even sent people to solicit your father to have children with someone else' (20). Throughout the novel, Kambili's mother loses two pregnancies to her husband, Eugene. These beatings may also have resulted in several fruitless labors. When she miscarries, Kambili feels traumatized because she remembers the blood she saw in her parents' room. Furthermore, even if Eugene is guilty, it suggests that it is a deficiency of the mother. During her second miscarriage, when Beatrice goes to Nnsuka to visit Aunt Ifeoma, readers learn that according to Kambili's mother, she cannot exist outside of her marriage because "he is a good man". She refuses, 1993.