Faith Emitse is a finalist for the 2024 Afrocritik Prize for Criticism
The Journey of Becoming: A Critical Appraisal of Affection and Other Accidents, His Only Wife and Dreaming of Ways to Understand You
Affection and Other Accidents by Nigerian writer and poet, Dami Ajayi; Ghanaian writer, Peace Adzo Medie’s His Only Wife; and Nigerian writer and film critic, Jerry Chiemeke’s Dreaming of Ways to Understand You are three different genres of literary works – poetry, novel, and a short story collection – that explore the process of ‘becoming’ in the human nature. The characters in these works portray the complexities of change and growth in the human personality. Ajayi’s anthology explores the growth process of the poet’s persona after undergoing the pain of heartbreak, death, and loss. Medie, in her novel, explores the transitioning of her protagonist, Afi, from naivety to awareness. Chiemeke, through his thrilling collection of short stories, navigates the winding paths that make up queer and complex personalities.
Ajayi’s Affection and Other Accidents is quite an intriguing and captivating read. The poet explores the subject matters of unrequited love, loss, and death in an overlapping and almost unified manner. The subtle meaning is that all three circumstances are linked because they result in a single consequence – grief. Through the journey motif, Ajayi masterfully glides through settings of different geographical zones in portraying the heart-wrenching effects of pain, death, loss, and heartbreak. This love journey begins in the bustling city of Lagos, Nigeria, with four consecutive marriage proposals and a wedding scheduled to hold in Denmark. The reader then journeys through the travails of this romance from Cologne, Germany in “Queens”, to New Delhi, India in “Mary’s in India”, and then to London, England in “328 to World’s End” where it eventually comes to an end – a premarital divorce.
In the midst of this captivating love plot is the portrayal of the themes of death and loss in poems like “A Requiem” and “Birthday Elegy”. In these poems, the poet highlights the transience of life and the feeling of loss and grief that follows the passing away of loved ones. The literary work also embodies significant global issues that have emerged at some point in history – The global politics of the Covid-19 pandemic in the poem, “Covid-19”, the deep-rooted racism that is associated with George Floyd’s murder in “Ode to a Face Mask”, and the problems of colourism, of ‘complexion and its complexities’ which has to do with racial identity and colour discrimination in the poem, “Tonight”.
Worthy of note is the infusion of cultural and spiritual beliefs of Yoruba tradition at the heart of this collection. This could be seen in the poet’s exploration of the myths of Abiku and Ibeji (twins) in “Affection & Other Accidents” and “The Twins of Wembley” respectively. In Yoruba mythology, the Abiku is a spirit child that repeats its life in a cycle of death and reincarnation. In the same vein, the poet’s persona in “Affection & Other Accidents” resurrects the pain of his heartbreak experience, and in doing so, he finds solace through the healing balm of time. Through the poem, “The Twins of Wembley”, the poet highlights the universality of the phenomenon of twins. Without an iota of doubt, Dami Ajayi’s Affection and Other Accidents fulfilled aesthetic brilliance as much as it attained the peak of creative excellence.
Medie’s debut novel, His Only Wife, is a story about the life and changing circumstances of the female protagonist, Afi. Set in Ghana, the novel tells the story of a young seamstress from a poor background whose life took an incredible turnaround for the better when she was chosen as a wife for the wealthy Elikem Ganyo. It turns out that Eli is in love with another woman whom the Ganyos disapprove of. Handpicked by her benefactor, Aunty Faustina Ganyo, Afi is tasked with the messianic role of bringing back the family’s lost sheep, Eli. Does she succeed in this endeavour?
Medie’s literary piece embodies significant universal motifs such as sexual objectification, class stratification, female subjugation, and love. These themes are portrayed in-depth within the novel through the characters and plot. On the topic of sexual objectification, the novel highlights how women’s bodies are objectified and commodified in patriarchal societies such as the Ghanaian society depicted in the novel. For instance, the protagonist, Afi, is often reduced to her physical appearance and sexual endowments by her husband, Eli, and Yaya, his sister. She is also perceived as an item that is bought and, therefore, must do their bidding. The novel also explores the stark contrast between the wealthy elite and the working class in Ghana. Afi’s marriage to Eli, a wealthy man, exposes her to a world of privilege and luxury, but also highlights the class divisions and social expectations that come with it.
Further, the author dexterously contrasts the urban and rural settings of Accra and Ho respectively, in depicting the protagonist’s transitioning from a state of naivety to one of experience. Ho represents the initial stage of Afi’s naivety where she is blind to the realities of her situation. On the other hand, Accra’s diversity and modernity offer her the chance to explore her own identity, interests, and desires, beyond her role as a wife. Eventually, she surpasses all expectations by becoming a successful seamstress in Accra. His Only Wife submerges the reader into the world of this fairytale fantasy of an arranged and supposedly ideal Ghanaian marriage.
Lastly, Chiemeke’s Dreaming of Ways to Understand You is an intriguing collection of fifteen short stories that explore the complexity of the human personality, among other subject matters. The characters in “Not for Long”, “What Am I Supposed to Say to You?”, “Pining for the Hands that Tied Me”, the titular “Dreaming of Ways to Understand You”, and “On Getting Around to Confidently Taking My Shirt Off” are portrayed as having one psychological issue or the other, and this shapes their lives and the totality of their being. The Austrian neurologist, Sigmund Freud (1856- 1939), discusses the psychoanalytic theory which proposes that a person’s subconscious (Id) influences the conscious (Ego) or reality. Freud’s theory corroborates the author’s depiction of the focal characters in the aforementioned short stories. For instance, the villain in “Not For Long” divulges that he witnessed how his mother poisoned his father with pesticide when he was younger and this experience may have influenced the callous and unfeeling manner in which he murders his victims in the story. Drawing inspiration from hardcore serial killers like Albert Fish, Charles Mansoon, Vlad the Impaler, and Jack the Ripper, he tortures his victims mercilessly before he brutally murders them.
In the titular story in the collection, “Dreaming of Ways to Understand You”, 26-year-old Martha suffers terrible mood swings and acute indecisiveness probably because she was smarting from some pain caused in her pre-pubescent years. Due to the prevalent social misconception that Africans are not supposed to seek help from therapists when faced with psychological trauma, Martha did not get the help she required. Chiemeke’s story seeks to address the salient topic of mental health prejudice and why such harmful stereotypes must be curtailed in modern Nigerian society.
Undeniably, the author’s complete narration of “Ugborikoko” from the collection in Nigerian Pidgin English duly complements its storyline with its setting. Chiemeke’s chosen diction gives “Ugborikoko” a uniquely local flavour that is peculiar to the narrative. Chiemeke’s collection of stories, Dreaming of Ways to Understand You, tugs at one’s imagination, challenging the reader to ponder on the diverse issues treated in these forceful stories.
On a final note, these contemporary African writers, through their amazing works, have displayed such immeasurable skills in the arts and have done wonderfully in navigating the journey of becoming human nature. They have also made significant commentaries on contemporary matters of note.
Faith Emitse is an undergraduate pursuing a degree in English at the University of Lagos, Nigeria. She is a language enthusiast and writer with a passion for arts, culture, literature, and literary criticism. Faith is committed to growth and learning, and is interested in exploring opportunities and collaborations that align with her goals and values.