When discussing Americanah by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, the first conversations would likely, and justly, encompass race. Americanah clearly has a theme of racial identity; however, with Ifemelu’s newfound “blackness” in America, she must confront a dangerous side effect: her deteriorating mental health. Not only Ifemelu, but Dike and Obinze as well, encounter their individual battles with depression. Using race and immigration as determinants for the mental well-being of Ifemelu, Dike, and Obinze, Adichie presents a subtle commentary on depression in Americanah.
When Ifemelu arrives to America, she gradually feels imbalanced and disassociated. Throughout her time in America, signs of her depression become prevalent. For example, her inability to find a job leaves “a tight, suffocating pressure rising inside her chest” (Adichie 175). Even breathing “the crisp air, fragrant and dry, reminded her of Nsukka...and brought with it a sudden stab of homesickness” (Adichie 177). Physical symptoms occur even with mental health issues, and homesickness can quickly lead to depression. Furthermore, Ifemelu’s race in America impedes her finding a job (to a certain extent), and her sudden emigration catalyzes her displacement. Most likely, race and immigration ultimately offset her depression. Ifemelu hits her lowest point after giving sexual favors to the tennis coach. She isolates herself from Obinze, friends, and family and wakes up “flailing and helpless, and she saw...all around her, an utter hopelessness” (Adichie 192). When Ginika tells Ifemelu she might have depression, Ifemelu firmly denies it, for “depression was what happened to Americans” (Adichie 194). America and Nigeria have extremely different perspectives of mental illness; Nigeria barely has words to explain depression, while America has an expansive knowledge. Alongside her harsh reality of race and immigration, Ifemelu’s depression possibly criticizes an unwilling and forced assimilation into American culture.
Dike presents the most unexplained and unexpected case of depression in Americanah. We learn that Dike attends a good school, and that his friends “all [laugh] at Dike’s jokes” and “[look] to him for agreement” (Adichie 412). “At their center was Dike” and “he took on a swagger” (Adichie 412) which displays him as a confident, popular boy. Despite this, Dike attempts suicide. Amidst aiding his recovery, Ifemelu blames Uju, saying, “‘...you didn’t tell him what he was” and claims she “...never reassured him” (Adichie 470). Uju explains that depression alone caused his suicide attempt, though Ifemelu refuses to accept this, shouting, “‘His depression is because of his experience, Aunty!’” (Adichie 470). Here, we see Ifemelu aimlessly trying to explain Dike’s depression. As a Nigerian living in America for almost fifteen years, she latches on to the one explanation she does have: her own experiences. But those explanations do not fit with Dike. We can speculate that explanations are Dike’s perception of his race or issues surrounding his deceased father. Adichie represents the hidden illness of depression through Dike who,—despite never acting emotionally vulnerable—suffers internally due to factors unknown to readers.
Though less directly written in Americanah, Obinze also struggles with depression. Obinze, deciding to settle with a life in Nigeria after difficult times in the United Kingdom, is unhappy with his marriage to Kosi and longs to be with Ifemelu. When Ifemelu returns to Nigeria, Obinze tells her, “‘You know what I have felt for so long? As if I was waiting to be happy’” (Adichie 551). Obinze lives based on contentment rather than fulfillment, and his decision to be mildly happy rather than passionate about his life spins him into a long-term depression. Here, Adichie refers to the many Nigerians who choose to live the disenchanted life of Obinze.
Throughout Americanah, Adichie uses the intersection of race and depression to highlight the effects of racism in America. While both Ifemelu and Dike suffer from depression, they experience different types of depression in relation to their identities and perspectives of blackness.
ReplyDeleteAs your blog post mentions, Ifemelu’s depression stems from her transition from life in Nigeria to America. She experiences discrimination because of her skin color as she struggles to find a job and survive in a foreign country. Although race never mattered in Nigeria, she learns its importance in America. Ifemelu articulates this in her blog, stating, “When you make the choice to come to America, you become black. Stop arguing. Stop saying I’m Jamaican or I’m Ghanaian. America doesn’t care. So what if you weren’t “black” in your country? You’re in America now” (273). Being Nigerian means nothing; all Americans can see is her skin color.
Just like Ifemelu, Dike is Nigerian. However, his childhood experiences in America shape his racial identity differently. Whereas Ifemelu grew up in Africa, unaware of her blackness and its influence on social status, Dike grows up in America where race is at the forefront of every interaction. Ifemelu recognizes this contrast, as the novel explains, “She thought of Dike, wondered which he would go to in college, whether ASA or BSU, and what he would be considered, whether American African or African American. He would have to choose what he was, or rather, what he was would be chosen for him” (173). Throughout the novel, Dike’s identity is chosen for him by society. For example, Dike’s elementary school teacher stereotypes him as “aggressive”, and his high school principal accuses him of hacking the school’s computer network. As Dike understands, “You have to blame the black kid first” (433). Because Dike spends the majority of his life in America, he views himself and his blackness as inferior. His depression, exactly as Ifemelu states, is because of his experiences.
As Bridget mentioned above in her comment, I think focusing on Dike's struggle with depression in relation to his race is a very interesting topic. When examining the way Dike is treated in school, he is labelled as "aggressive" and getting blamed for hacking the computer system simply because he's black (433), and it's very American for people to assume these things about Dike simply based on his race. Americans tend to view people of color as those who cause trouble and harm, while Ifemelu never experienced this while she lived in Nigeria. I think it's even more unfair to Dike because as shown throughout the novel, Africans from other countries and African Americans are viewed very differently in America, but even though Dike is a Nigerian African, he has never known anything different than being treated as an African American because he has spent his whole life in the United States. Aunty Uju choosing to keep his history from him clearly has a strong effect on his mental health, because Ifemelu and Aunty Uju know what it's like to be treated normally without regards to race in Nigeria, but Dike has never known that feeling as people throughout his whole life constantly point out his race, making him feel as if he doesn't fit in. This is more specifically depicted when Obama is elected president, and Dike tells Ifemelu, "I can't believe it. My president is black like me" (447), which shows America has made him insecure with his race because he finds comfort when others are like him.
ReplyDeleteI enjoy your analysis on the connection between depression and racial identity in Americanah by Chimamanda Adichie. To take your analysis one step farther I would incorporate Aunty Uju into the category of depressed as well. Her transition from Nigeria to America clearly displays the erosion of her mental state from the beginning of the novel to the end. In the beginning of Americanah, Uju complains about the General often but she lives a happy and comfortable life. Later, when Aunty Uju moves to the United States her life changes drastically. She starts working multiple underpaid jobs and taking difficult medical courses all while adjusting to a very different culture. This is where Uju learns how hard it is to be a black successful woman in America. This ultimately leads to her depression. She changes so much that Ifemelu notes, “Aunty Uju would have never worn her hair in such scruffy braids. She would never have tolerated the ingrown hair that grew like raisins on her chin, or worn trousers that gathered bulkily between her legs. America had subdued her” (Adichie 135). America had subdued her and left her a changed person. Throughout the rest of the novel Aunty Uju is in an altered mental state and one major contributor to this is her racial identity. Uju knows, first hand, how hard it is to be black in America.
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