Levirate marriage in Ray Amadi’s The trials of a widow and Akachi Ezeigbo’s The last of the strong ones
Keywords:
Marriage, Levirate, Patriarchy, Agenda, OppressionAbstract
This paper interrogates the concept of levirate marriage (inheriting the wife of a deceased) as an age-long practice in Africa in general, and Igbo land in particular with its origin from the Jewish culture and religion. The Jews practised levirate marriage as a way of producing an heir; this is completely different from what is obtainable in Africa. What gave rise to this paper is the extra burden women carry when inherited by their deceased husband’s relatives. Using Ray Amadi’s The trials of a widow and Akachi Ezeigbo’s The last of the strong ones, this paper notes that while the male writer portrays the practice in a positive light, the female writer rejects it in all ramifications. Applying the qualitative research method, this paper engages in a critical textual analysis of the primary texts, drawing insights from other related literary texts, as well as several other relevant scholarly articles. Adopting the feminist theory, this paper deconstructs and subverts the practice as limiting and asphyxiating to the female gender. The paper concludes that levirate marriage is a patriarchal agenda to oppress, confine and subjugate the woman into docility and subservience and domestic space therefore, African women should reject and resist the practice, and be free to express their individuality and sexualityDownloads
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