Historical Context
The Biafran War
Once a British crown jewel, Nigeria emerged as a republic in 1963, pieced together with four regional governments. The northern contingent held sway over the political landscape, casting shadows over the diverse tapestry of ethnicities that populate this vast land. These boundaries, remnants of European colonial craftsmanship, disregard the ancestral lands of these groups.
By 1964, the winds of discontent blew hard as the populace shunned the initial general elections, spiraling into a crisis. The following year, this discontent erupted into widespread rebellion, ignited by the ruling party's unscrupulous manipulation of elections in the western region.
The dawn of January 1966 witnessed a daring coup led by army officers of the Igbo ethnicity, toppling the government and claiming the lives of the prime minister and regional premiers. In the aftermath, Major General Johnson T. U. Aguiyi-Aronsi seized control, steering the nation under military rule until another coup, orchestrated by Hausa officers, ousted him. This upheaval sparked a horrific massacre of Igbos in the north, driving multitudes to their ancestral eastern homeland, only to face further atrocities.
Amidst the turmoil of late 1966, efforts to broker peace among the four regions faltered. Eastern representatives, disillusioned, withdrew from negotiations. The following year saw more futile discussions until May 27, 1967, when Lieutenant Colonel C. O. Ojukwu boldly proclaimed the eastern region a sovereign republic. In a swift counter, the federal government imposed a state of emergency and carved Nigeria into twelve states.
Merely three days later, Ojukwu announced the eastern region's secession as the Republic of Biafra, sparking a fierce conflict with federal forces. Initially, Biafran forces held their ground, but by October, federal troops seized Enugu, the Biafran capital. The relentless struggle persisted until 1970, with Biafra ultimately succumbing to starvation and ceasing to fight.
In the wake of defeat, Ojukwu fled Nigeria that same year as a Biafran delegation surrendered to the Nigerian federal government on January 15.
Emecheta poignantly captures the essence of the turmoil: “it was a civil war, which started among the politicians; the army stepped in to keep the peace, then the military leaders started to quarrel among themselves, and one created a new state, taking his followers with him.” The war claimed nearly a million lives, illustrating, as Emecheta observes, that “in any war, however justified its cause, nobody wins.”
Diversity in Nigeria
Nigeria, a landmass akin to Texas, holds within its borders a mosaic of over 300 ethnic groups, each speaking a unique tongue. With boundaries drawn heedlessly by European colonial architects, ethnic and regional divisions simmer beneath the surface, often boiling over into conflict. "Ethnic group" refers to people bonded by language and cultural identity; as Simon A. Rakov noted in the Brown University Postcolonial Web, the differences among these groups are as distinct as "between Germans, English, Russians, and Turks."
Among these 300 groups, the lion's share of political power and resources lies with the three major ethnicities: the Hausa-Fulani of the north, the Igbo in the southeast, and the Yoruba in the southwest. These groups together account for fifty-seven percent of the nation's populace, leaving the remaining "minority" groups to traverse a landscape fraught with challenges.
Literary Style
Storytelling
The Wrestling Match captivates with its unique narrative style, drawing readers into its embrace as if they are gathered in "an open clearing where children and elders share tales and songs under the moonlight." Emecheta's intimate narration engages the audience, as though they are familiar with every character's heartbeat and secrets. Her prose dances with rhythm and echoes with repetition, much like in the opening lines: It was the moment when the coconut palms whispered softly; it was the time when...
(This entire section contains 477 words.)
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the fireflies of the night sang their sibilant song through the tranquil air.
It was the hour when frogs in nearby ponds croaked a call to their companions, suggesting shelter should be sought with nightfall's swift approach. The language throughout the book is, at first glance, straightforward and lucid, yet unfurls into vivid poetry, especially in its portrayal of the omnipresent natural world. Birds, animals, the changing seasons, the cycle of night and day all come alive as integral characters, enriching the tale with their timeless essence.
The narrator assumes the voice of a wise elder, an omniscient figure who has witnessed the trials and errors of countless generations. This perspective allows a deep understanding of Obi Agiliga's frustration mixed with compassion toward young Okei, along with his bruised pride stemming from Okei’s disregard. The narrator also casts a sympathetic eye upon Okei's troubled past, his boundless ambition, and his restless spirit. Each character, though flawed, is seen with kindness, nurturing a sense of hope for personal growth and communal harmony.
Setting and Culture
The novel’s vivid setting—a small Nigerian village of agricultural folk—immerses the reader in the vibrant sights, sounds, and traditions of rural life. Emecheta weaves the fabric of this culture seamlessly into the narrative, painting scenes with the aroma of pounded yam dinners, the vibrant hues of "abada cloth," life within thatched compounds, river bathing rituals, and the dynamics of polygamous extended families. As the story unfolds, Emecheta subtly highlights the shifting sands of culture, with the younger generation embracing education and girls dreaming of financial independence to afford finer clothing.
A pivotal element of village life is the "age group," a cohort of individuals born around the same time, who bond closely and support one another. These age group members share a signature hairstyle, undergo rites of passage together, and elect a leader. They conduct much of their affairs away from adult scrutiny, yet turn to their elders when guidance is needed. The age group's leader holds the mantle of defending their honor, giving voice to their collective, representing them in broader society.
In this cultural tapestry, girls marry early; Kwutelu, at seventeen, is already engaged and on the brink of matrimony. In contrast, boys such as Okei, at sixteen, remain on the periphery of romantic interest, not yet ready to shoulder the responsibilities of family life.
Compare and Contrast
1970
The tumultuous Nigerian Civil War draws to a close, leaving in its wake a devastating toll of over a million lives lost to the ravages of warfare, starvation, and disease.
The shadows of conflict linger, with an illiteracy rate soaring to 86% for women and 65% for men, as the nation struggles to emerge from the grip of one of history's most severe famines.
Ancient rivalries between ethnic and religious factions simmer dangerously, their animosities hardly soothed by the war's conclusion.
Today
Fast forward to 1999 and 2000, under the leadership of President Olusegun Obasanjo, the echoes of age-old religious and tribal disputes resound with ferocity, manifesting in violent riots. One such eruption of violence claims over 300 lives in brutal, close-quarters combat.
Amidst these tensions, Nigeria teeters precariously on the edge of yet another civil war, as food and fuel shortages, coupled with frequent power outages, deepen the crisis.
While strides have been made in education with the illiteracy rate dropping to 48% for women and 30% for men, the nation remains ensnared in a web of massive debt, entrenched poverty, and rampant inflation.
Despite the economic prosperity of the 1970s, driven by a windfall of skyrocketing oil prices, Nigeria finds itself mired in the economic turmoil that followed the boom, struggling to break free from the cycle of financial despair.
The enduring conflicts, rooted in centuries past, persist unabated, continuing to stoke the flames of social unrest and exacerbate the political and economic challenges that beset the nation.
Bibliography and Further Reading
Sources
Booker, M. Keith, The African Novel in English: An Introduction, Heinemann, 1998.
Holmes, Julie, “‘Just’ an Igbo Woman,” in The Voice, July 9, 1996.
Jussawalla, Feroza, and Reed Way Dasenbrock, Interviews with Writers of the Post-Colonial World, University Press of Mississippi, 1992.
Motherland Nigeria, http://www.motherlandnigeria.com (July 25, 2001).
Ogunyemi, Chikwenye Okonso, African Wo/Man Palava: The Nigerian Novel by Women, University of Chicago Press, 1996.
Rakov, Simon A., The Postcolonial Web, http://landow.stg. brown.edu/ (July 25, 2001).
United Nations Web site, http://www.un.org (July 25, 2001). Women in an Ibo village like the one in which the story is set.
For Further Reading
Arndt, Susan, African Women’s Literature, Orature, and Intertextuality: Igbo Oral Narratives as Nigerian Women Writers’ Models and Objects of Writing Back, Bayreuth University Press, 1998. This volume examines Igbo oral tradition and its influence on the work of Nigerian women writers.
Fishburn, Katherine, Reading Buchi Emecheta, Greenwood Publishing Co., 1995. This book provides a critical analysis of Emecheta’s life and work.
Umeh, Marie, ed., Emerging Perspectives on Buchi Emecheta, Africa World Press, 1995. This is a collection of critical essays on Emecheta’s work.
Uraizee, Joya F., This Is No Place for a Woman: Nadine Gordimer, Nayantera Sahgal, Buchi Emecheta, and the Politics of Gender, Africa World Press, 2000. This is an analytical survey of three post-colonial African women writers.
