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The desire to adhere to hetero-patriarchal social conventions of masculinity is a problematic issue that many of the men seem to personify in Purple Hibiscus and A Streetcar Named Desire.
The wish to conform to a toxic patriarchal form of control and domination were brought about by the institutions that plagued 1940s Puritanical America, as well as, the Fundamentalist Catholic Nigeria. The exploration of the response of such male devices is skillfully crafted by both writers throughout the structure, form and language of the two texts.
Through a New Historicist interpretation of the text, one may view the main male characters as critical in the understandings of the societies they inhabited and thrived in. Presenting these male characters as seemingly “alienated,” devices who “looked for new stability,” in terms of exerting their positions of masculine domination through psychological and physical manipulation.
This is implied through the first scene in A Streetcar Named Desire whereby Stanley “starts to remove his shirt,” in front of Blanche, “making himself comfortable,” despite Blanche’s inferred distress at the situation.
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As well as, within Purple Hibiscus, as shown by Eugene’s effect on the family in chapter one. Their “eagerness” to “talk about how good it tasted”, indicates to the reader the psychological control over the family and the noun “eager,” only emphasizes Kambili’s willingness to please the patriarch. Structurally, Adichie titles the first chapter of Purple Hibiscus, “Breaking Gods, Palm Sunday.” This title is symbolic and a possible reference to Jesus Christ’s triumphant entry into Jerusalem.
The first part of the title could be interpreted as a reference to how Eugene breaks the figurines, or the gods that personify an object of comfort for his wife whenever he abuses her, with his “missal,” which is a symbol of Catholicism.
If we go into a closer word analysis of the plural noun ‘Gods,’ we could view this as a symbolic reference to the once polydeism of pre-colonial Nigeria when faced with the fundamentalist post-colonial Nigeria. This could reference Eugene himself, and the control Catholicism enables him to have. Nonetheless, the reference to the “missal” being synonymous to violence and domination is one that is prevalent in post-colonial Nigeria, in which the novel takes place. This concept of the papal infallibility is the premise in which the Christian Church and Catholicism are based staunchly upon, often exerted through the dominance in the family. Nigeria itself is one dominated by the Christian religion, and the ideas of Catholic morality and shame are interwoven with traditional ideologies at the time.
In breaking the “figurines” with the “missal” one may interpret it a sign of misogynistic oppression augmented by Catholic beliefs and doctrine. Kambili testifies to this when she says that, “Maybe Mama had realized that she would not need the figurines anymore; that when Papa threw his missal at Jaja, it was not just the figurines that came tumbling down, it was everything.” Therefore, Adichie appears to comment through the structure of the novel the inherent links between masculine control and authority and the infallibility gifted to them by the major institutions in the society. Additionally, from a feminist interpretation, it could be seen that beliefs ensure that the woman is permanently placed in the secondary position. It is internalized that the sole aim of a woman’s existence, according to such a mistaken belief, is to satisfy the man. As stated by T.E Kyei, “it is believed that a woman has no worth or honor outside marriage in an African society because “A husband crowns a woman’s life.” No matter the level of a woman’s achievement, she is owned by her father or husband, who has dominance over her.”
In comparison to A Streetcar Named Desire, throughout the structure of the play, Stanley is presented as the main antagonistic driving force: virtually personifying the theme of control and domination in the metaphorical battlefield of the household. This is evident through both the stage directions, his “hurling” of objects “to the floor.” As well as, his “gaudy,” appearance, which almost represents his hegemonic power and the significant obstacle he becomes when his authority is challenged in the family. The adjectives used to describe him are short, vowel like sounds, the linguistics seemingly placing emphasis on the power and dominance of the character. Almost equating him to a troglodytic “King.” Similarly to Eugene, the physical act of smashing the “plate” in Chapter 8 is a response to the challenge of the philosophy of dominance that Stanley embodies – the response to the interpretive sentence spoken by Stella, “help me clear the table.” One could read this section using feminist critique. The conflict between masculine, feminine, the dominant and the submissive. The common occurrence whenever the 1940s status quo is reversed, Stanley responds with violence. To put her in her place. Consolidating his position of power in the marriage and in the household.
Additionally, through the portrayal of domestic femininity, both authors emphasize a form of reproductive control often present within abusive marriages and power plays. The control of Beatrice's pregnancies being one of these methods of domination that Eugene exhibits. In one of these episodes, Eugene tells his family members to visit Father Benedict, their parish priest, after a Sunday Mass. Beatrice expresses her desire to stay in the car because of her nausea and dizziness due to her pregnancy. Eugene sees this as an evident challenge to his authority as the sole patriarch. Beatrice becomes the example for that initial act of seeming dissent and suffers a miscarriage. Adichie appeals to the sense of language during the description of miscarriage, specifically the strong auditory language such as the onomatopoeic “thumping.” Through the trope of the body, Adiche explores the spectacle of autocratic power and articulates the notion of patriarchal tyranny in the private sphere. Eugene's fallibility is revealed to the reader, in it Adichie highlights the devastating effects of patriarchal control in the family and of Beatrice’s pregnancy. One can examine this form of control from a psychoanalytical perspective, as the guilt from not being able to carry the baby full term as well as combined with the traditional Nigerian expectations of a wife, and a woman would coerce Beatrice into staying with her husband toppled with the plethora of socio-economic factors. Presenting Eugene as embodying a toxic masculine philosophy whereby Eugene can control his marriage in an physical and psychological manner.
Similarly, in A Streetcar Named Desire, upon Stella becoming increasingly assertive in chapter 8 – Stanley responds harshly, with only the pregnancy and arrival of the baby becoming a motif of Stella's subdued domesticity. One may interpret this as when Stella grows angrier, her grammar becomes more formal, and she uses contractions such as “needn’t.” Stanley’s grammar, on the other hand, grows thoughtless, and he begins to speak in sentence fragments. From a Marxist perspective and deeper language analysis Stella and Stanley's reversion indicates their respective retreats away from each other into their social stratas. However, when Stella seems to be thinking independently from Stanley and reasserting her connection to Blanche in her outrage at Stanley’s cruelty, she goes into labor. Thus the action that constitutes the greatest assertion of independence Stella makes toward Stanley throughout the entire play ends with a reminder of the situation she is caught in.
The baby asserts Stella’s connection to Stanley and makes Stella dependent on him once more, the baby seemingly becoming a metaphorical anchor tethering Stella. He is once again the dominant figure of control as he takes her to the hospital. One may view this from a Marxist feminist perspective, as Rosemaire Tong remarks: 'Woman’s position within the family may help explain the problem of developing working class consciousness. As with exchange relationships in general in capitalism, underlying these seemingly equal exchange relationships are power relationships.’ Indicating that through the use of the baby and in turn the pregnancy, both Stanley and Eugene control their wives and thus gain leverage in their position of the household. To contrast, the use of Ifeoma as a foil to Eugene presents the toxicity of his dominance. As well as, a catalyst to uncover the destructive masculinity that influences Nigerian culture. This is first made evident with her teeth which “reveal a gap.” This is deemed a sign of courage and confidence, intelligence, beauty and fertility in African culture. In medieval folklore, it was considered a sign of insatiable lust. One may interpret this to mean that Ifeoma has an insatiable lust for life with her “laughter” and “passion for justice.” Additionally, she is as “tall,” as Eugene, she does not consider herself to be subordinate, she is his equal. Thus becoming a challenge to his authority and to the break the rhetoric that the Achike family has taken as testament. This is evident in chapter 10, where even as Kambili “cries” and longs for a close relationship with her grandfather, the only thing she can say out loud is to repeat Papa’s dogma.
Aunty Ifeoma acts as the personification of the middle as she clarifies her approach to religion. She herself, is still a Catholic, however, her beliefs are not forced on others, or does she consider the Catholic approach to be the only one with value. In her explanation of Papa-Nnukwu she also emphasizes the importance of cultural tradition, of valuing where you come from as a source of strength. This influences Kambili’s own approach and becomes a catalyst to the loosening hold that Eugene has on his family, specifically his children. Comparably, Blanche acts as the foil to Stanley in presenting herself as an evident challenge to his authority over Stella, his family and his home. However, unlike Ifeoma, she does not succeed in changing Stella’s ideology. Rather, she only worsens her own situation and the tension between her and Stanley. One may argue the evident climax of this tension is the implied rape of Blanche at the end of scene 10. The implied rape not only incorporates physical but also psychological response to challenge, further accentuating the significance of this moment in terms of a response to dominance in the family.
The ongoing metaphorical and verbal conflict between Blanche and Stanley reaches a climax here, when the two are alone. Stanley’s hate for her and Blanche’s dislike for him have reached a bursting point and the implied violence ere results in Stanley not only displaying his supremacy over her physically but also sexually. However, this is merely a microcosmic example to the true macrocosm of the wider 1940's society, the rape links to the dichotomy and conflict between men and women in the play. Rape is perhaps transformed into the contextual symbol of male dominance over women, and as such, Williams almost uses this event to highlight the ongoing violence between the sexes. The fact that it is later covered up by most of the characters suggests that this is something that a man can get away within the microcosmic society of Elysian Fields, or the macrocosmic 1940's America. A Marxist inflicted approach would argue the implied rape symbolizes the differences between the declining bourgeoisie and the rising proletariat. Stanley, encapsulating the proletariat physically and emotionally beats Blanche here, and this is representative of the way that the Lower class appears to be winning the violent struggle for dominance in society at the time Williams is writing; in turn Stanley retains his position as “King,” and the dominant force in control of the family.
In conclusion, Williams and Adichie portray their male characters in familiar relationships and roles in a similar light. The toxic masculine, father, being seen as a driving force for both antagonism and dominance — perhaps a further commentary on the prevalence of the destructive forces that hegemonic masculine ideas within the family. Perhaps this fits in with Adichie’s own feminist agenda, and, in turn, Williams identity as that of a homosexual male: one which would view the family as an object of conflict for his own agenda. Thus, their portrayals of the male forces in their texts may be interpreted as a commentary of their own personified experiences with familiar and social dynamics; encompassing, in a twisted male philosophy, the two apparent driving forces of both the novel, play and the household.
Male Dominance in Purple Hibiscus And a Streetcar Named Desire. (2024, Feb 29). Retrieved from https://studymoose.com/male-dominance-in-purple-hibiscus-and-a-streetcar-named-desire-essay
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