Dangarembga's "Nervous Conditions"

Nervous Conditions by Tsitsi Dangarembga (Ch. 1-7)

In the first seven chapters of Dangarembga's novel, "Nervous Conditions", the layout of characters as well as the layout of character situations and lifestyles are given to the reader as direct as a non-fiction story, however there is underlying meaning to the specific characterization and of character motives, which in the end makes for a well-written story of depth.

Tambu is a black African. This is a factual statement about the young maturing girl, but Tambu does not face the struggles of having dark skin, rather she faces the struggles of poverty, cultural restrictions and growing up outside her homestead.

Tambu, Babamukuru, Maiguru and Nyasha are described in much detail in the middle to later chapters in the book. With such defintion in characterization, Dangarembga is able to display a believeable family with disfunction, faults and reality on the page before her audience. Dangarembga is literally telling a story through the eyes of an African girl, perhaps a representation of herself and her experiences, but she is also critiquing society's differing view on education of boys and girls, the struggle to maintain tradition without losing family connections and values as well as the inevitable conflict of turning "white" after possessing a degree, wealth and a modern lifestyle.

As Tambu notices her brother Nhamo changing she realizes that he is changing in ways that ostracize him from his original family. In a way, he has become a superior being, education has transformed him into the hope of his family at the cost of assimilating him into the version of a success seen by white men. Nyasha is also seen as a new person when she visits the homestead after living in England for five years. She is unable to recall her once native tongue of Shona and she no longer partakes in ceremonial greetings, her and Chido have grown up in a different society with different customs which also outcast them as strangers in Tambu's eyes. Due to the abandonment of heritage and of family, Nhamo dies and Chido is not spoken of again, these two men have crossed a one directional path, there is no reversing for them, they are deemed lost forever.

Tambu, however, is faced with the challenges of chosing an education or losing her roots once she is brought to the mission school. There she discovers that life is not associated with dirt and that cleanliness is a must, she learns English which inherently changes her into a seemingly developed lady to her educators.

Now to the main concern of the novel, how are Maiguru and Ma'shingayi trapped? How did Lucia and Tambu escape and how did Nyasha rebel?

Maiguru, the mother of the colonized, Angliced children of Chido and Nyasha, is described throughout the first seven chapters as being a mother bird, always "chirpping" and tending to her family's needs. She is an educated woman with a Master's degree, however not many people, if any take the time to recognize or ask Maiguru about her achievement, she is and still remains in her husband, Babamukuru's shadow. She is indeed trapped in the first seven chapters by her desire to raise her children and perform her housewifery well but her devotion to husband and children proves to be detrimental in her self realization, she is always tired and spends most of her time in the kitchen eating left over gravy after the meat is sufficiently eaten by the men. Maiguru is a slave to her choice of lifestlye, she has chosen her family instead of pursuing a meaningful job like Babamukuru, in the end her entrapment is her choice and sacrifice.

Ma'shingayi experiences this same entrappment, she is of the lower half of the hierarchy of the Siguake family, therefore she has become a product of her poverty-stricken environment. Her exposure to poverty has been lifelong and marrying Jerimiah sealed her fate. She remains a wife to a poor man and a mother to a dead but gifted oldest boy as well as three daughters. Her sole mission in life is to bear a son, which will bring redemption and pride to the family since boys have the opportunity of an education. Always being the lower half of the family is the unescapable trap that Ma'shingayi is caught and she is forever entangled in her destiny which was determined after her marriage to Jerimiah and the death of her hopeful son.

Lucia is a bold and fiery woman, which immediately sets her apart from her sister and Maiguru. She is unmarried and has yet to give birth to her baby in chapters one through seven. She is the quintessential powerful woman, opposite of every other woman her age in the book. Lucia lives her life according to herself and she relies on her strength and not the ability of men to provide for her. Lucia has escaped the life of eternal motherhood and inferiority in Shona culture, she even has the audacity to interupt Babamukuru in mid meeting to state her opinion, instead of being a martyr she is a matriarch, this is the factor that seperates her from the entrapped women.

Tambu, the narrator, has escaped this "entrappment" even though she is pursuing an education. She notes the differences in homestead life and that of the mission, she knows that she is unable to live on the homestead full time after her experience at the mission school, but she does not refuse to visit her family for Christmas like Nhamo, Chido and even Nyasha do. She tries to balance her old self with the new self by attending to old customs and doing her duties as a child on the homestead after her return. Tambu escapes due to her awareness of her surroundings and her perception of life. She does not, however, deny the changes she undergoes; she enjoys her new clothes, her classmates, the dances (finally) and the running water but she makes an effort not to scorn at the disgusting toilets and the dung floors of her old home.

Nyasha is without a doubt a rebel. She disobeys Babamukuru and admits to being accustomed to English lifestyle and habits such as dressing in short dresses and attending dances and talking to many boys. She is a strong character, like Lucia, because she has the fire to defend her position to her father as well as walk away unaffected by her father's brutally outrageous attack. She reads what she wants and gleans as much information as she can from her adult books in order to take her education in her own hands. Her downfall may be her stubborn attitude but because of this she is relatable, therefore the success of her rebellion depends on the reader's interpretation.

After reading chapters one to seven, I am baffled by how similar the Siguake family is to mine. I am shocked to think that this is an African family in the sixties and seventies. Most of the characters are relatable, especially Babamukuru, Maiguru and Nyasha. My family has gone through up and downs like any other family has, however, Dangarmebga's detailing of these particular character's traits and interactions is precisely spot on to my father, mother and twin sister. Babamukuru, the loved and coveted member of the family is the patriarch, respected by all that see his accomplishments and authority outside of the house. But Babamukuru has two faces, once his mask is unveiled the true power of control is seen. He rules his family by fear and is used to submission while my mother, Maiguru, does her best to mediate her family without choosing sides to offend the others. She defends her babies, her maternal instict, but in the end she goes to my father. The perfect loyal companion. Nyasha, the studious girl with an expressive and blunt personality is my sister up and down. I have immensely been impressed with Tsitsi Dangarembga's writing and this novel is one of the best story-telling and revealing books I have read.