🖂 Corresponding author:

B3 Building, Kampus Sekaran, Gunungpati Semarang, Indonesia 50229

E-mail: anggabriefer@gmail.com

p-ISSN: 2252-6323

e-ISSN: 2721-4540

RAINBOW Vol. 10 (2) 2021

Journal of Literature, Linguistics and

Culture Studies
https://journal.unnes.ac.id/sju/index.php/rainbow

Double colonization of Rhodesian women in Tsitsi Dangarembga’s Nervous

Conditions

Angga Brian Fernandi1 🖂, Rahayu Puji Haryanti2,
1, 2

English Department, Faculty of Languages and Arts, Universitas Negeri Semarang, Indonesia

Article Info Abstract

Article History:

Received

17 February 2021

Approved

21 September 2021

Published

30 October 2021

Nervous Conditions focuses on the story of the Shona family living in a patriarchal culture in

Rhodesia during the postcolonial era in the 1960s. Rhodesia was a former British colony,

so the legacy of colonialism and its influence is not that easy to go away. Hence, those who

were colonized, or the locals experience many problems to cope with, especially women.

Therefore, the study aims to examine the postcolonial issues in the novel dealing with

double colonization. The objectives of the study were to describe and explain how the novel

builds the themes related to postcolonialism and how the women living in patriarchy

experienced oppression from male relatives as well as a colonial power. The study was done

qualitatively using a content analysis method. The data were analyzed using Edward Said’s

theory of Orientalism. The findings showed the story highlighted the themes of patriarchy

and cultural contestation which affect the lives of the female characters. Then, the findings

explained how the female characters were oppressed traditionally and colonially.

Therefore, it showed how women were doubly colonized by males and Western

domination. Thus, they had not been able to get full authority since they were trapped

between both.

Keywords:

Postcolonialism,

Orientalism, Women,

Double Colonization

How to cite (in APA Style):

Fernandi, A. B., & Haryanti, R. P. (2021). Double colonization of Rhodesian women in Tsitsi Dangarembga’s ’Nervous

Conditions’. Rainbow: Journal of Literature, Linguistics and Culture Studies, 10(2), 11-22.

https://doi.org/10.15294/rainbow.v10i2.45103

INTRODUCTION

Literature has contribution to the

development of society because “it is combined

with culture and other facets –both abstract and

concrete- of society, not only presents impalpable

subjects like alienation, assimilation, and

transformation in society but also reflects the

palpable issues such as historical, political, and

social facts,” (Dubey, 2013, p. 85). Therefore,

sometimes literature or literary work is used to

convey the issue experienced by society, especially

social issues that may also include political

dimension. It is no wonder if society becomes the

source of inspiration in literary works as what the

author has experienced it as a means to express the

idea of human life that is “…not only the bright

side, but also the seamy and dark side of life,”

(Duhan, 2015, p. 198).

The author usually criticizes the practice

within the society or represents social problems

such as gender, race, or class prejudice. These

problems commonly occur in ex-colonized

countries or in a country having colonial history.

They even have some particular issues for example

agency as the ability of post-colonial subjects to

initiate action in either engaging or resisting

imperial power (Ashcroft, Griffith, & Tiffin, 2007,

mailto:anggabriefer@gmail.com
https://doi.org/10.15294/rainbow.v10i2.45103

Rainbow: Journal of Literature, Linguistics and Culture Studies, Vol. 10 (2) 2021

p-ISSN: 2252-6323

e-ISSN: 2721-4540

p. 6), subaltern that is known as any general

attribute of subordination in South Asian society in

terms of class, caste, age, gender and many others

(Ashcroft et al. 2007, p. 199), and racism as a

cultural phenomenon constructed by capitalism,

colonialism, and prejudiced individuals (Young,

1990, p. 124). Such issues are explored to show the

colonial relations and their aftermath in the

colonized nations.

Novel Nervous Conditions is a novel related to

such issues and written by someone from Third

World countries who experienced colonialism so

that it belongs to a postcolonial novel.The story is

quite complicated since the characterization is

developed within complex social problems. It was

written during the European colonization in what

is now Zimbabwe. Their rule began to visibly

unravel in the 1960s as British empire started to

abandon its colonial possession in Africa. At that

time, the role of Shona women deteriorated during

colonial rule as they were only at home to do daily

customs (Khader, 2016, p. 298). Moreover, the

access to get education is so difficult as the priority

is given to men.

The novel focuses on the story of the Shona

family in Rhodesia during the postcolonial era in

the 1960s. It tells the main character named Tambu

pursuing her dream to get education though she

lives in the rigid tradition of the Rhodesian

patriarchal society. On her journey to get educated,

she faces many events illustrating the issue of

culture, race, ethnicity, and gender. It is caused by

the influence of the European domination in

Rhodesia after the colonial era.

The problem, the influence of colonialism in

a country, is not that easy to answer since there are

many ways of colonial infiltration in terms of

values and culture which are usually done through

movies, education, literature, and religion of the

European people. Hence, those as the ex-colonizer

feel superior, whereas those colonized or the locals

experience many problems to cope with, especially

the women. Women are considered as second-

class citizens and the ones who more likely got

unfair treatment. Moreover, they have been

‘marginalized by patriarchal society and

consequently the history’ (Ashcroft et al, 2007, p.

66). Oppression and inferiority have become

aspects which always come up in ex-colonized

nations. It is not only visible in the deep physical

form, but also at an abstract level, especially in the

space of cultural representation.

Concerning the concept of postcolonialism

in Nervous Conditions, there are many researchers

who discussed it with various topics. First, the

research was done by Odoi, Rafappa, and Klu

(2014) with the title Negotiating Social Change in

Tsitsi Dangarembga’s Nervous Conditions. This

study is conducted by looking at the female

characters within male dominated literary

discourse. The study revealed Nyasha and Lucia

were strong characters as opposed to relatively

docile women like Maiguru and Ma Shingayi.

They used different method and strategy to stand

up for themselves and to fight the negative aspects

of patriarchy and tradition in African

communities.

Second, a research was carried out by Sarah

Miller entitled Self-Destructive Education in Tsitsi

Dangarembga Nervous Conditions (2018). In this

research, she discussed the role of education with

colonial influences on the characters of Tambu and

Nyasha. Therefore, this study aimed to reveal the

influence of education which was dominated by

Western values to the life of Rhodesian women.

Third, Da Silva (2019) also conducted a research

entitled Modernity, Representation of Violence,

and Women Rebellion in Dangarembga’s Nervous

Conditions. The research revealed women's

responses to various forms of violence that target

their bodies and minds. Da Silva did investigation

to female characters who avoid complying with the

cultural norms in Rhodesia.

So far, the previous studies above had

mostly talked about gender equality, especially

how women successfully fight against male

domination and how they were influenced by

western education. The novel presented which

brings the issue of colonialism, culture, race, and

gender. It describes an inferior position of

Rhodesian women during the postcolonial era,

especially when the country was in the process to

gain its independence.It also talks clearly about the

influence of the European domination in Rhodesia

Rainbow: Journal of Literature, Linguistics and Culture Studies, Vol. 10 (2) 2021

p-ISSN: 2252-6323

e-ISSN: 2721-4540

after the war towards the life of the local people.

This has made me think to study the novel further

to identify the problems behind women struggle in

the story. Therefore, this study will describe and

complete the gap from previous studies, because

the issue of Double Colonization in this novel has

not been explored yet. Hence, in order to see the

forms of double colonization in the novel, this

paper would like to see through a perspective of

postcolonialism.

METHODS

Postcolonialism investigates the clash

between two cultures and when one of them has

more power and is superior to the other. It is in line

with the postmodern thinkers that each society or

culture contains the dominant culture that can be

“... culture ideology or its hegemony” (Bressler,

1994, p. 264). Therefore, this paper used a

postcolonial approach to investigate the issue of

double colonization in Dangarembga’s Nervous

Conditions, which is also related to those who are

the marginalized or the Other. The other or

othering is related to the concept of social

representation that develops in the postmodern

world. It is also supported by Ashcroft et al who

argue that ‘subaltern’ has almost the same meaning

with the notion of ‘the other’ who may control

their own representation, and less access to cultural

and social institutions (Ashcroft et al, 2007, p.199).

Additionally, Spivak explained that the

construction of subalterns involves many terms

including gender, race, and caste because when

you are “...poor, black, and female, you get it in

three ways.” (Spivak, 1985, p. 294).

Besides, it is also close to the theory of

orientalism as told by Edward Said that

Orientalism is creating stereotypes or prejudice

towards the eastern societies because it functions

‘…at one and the same time to characterize the

Orient as alien…’ (Said, 1978, p.72). Therefore,

specific trait or aspect of the orient is being depicted

as something far behind the west because they have

‘…helped to define Europe (or the West) as its

contrasting image, idea, personality, experience.’

(Said, 1978, p. 2). This thought has been shaped by

the European imperialist since the 18th and 19th

century.

According to postcolonial figures such as

Gayatr Spivak, Frantz Fanon, Homi Bhabha, and

Edward Said who learn and emphasize different

aspects of postcolonial subjects and terminologies,

this paper focuses on the scope of double

colonization and its relevant subjects. By analysing

the data and paying attention to the discussions,

this paper aims to examine topics such as

postcolonialism through the analysis of the novel.

Furthermore, this paper will discuss further about

the double colonization and its consequences

affecting the lives of female characters in the novel.

In terms of gender issues, postcolonial

theory assumes that the women, especially in the

Third World countries, have bear the brunt of

double oppression: of the colonial nation and of the

native men. This is in line with what Ashcroft,

Griffith, and Tiffin said that double colonization

was the condition when women were doubly

colonized, since both “empire and patriarchy act as

analogous to each other and both exert control

over female colonial subjects.” (Ashcroft et al,

2007, p. 66).

The concept of double colonization is

related to Said’s Orientalism as he stated that

“such…. as “Orient” and “Occident” are man-

made. Therefore, as much as the West itself, the

Orient is an idea that has a history and a tradition

of thought, imagery and vocabulary that have

given it reality and presence in and for the West.”

(Said, 1978, p. 5). It notes that Orientalism is a

Western style to dominate the orient. Therefore,

in relation to double colonization, ‘the orient’

stands for the East and the women, whereas the

‘occident’ stands for the West and the men. Men

are superior to women and thus women as colonial

subjects represent ‘the other’ both for imperial

power and their male relatives as well as society.

This paper was drawn into a qualitative

content analysis method. According to Julien (in

Given, 2008, p. 120-121), qualitative researchers

use content analytic approach to recognize that a

text is open to subjective interpretation as it reflects

multiple meanings. The process of this analytic

method is by categorizing qualitative textual data

Rainbow: Journal of Literature, Linguistics and Culture Studies, Vol. 10 (2) 2021

p-ISSN: 2252-6323

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into clusters of similar entities, or conceptual

categories to derive the meaning both explicitly

and implicitly stated in the content of the story.

Moreover, Creswell (2012, p. 17) argues that the

data of qualitative research is gathered from a text

database or called text segments. It is done by

dividing the text into groups of sentences and

determining the meaning of those describing the

phenomenon brought in the study; segmenting the

text into sentences and explaining the result in

accordance with the topic.

RESULTS AND DISCUSSION

Themes Portrayed in Nervous Conditions

The Struggles of Rhodesian Women Living in

Patriarchal Society

Figure 1. Men versus Women

In Nervous Conditions, men are more

powerful and superior than women. Ma Shingayi

is an illustration of a traditional Rhodesian woman

who did not pursue education. Thereof, in a

society which is very much controlled by modern

culture she certainly does not have the power. She

only accepts and carries out her duties as a woman.

See the quotation below:

‘and these days it is worse, with the poverty of

blackness on one side and the weight of

womanhood on the other. Aiwa! What will help

you my child, is to learn to carry your burdens

with strength.’ (Dangarembga, 1988, p. 16)

In the above quotation, Ma Shingayi gives

an understanding to Tambudzai regarding the

burdens carried by the Rhodesian women. She

thought that as a black woman it is a heavy burden

that has to be accepted and accustomed to from an

early age in order to easily live our life in the future.

This indicates that Tambu's mother is trying to get

her child to take the fate of being a black woman in

Rhodesia. As women, they are the ones who will

take care of the children and the household chores.

The same incident also happened when she

wanted to go to school, but she was not supported

by her father and instead asked her to learn to cook

and do other chores.

Can you Cook books and feed them to your

husband? Stay home with your mother. Learn

to cook and clean. Grow vegetables.

(Dangarembga, 1988, p. 15)

On the other hand, her mother and father do

whatever it takes to keep Nhamo, her elder brother,

in school. Even, Nhamo had the opportunity to

attend education in Babamukuru's place which is

not an ordinary school but a mission school, a

modern English-language school. Pay attention to

the following quotations:

‘why do you bother?’ he asked, his eyes

twinkling maliciously. ‘Don’t you know I am

the one who has to go to school?’

(Dangarembga, 1988, p. 20)

‘Babamukuru says I am so bright I must be

taken away to a good school and be given a

good chance in life. I shall wear shoes and

socks, and shorts with no holes in them, all

brand new,..., I shall stop using my hands to eat.

I will use a knife and fork. (Dangarembga, 1988,

p. 48)

Those quotations emphasize that men have

more access to school. Boys are prioritized for their

interests and needs because they will be relied on

to help their families in the future.

The descriptions above point out theme of

patriarchy as the customs in the traditional life of

the Rhodesia people in the novel, especially the

Shona people. The descriptions of the character's

behaviour and storylines in the novel emphasize

how the tradition defines Shona women who do

not get the same opportunities as men do. The

female characters in this novel represent

Rhodesian women who are under the grip of a

patriarchal cultural tradition

Cultural Contestation in Rhodesia: Tradition versus

Modernity

Rainbow: Journal of Literature, Linguistics and Culture Studies, Vol. 10 (2) 2021

p-ISSN: 2252-6323

e-ISSN: 2721-4540

Figure 2. Modernity versus Tradition

The story in this novel also shows the existence

of cultural contestation among the society,

especially between traditional culture vs modern

culture, a representation of Western culture, as

former colonialists. This is depicted through

Babamukuru’s family as a cultural representation

of England and Tambu’s family in the village

which is a representation of Rhodesia. This

contestation is shown through the conflict that

Tambu experienced when she with her native

background had to join the family of his uncle,

Babamukuru, who had a Western educational

background. This makes Tambu adjust her

behaviour and lifestyle while living with

Babamukuru on a mission as shown in the

following incidents:

Then I greeted her. It was necessary to sit on

the floor to do this. I sat, folding my legs up

under my bottom. I clapped my hands.

‘Nyamashewe, Maiguru, how are you?’

(Dangarembga, 1988, p. 131)

All the same, I did not feel up to confessing

that I had not known what bedclothes were, but

it did not matter. Observing what Nyasha was

wearing I found something similar in my

suitcase. These, then, were the bedclothes.

(Dangarembga, 1988, p. 91).

These quotations explain that Tambu

initially held and practiced the local traditional

culture when she stayed at Babamukuru's house for

the first time. As she never intersects with modern

culture before, Tambu is described as being foreign

to the modern items in the house. Even, she

noticed that some things were new to her. It was

the time when Tambu was trying to adjust to the

new environment as if she began to realize that

there was a need in her to start learning the modern

values at the mission.

Rhodesia, in the above quotations, shows a

change in society that has emerged around them a

field of contestation of foreign and local cultures.

As a result, various problems arise in the struggle

for positions between the two cultures. Apart from

Tambu, characters such as Babamukuru, Maiguru,

Nyasha, and Chido also experience the

consequences of this cultural contestation. They

should adapt to local traditions when they visit the

homestead as what Tambu and Nhamo argued

below:

‘Didn’t you see Babakumuru eat with his

hands? All of them, Maiguru and those proud

children. They all ate with their hands..

(Dangarembga, 1988, p. 48)

But in their own home they use them. Each

one has his own plate with his own portion of

food and his knife and fork. I asked Chido if

they eat like that at home and he said yes.

(Dangarembga, 1988, p. 48)

The quotations above prove that the

backgrounds and situations with cultural

differences have shown how the characters adapt

their life from traditional to modern and vice versa.

According to the explanation above, Nervous

Conditions portrays a cultural contact between the

West and Rhodesia. It is no wonder that the

characters experience overlapping identities

because of the contestation of the two cultures.

Double Colonization of Rhodesian Women in

Nervous Conditions

Rhodesian Women and Traditional Oppression

Figure 3. Binary Opposition: Traditional Oppression

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p-ISSN: 2252-6323

e-ISSN: 2721-4540

In Nervous Conditions, women are an important

community. The main character in this story,

Tambudzai, is the one who gets the most detailed

character development. In this research, Tambu is

considered as a representation of Rhodesian

women and their position in the society is a

concern to be illustrated here.

According to the story, the background for

Tambu's life is Shona culture. All of Tambu's

behaviours, problems, and responses to life cannot

be separated from the culture around her life. The

culture of the Shona people in this novel is depicted

through people's behaviour. For example, showing

actions of maintaining harmony with nature,

adhering to traditional beliefs that are different

from the beliefs of the average European nations,

and what is equally important is the depiction of

the relationship between men and women in the

Shona tradition.

Culture related to male-to-female relations in

Shona culture as depicted in the novel is how men

are supported to occupy a higher position than

women. This culture was shown in various events,

for example when Nhamo had the opportunity to

attend missionary school and Babamukuru who

was trusted by white people to become the

headmaster of the school. Those are seen in the

following quotations,

‘But how can he study when there is no

electricity? How can he read when there are no

books? Even going to school, how can he do

that everyday when there is so much work to be

done on the homestead?...What we must do is to

let Nhamo stay with us at the mission, let him

go to school there.’ (Dangarembga, 1988, p. 46)

‘But Mukoma was lucky. He got the chance.

He went to the mission at an early eage. The

missionaries looked after him so well, you

know...’ (Dangarembga, 1988, p. 5).

The quotations above note that Rhodesian

men are trusted than women in education and

occupation. Babamukuru and Nhamo are the

colonized men, but they take the advantage of

European education to strengthen the position in

the society. Hence, the local women would

consider that men should be obeyed and respected

since they are the head of the patriarch and the

ones who are relied on. As a result, women can

easily be controlled and ruled by men since men

are superior to women, and women is considered

as the other in relation to male relatives. Therefore,

Tambu is inferior to her brother, Nhamo, while

Maiguru and Nyasha are inferior to Babamukuru.

The main character, Tambu, is a

representation of a girl who grew up in this

traditional culture. Through the words of this

character, data can be obtained that women are

considered as second-class citizens, and inferior to

men. See the quotation below:

The needs and sensibilities of women in my

family were not considered a priority, or even

legitimate. That was why I was in Standard

Three in the year that Nhamo died, instead of

Standard Five, as I should have been by that age.

(Dangarembga, 1988, p. 12).

The quotation above shows that through the

words of Tambu, women are considered as second-

class citizens, unprivileged, and inferior to men,

and thus they are ‘the other’.

Based on the novel, the differences of the

women’s role from men are introduced from an

early age with men in a superior position. Hence,

the women are encouraged to learn how to do their

duties since they were children. They are assigned

to do chores such as washing clothes, providing

water for bathing, and cooking food to be served

each day. That is proven from the following

quotation:

‘...which was twenty four stomachs to fill

three times a day....twenty four people’s laundry

to wash...Now this kind of work was women’s

work.. So Maiguru, Nyasha, the three helping

girls and myself were on our feet all day’

(Dangarembga, 1988, p. 133).

The quotation illustrates how modern

Shona women continue to carry out chores when

they are at homestead. It was said by Tambu when

the extended family gathering was held at the

homestead. She, Nyasha, Maiguru, still adapt to

local traditions even though they have received

Western education.

Another position of Rhodesian women in

this novel is portrayed through the character of

Nyasha, a woman with a modern culture who is

often in conflict with her father, Babamukuru,

because of her behaviour which is deemed

Rainbow: Journal of Literature, Linguistics and Culture Studies, Vol. 10 (2) 2021

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e-ISSN: 2721-4540

inappropriate for the Shona women. In the view of

the Babamukuru, Shona women should behave

like domestic women who are always obedient and

polite in accordance with the Rhodesian

patriarchal culture. See the following quotation

‘No decent girl would stay out alone, with a

boy, at that time of the night,’ What’s the matter

with you girl? Why can’t you behave like a

young woman from a decent home?

(Dangarembga, 1988, p. 103).

Nyasha continues to practice western values

in Rhodesia which is considered bad and wrong.

She did not want to be a woman who was always

controlled, she wanted to be free, to express what

is in her mind, and to do what she intended. She

still minded getting accustomed to local customs

that she had forgotten for years. This is shown in

the following quotation:

‘It’s not England anymore and I ought to

adjust. But when you’ve seen different things

you want to be sure you are adjusting to the right

thing. You cannot go on all the time being

whatever’s necessary. You’ve got to have some

conviction, and I’m convinced I don’t want to

be anyone’s underdog. But once you get used to

it, well, it just seems natural and you just carry

on. And that’s the end of you, you’re trapped...’

(Dangarembga, 1988, p. 117).

According to the explanation aforesaid,

women in the traditions of Rhodesian society

during postcolonial era, especially Shona women,

had a role or position as the lady of the house who

takes care of the children and family. This showed

that women in Rhodesian society as depicted in the

novel experienced traditional oppression. The

traditions of society did not give women the

freedom to determine their destiny or pursue their

ambitions, especially in the world of education,

work, and self-actualization. The local traditions in

this story led men to be privileged citizens with a

role as leaders of their families since they were

born. Thus, women are inferior, powerless, and

voiceless in front of men.

Rhodesian Women and Colonial Oppression

Regarding the history of colonialism, Khader

(2000) stated that the status of Shona women

deteriorated under colonial rule. This is because

women acted as mediators in every dispute even as

the head of the community during the pre-colonial

period. He also added that in the late 1930s, the

role of women in various interests vanished and

instead carried out tasks that were usually done by

men such as in agriculture, including harvesting

and planting. Meanwhile, men worked for

Europeans in the railways, mining and agriculture.

They left the women to grow their own crops. As a

result, women have a lot of work to do (Khader,

2000, p. 298). Additionally, Ilma (2016, p. 5) says

that in a colonial situation there was a hierarchy of

four categories, namely men (Europe), women

(Europe), bumiputra (men in colonies), and liyan or

the others (women in colonies). The hierarchy even

placed women in colonized countries lower than

European women.

Figure 4. Binary Opposition 1

The story in the novel Nervous Conditions

does not present a dominant Western character,

but there are some white missionaries. The

mention of words "white people" in some parts of

the novel refers to European people who evoke

memories of Western colonialism in Rhodesia. See

the quotation below:

Another thing that was different about the

mission was there were many white people

there. The Whites on the mission were a special

kind of white person...They had come not to

take but to give. They were about God’s

business here in darkest Africa. They had given

up the comforts and security of their own homes

to come and lighten our darkness.

(Dangarembga, 1988, p. 103)

The quotation above illustrates the local

thought towards those of white people at the

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e-ISSN: 2721-4540

missionary school in their area. The Shona saw

and welcomed these white people with joy. In their

view, the whites came to enlighten the Rhodesian,

to help them to eradicate the suffering, and to

educate them to be civilized. The term "not to take

but to give" emphasizes the superiority of the West

and inferiority of the black African.

Some of the dialogues also note people's

memories of this colonial history, for example

when Tambu received a scholarship to the Young

Ladies College of the Sacred Heart dormitory. She

got a different treatment at the school in which the

majority of the students were the whites. She was

placed in a room with other black students and

given a second-hand uniform. Look at the

dialogues below,

‘I wished I had been wearing a uniform like

the other girls I had seen. But I was getting my

uniform second-hand.’

‘Ah, yes, we have more Africans here than

usual this year and so we had to put them all in

here,’ agreed the nun.

(Dangarembga, 1988, p. 194)

The conversation above shows that Tambu

as the black girl is considered as the other among

the white student in her new college. The college

indeed grants Tambu a scholarship, yet they still

have the Eurocentric mindset by dividing the

African students into one room instead of giving

them the same treatment.

Colonialism these days is not always

physical, but also non-physical such as ideas and

norms. This is also shown in the novel Nervous

Conditions with the existence of missionary school

and church as means to educate the society about

Christianity. This is the way the colonizer uses

Christianity as an influential factor to transform

the values, cultures, beliefs, and the mind of

colonized people. Tambu, and other female

characters seemed to change their religion to

Christian from the traditional belief. See the

following quotations:

It was on Sunday. We went to church as we

usually did. All of us went to church on Sunday,

even Nyasha, and Anna too…In Sunday school

we learnt about charity, love, and sin.

(Dangarembga, 1988, p. 97-98)

… and asked me about all sorts of fine details,

details that I was not very sure of since we did

not often perform this ritual anymore.

(Dangarembga, 1988, p. 147)

These quotes indicate that women are also

the target of western hegemony because they

should obey the male relatives. Once they are

asked to go to church or at home, they do not have

choice to take it down. The European introduces

Christianity and it gives an impact on women's life

because it brings masculine fundamentalism, and

thus such patriarchal religion does not let women

act like leaders. Therefore, women living in

patriarchal culture do not have space to resist since

they are trapped between the norms, customs, and

colonial influence. The existence of missionary

and church has reshaped the religion of the locals

into modern religion which is spread through

educational institution and religious activities.

Figure 5. Binary Opposition 2

Babamukuru as the male character

representing western ideas and values expressed

his belief to remove sins from wrongdoing that was

done by Tambu’s parents in the past. Babamukuru

believed that the distress experienced by Jeremiah's

family was because he never married in a religious

manner as described in the quotation below:

That is how we are judged and blessed

accordingly... You have not been married in

church before God. This is a serious matter.’

(Dangarembga, 1988, p. 146-147)

Babamukuru's reason for choosing marriage

was because he linked it to religious matters. He

had gone to England and interacted with the

missionaries and attended Sunday services at

Church. However, Tambu did not feel like such an

Rainbow: Journal of Literature, Linguistics and Culture Studies, Vol. 10 (2) 2021

p-ISSN: 2252-6323

e-ISSN: 2721-4540

idea. This makes herself have a dilemma and be

oppressed because she could not express her

opinions to Babamukuru. She just did not want to

go to the wedding, and it made her uncle angry.

See the quotations below:

‘I am telling you! If you do not go to the

wedding, you are saying you no longer want to

live here. I am the head of this house. Anyone

who defies my authority is an evil thing in this

house, bent on destroying what I have made.’

(Dangarembga, 1988, p. 167).

In this case, Babamukuru enforced

patriarchy in terms of family discussions and

decision-making. Moreover, he got rid of his

tradition of cleaning ceremonies and replaced it

with Christian marriages. Tambu was trapped

between those and the way she tried to refuse was

by being silent and not going to her parent’s

wedding. Tambu had no chance to voice her

opinion as both traditional and colonial power was

imposed on her. Hence, Tambu is inferior to

Babamukuru and such western values since she is

successfully controlled and ruled without having

any power to speak out.

Apart from Tambu, Nyasha also tends to

imitate not only the behaviour of the Western, but

also its values. Therefore, when she returned to her

own land, she has a different view towards the

local culture and environment which she had

forgotten. Nyasha’s behaviour is likely to those of

White people. She speaks English more than local

language, she dresses differently from other girls,

as well as she reads adults and historical books.

This is shown in the quotation below:

‘They don’t understand Shona very well

anymore,’ her mother explained. ‘They have

been speaking nothing but English for so long

that most of their Shona had gone.’

(Dangarembga, 1988, p. 42)

Do you see the kind of books your daughter is

reading?’ Maiguru asked my uncle, taking

Nyasha’s copy of Lady Chatterley’s Lover from

the dresser and showing it to my uncle.

(Dangarembga, 1988, p. 81).

The quotations above show that Nyasha

with her westernized behaviour has made herself

practice Western ideas especially the values of

freedom and individualism. As a result, she does

things according to her will, not other’s. What

Nyasha did was the impact of her experiences

when she lived in England. However, she forgot

that the patriarchy has made herself should abide

by the men. She is a Rhodesian woman whose

position is in the lower than Rhodesian men and

even the Whites. Nyasha is expected to have good

behavior and adjust to the traditions and customs

of the Shona community.

Figure 6. Binary Opposition 3

Thus, this novel shows the effort of

colonization in ideas and values, which is nearly a

success, but not completely work out. Most

characters lived in mixed cultural identity since

there are still both Rhodesian and western values

in the story. However, preserving the local

tradition and values is quite hard for those who

have acquainted and enjoyed westernization. This

was shown in the characters of Nyasha in the

quotations below:

I find it more and more difficult to speak with

the girls at school. They resent me the fact that

I do not read their romance stories and if I do

not read them, then of course I cannot talk about

them. They do not like my language, my

English, because it is authentic and my Shona,

because it is not! They think that I am a snob,

that I think I am superior to them....I very much

would like to belong Tambu, but I find I do not.

(Dangarembga, 1988, p. 196)

Another evidence is when Nyasha talked to

Tambu about how she felt for the treatment she

received in Rhodesia. She expressed her thoughts

on returning to Rhodesia after several years living

in England. She got stressed because of the

Rainbow: Journal of Literature, Linguistics and Culture Studies, Vol. 10 (2) 2021

p-ISSN: 2252-6323

e-ISSN: 2721-4540

situation she was facing. Look at the following

quotation:

‘Why do they do it, Tambu,’ she hissed

bitterly, her face contorted with rage, ‘to me and

to you and to him? Do you see what they’ve

done? They’ve taken us away. All of us. We’re

grovelling. Daddy grovels to them. We grovel

to him.’ (Dangarembga, 1988, p. 200).

The pronoun him in the quote is

Babamukuru, and the pronoun they or them stands

for the white people, Westerners, or missionaries.

Nyasha's expression emphasized that the local

people of Rhodesia were inferior in their own

country, while the domination was held by another

group, namely the former colonizers who were

often mentioned as being present in Rhodesian

culture. Since Rhodesian people were inferior, they

are representation of the other in the presence of

the white or the European.

Rhodesian women in Nervous Condition are

considered ‘the other’ in relation to men.

Correspondingly, the men belong to colonized

ones and seen as ‘the other’ by the Whites.

Nonetheless, they get more privileges than women

which make themselves occupy a higher position.

As a result, men are like the European or the

colonizer towards the women themselves. Then, it

comes to the condition and situation in which the

women are controlled both by male and colonial

power. Such situation is constructed by the

existence of patriarchal culture as well as the

influence of colonial legacy in form of culture,

values, and ideas. From all the quotations which

have been elaborated, the theory of orientalism

therefore leads this finding and discussion in

analysing a phenomenon which perhaps still

happen to people especially women who live in ex-

colonized countries.

CONCLUSION

By investigating the female characters

throughout the story in the novel, by looking at the

events, dialogues, as well as their relation to male

characters, this research reveals the themes that are

highlighted in Nervous Condition, namely women

struggle who live in patriarchal society and cultural

contestation between tradition and modernity.

Rhodesian identity is presented in the form of

cultural norms or tradition as well as the existence

of colonial legacy in the story. The novel reveals

the patriarchy system in the family of the Shona

tribe in Rhodesia.

The research also found that women

characters in the novel experienced double

colonization. They got oppression traditionally

and colonially. First, Traditional oppression came

from their local customs as patriarchal society

which positioned Rhodesian women inferior to

men. Second, they also experienced colonial

repression which came from the colonial legacy

that happened and could be found in Rhodesia as

a former British colony. It made Rhodesian

women, that were considered as black women,

were in the lowest position in the hierarchy, even

lower than European women or the Whites. As a

result, they were always in the inferior position

compared to the local men and the white people.

No wonder they were not fully free or independent.

This research therefore draws a conclusion

that even though Rhodesian women had

experienced western education and culture, they

would be trapped in the patriarchy and the

hegemony of the West. Thereby, Rhodesian

women in Nervous Conditions experienced double

colonization which makes them incapable of

getting freedom or full authority. They were

positioned as such because they were not able to

claim to be purely traditional nor to have adopted

Western cultures thoroughly but fight in between

them.

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