ENG2603 Assignment 1 2020

Introduction of the essay: Question 1: Nervous Conditions by Tsitsi Dangarembga The novel Nervous Conditions by Tsisti Dangarembga’s explores how Rhodesian women in the 1960’s are oppressed by colonization, patriarchy, race, gender, culture and class. The novel examines the inequalities women face through the representation of Dangarembga’s narrator, Tambu. Early in her life Tambu’s mother says to her: “[t]his business of women is a heavy burden…when there are sacrifices to be made, you are the one who has to make them.” This essay will show how Ma’Shingayi’s comment applies to the novel by analyzing the burdens and sacrifices of Dangarembga’s characters, Tambu, Ma’Shingayi, Maiguru and Nyasha. These burdens and sacrifices result in the women’s nervous conditions. The essay will argue that these women’s nervous conditions are brought about colonialism, gender discrimination, cultural norms and social class, which demote them to an inferior position. In addition, the essay will reveal how the women challenge and erode to some extent the inequalities they face in the patriarchal society they inhabit. (Dangarembga 1988:16)