Ideology and Disabling of Patriarchy in Emecheta’s Joys of Motherhood and Second-Class Citizen

Abstract

The voice of feminists in subverting patriarchy is critical in understanding women’s expedition for social justice. The knowledge constitutes the philosophy of human intellect as the African woman hankers for dignity through emancipation. This paper examines Emecheta's concerns in her two literary texts, ‘The Joys of Motherhood and Second-Class Citizen’. Emecheta is one of Africa’s literary elites who drummed support for disabling patriarchal domineering on women. The texts highlight ideology and subversive practices that can help answer the question of how a woman can transcend patriarchal injustices. The study is located within feminist and deconstruction theories, emphasising Emecheta as a writer who produces knowledge about African women. The selected texts, therefore, are important tools in understanding African women, which is critical for the development of the society. The textual analysis method was used to help understand the women writer’s view on the emancipation of the African woman as seen in ‘Joys of Motherhood and Second-Class Citizen.’ The paper argues that Emecheta ideology and disabling patriarchal practices are worthwhile lessons for postcolonial African women in their expeditions for social justice.