Decolonising the Mind:A Study of Purple Hibiscus by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

Gender equations become a major area of feminist concern since they regard gender as a cultural construct. Being a woman may be a biological categorization but being feminine is a cultural construct. The ideological weight of hierarchy and power, the problematic of subtly created spaces of binary oppositions, and the dynamics of superiority and inferiority traverse every realm of human experience and system of possibilities. Since time immemorial, women have always remained underdogs and have been made the victims of humiliation, torture and exploitation. Most of the women suffer their plight silently. Only a few takes the courage to speak against this injustice. Some even resort to rebellion (whether openly or secretly) and refuse to give up their deep carnal desires. The tussle between a woman’s longing for individuality and the restrictions imposed on them by the society has been a favourite topic on which women writers have been pondering over since the inception of women’s writings. They have been challenging societal and institutional restrictions that impede the progress of women and ultimately curtail their liberty. Though muted and mutilated, they are motivated to awaken the slumbering psyche for aggressive retaliation. Be it her academic pursuit or her marriage, she never hesitates in breaking her silence and strives hard to transcend her allotted identity.