The Role of Women in African Society Term Paper

The Role of Women in African Society - Term Paper Example According to various kinds of literature published on development issues by The International Monitory Fund and the World Bank, the conditions of African women living in Sub-Saharan Africa is probably the bleakest on earth (Blackden 34) One cannot but recoil in shock and revulsion at the way women have been facing the twin trauma of being denied their basic human rights that every nation is supposed to guarantee to their citizens and the misfortune of being subjugated with callous disregard and disrespect in their own families. For many African women, daily life is a nightmarish reality and sheer horror, with diseased and impoverished children and community living in appalling conditions. To add insult to injury, African women customarily face the demeaning prospect of being abandoned by their husbands whose behavior could even unreservedly turn violent. Recent observations in Africa reveal that it is not uncommon for a woman to be banished from their homes and even community, resulting in untold pain, suffering, and humiliation to the woman. (Blackden 34). Nevertheless, the story does not always end in despair and tragedy. The story revolves around Ramatoulaye, a prototype of the writer herself, and the enigma and frustration she goes through as a result of abandonment by her husband for a younger girl who happens to be his daughter's friend. The consequent events in the story poignantly weaves the destiny of a woman who prefers to stay back by her errant husband's side enduring the trauma and finds solace in her religion which she faithfully follows in spite of the ordeal she is made to undergo in a society claiming to follow the very religion she also adheres to. While the author portrays Ramatoulaye's stoic handling of her unfortunate situation, she also goes a step further and provides a dash of rebellion by the character of Aissatou, Ramatoulaye's friend, who divorces her husband and migrates to the United States to pursue a more cheerful and rational environment.