Essay On Markandaya's Nectar In A Sieve

962 Words4 Pages
Throughout history, women have been considered the weaker sex, both mentally and physically. Today, in many places, men are still considered superior to women. They hold all of the positions of power; in the home, in business, and in the government. Even in countries where women have a more equal status to men, married women are still expected to have children and then have the more prominent roll in caring for them and the household, while men are expected to work more and provide the primary source of income for the family. The women in Nectar in a Sieve, by Kamala Markandaya, seem to have a higher status and be valued more than the women in Things Fall Apart, by Chinua Achebe. This difference in gender equality has more to do with the men leading the main family in each book than their communities’ views on women. Nectar in a Sieve focuses on Rukmani and her family. Rukmani and her husband, Nathan, have a loving relationship built on respect and the understanding that they are both vital in keeping the family…show more content…
Okonkwo values masculinity above all else. Since childhood, he has been embarrassed by his lazy father and his fear of looking weak, like his father, has driven him to become powerful and successful. Okonkwo thinks of women as possessions of their husbands and the control a man has over his women is an important factor in determining his manliness. One night, during the sacred Week of Peace, one of his wives was having her hair braided and did not make dinner for Okonkwo and her children. When she came home, Okonkwo beat her heavily, breaking the peace and insulting the earth goddess. Okonkwo’s is so obsessed with dominance and proving his masculinity to save himself from looking weak, that he broke the peace, knowing that it could mean the earth goddess refusing to give the clan her blessing which would cause the crops to not grow and the clan to
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    As a teenager it is astonishing to see how much Ira shows her passion for her family, for most teenagers push theirs aside in shame. In the novel Nectar in a Sieve by Kamala Markandaya, Ira demonstrates the importance of family, and the value of having such forgiving parents. As Ira's life collapses into depression she retracts back to living with her family and promptly falls back into her commonplace as an active household member, for as soon as Kuti is born she treats him as her own son, then

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