User:Chasemp/Second Class Citizen (Book)

Second Class Citizen
Author	Buchi Emecheta
Country	Nigeria
Genre	Novel
Publisher	Allison & Busby; George Braziller
Publication date	1974
Pages	174 pp.
ISBN	978-0-8076-1128-9

Second Class Citizen is a 1974 novel by Nigerian writer Buchi Emecheta. A poignant story of a resourceful Nigerian woman who overcomes strict tribal domination of women and countless setbacks to achieve an independent life for herself and her children. The story is often described as semi-autobiographical as the journey from Nigeria to London follows closely Emecheta’s own trajectory as an author^[1]

Plot summary[edit]

Adah is a child of Ibos from Ibuza living in Lagos in the beginning of the novel. She dreams as a young girl of moving to the United Kingdom. After her father dies, Adah is sent to live with her uncles family.

She is able to stay in school in Nigeria and attains employment working for the British embassy as a library clerk. The compensation from this job is enough to make her a desirable bride to Francis (her now husband) and in-laws.

Francis travels to the United Kingdom for several years to pursue the study of law. Adah convinces her husbands family that she and the children belong in the UK as well. Francis believes they are second-class citizens in the United Kingdom as they are not citizens of the country. Adah finds employment working for another library and pays for their expenses, while also providing primary care for their children.

Later on, we see Francis become increasingly abusive and dismissive of Adah as she pursues becoming a writer.

Critical reception[edit]

Second Class Citizen received less attention than The Bride Price in terms of reviews and press. It is well regarded as a story of overcoming struggle, and contemporary African life ^[2].

References[edit]

^ Umeh, Marie. “Buchi Emecheta.” In Postcolonial African Writers: A Bio-Bibliographical Critical Sourcebook, edited by Pushpa Naidu Parekh and Siga Fatima Jagne. Westport, Conn.: Greenwood Press, 1998
^ Alice Walker, "A Writer Because of, Not in Spite of, Her Children," in Ms. (© 1975 Ms. Magazine Corp.), Vol. IV, No. 7, January, 1976, pp. 40, 106.

Category:Postcolonial literature Category:1974 British novels Category:Igboland in fiction Category:Novels set in Nigeria Category:Nigerian English-language novels Category:Novels by Buchi Emecheta Category:George Braziller books Category:Novels set in Lagos Category:Allison and Busby books

[1] Umeh, Marie. “Buchi Emecheta.” In Postcolonial African Writers: A Bio-Bibliographical Critical Sourcebook, edited by Pushpa Naidu Parekh and Siga Fatima Jagne. Westport, Conn.: Greenwood Press, 1998

[2] Alice Walker, "A Writer Because of, Not in Spite of, Her Children," in Ms. (© 1975 Ms. Magazine Corp.), Vol. IV, No. 7, January, 1976, pp. 40, 106.

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