Purple Hibiscus tells a story of struggle and pain, but also conquering of these dreadful emotions, in fact, Beatrice the mother of our protagonist Kambili experiences these events quite regularly. These specific traits and emotional events consistently characterise her. This essay aims to prove the statement as mentioned above by referring to multiple arguments in the text and extract at hand.
Beatrice is a shy, soft-spoken Nigerian wife and mother who loves her children just as much as she loves her husband in spite of the emotional and physical abuse she has to endure within the confinements of their immaculate home. As a result of this Beatrice and her children unknowingly suffer from this toxic environment without speaking a word or
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This revolution happens when she drops a giant bombshell on her children by admitting that she gradually poisoned her husband and eventually killed him (Adichie 290). You almost sense a turning point in Beatrice’s character, a revelation of sort however what we find is not a rejuvenated, powerful woman but rather a cold, departed being lacking any want to continue.
The last chapter’s title, “A Different Silence” sums up our last defiance of Beatrice’s classic character traits. Kambili describes an unkempt woman who only nods and shakes her head from time to time (Adichie 296-298). Even though Beatrice could be described as quiet or reserved at the start of the novel, she still always had a sense of aliveness and would never show an unpolished side of her appearance. Kambili’s sharp description of her mother’s neat appearance throughout the novel is evidence of this.
Beatrice’s story doesn’t conclude with a dead end though. After her and Kambili’s visit to Jaja in prison, she turns to Kambili and thanks her, for the first time in a long while she initiated conversation (Adichie 306). With a smile on her mother’s lips, Kambili talks about the new rains and new beginnings that lie ahead (Adichie