Summary and Analysis of Americanah

Based on the Book by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

• Publisher: Worth Books
• Year: 2017
• ISBN:
  9781504043731
• Topic: Study Aids
• Subtopic: Study Guides

So much to read, so little time? This brief overview of Americanah tells you what you need to know before or after you read Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie's book. Crafted and edited with care, Worth Books set the standard for quality and give you the tools you need to be a well-informed reader. This short summary of Americanah by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie includes:

• Chapter-by-chapter overview
• Profiles of the main characters
• Themes and symbols
• A note on the author's style
• Important quotes
• Fascinating trivia
• Supporting material to enhance your understanding of the original work

About Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie's Americanah: Spanning more than two decades and three countries, Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie's critically acclaimed novel is an astonishingly frank and multilayered work of literature that shines a harsh light on issues of race, class, feminism, and identity. Told from the perspective of two young Nigerians living abroad, Americanah is part love story and part unapologetic commentary on society and the immigrant experience. Honest, witty, revealing, and inspirational, Americanah is a unique and bold examination of what it means to be black in America. The summary and analysis in this ebook are intended to complement your reading experience and bring you closer to a great work of fiction.

Summary

Part 1

Chapter 1

Ifemelu is a brilliant young Nigerian woman at a crossroads in her life. She has just broken off a long-term relationship and walked away from her provocative and successful lifestyle blog called Raceteenth or Various Observations About American Blacks (Those Formerly Known as Negroes), known for its commentary on American black culture and how it differs from her experiences as an African living in Nigeria. Ifemelu sends an email to her ex, Obinze, to inform him she’s coming home after thirteen years in America.

Chapter 2

Reading Ifemelu’s email, Obinze, a successful developer in Nigeria, feels off-balance and filled with raw emotion. Trapped in a loveless marriage and the father of a young daughter, Obinze finds little joy in life. He realizes he is still in love with Ifemelu.

Part 2

Chapter 3

Taking the train from idyllic, suburban Princeton to gritty Trenton, New Jersey, to have her hair braided is a symbolic gesture for Ifemelu, allowing her to acknowledge and embrace her African heritage.

Seeing her kinky hair braided in the mirror reminds Ifemelu of her mother’s silky tresses and how her mother took scissors to them as proof of her devotion to God. Ifemelu’s father, who lost his job in Nigeria for refusing to defer to his female boss’ demand for respect, is immersed in unemployment blues, making way for her mother’s blind faith to consume the family.

Around this time, Ifemelu’s Aunty Uju becomes mistress to a powerful government official, The General, in exchange for a doctor’s position at a military hospital.

Chapter 4

Obinze, intelligent and introspective, is the new boy in school. Expected to be Ginika’s boyfriend because she is sweet and demure, he’s instead attracted to the self-assured and bold Ifemelu. Ifemelu is strongly drawn to Obinze, too, which makes her happy and insecure at the same time. The two fall in love.

Chapter 5

Obinze is obsessed with everything American, especially books. One afternoon, Obinze introduces Ifemelu to his elegant and vivacious mother, a literature scholar who takes Ifemelu under her wing. A progressive woman, she warns Ifemelu about how an unwanted pregnancy is another way that women are kept down in society. Although Ifemelu loves being with Obinze and his mother, she can’t seem to shake the feeling of impending doom.

Chapter 6

Aunty Uju’s deal with The General, who has a wife and family, is that she becomes a “kept” woman in exchange for her position as a doctor at the military hospital. This means that he controls all her finances and she has no money of her own. In her youth, Ifemelu looked up to Uju for encouraging her to be outspoken, and knows Uju would not have approved of a woman giving up her independence for a man. A year after Uju gives birth to The General’s illegitimate son, Dike, The General is killed in a plane crash. With no place to go, Uju and Dike move to America.

Chapter 7

Obinze’s mother falls ill, so he decides to go to the university in Nsukka to be near her; Ifemelu chooses to enroll at the school in Obinze’s village, too. When a strike interrupts their studies, Ifemelu returns to Lagos to wait it out.

Upon Ifemelu’s return to school, Obinze and Ifemelu make love for the first time. Shortly thereafter, Ifemelu thinks she’s pregnant, but it turns out to be appendicitis. Knowing they dodged a bullet, the couple uses protection from then on.

Chapter 8

School strikes are becoming more frequent, so Aunty Uju encourages Ifemelu to apply to study abroad, and Obinze agrees with the idea. Ifemelu wins a scholarship to a college in Philadelphia; Obinze promises to follow her after his graduation from the university in Nsukka. Obinze’s faith in her abilities steels Ifemelu for the adventure in America.

Chapter 9

The heat in the Trenton hair salon is stifling, reminding Ifemelu of the heat wave during her first summer in New York. The high temperatures, Aunty Uju’s scruffy appearance, and the seedy apartment in Brooklyn were not what Ifemelu had expected. Ifemelu notices that life in America has made her aunt more subdued, but Ifemelu feels an overwhelming sense of newness and anticipation, an eagerness to discover America. Little Dike is delightful, and Ifemelu enjoys looking after him.

Chapter 10

Ifemelu likes a lot of things about America and is learning about food and traditions. She enjoys McDonald’s hamburgers, bologna, and pepperoni, but is disappointed by the blandness of the fruit. Her favorite thing to watch on TV, by far, is commercials. Her days are full of wonder and excitement as she learns about a new culture.

Chapter 11

Ifemelu doesn’t approve of Aunty Uju’s new boyfriend, Bartholomew. He’s rude, disrespectful, and arrogant, and he displays disturbing misogynistic tendencies. On top of that, he doesn’t treat Dike well.

Aunty Uju passes her medical license exam just before Ifemelu leaves for Philadelphia. Although nostalgic about Brooklyn and missing Dike terribly, Ifemelu is anxious to start her new life.

Chapter 12

Ifemelu’s old friend, Ginika, meets her at the bus terminal dressed scandalously. What ensues is a crash course in “how to be American.” Ifemelu finds a room to rent with three other co...