Pages: (85-95 )
Abstract
Marriages in Africa, Kenya to be precise, are a complex institution that guarantees the continues stability of the family unit. While both genders work immensely hard to provide and protect the family, the bulk of the household duties are the responsibilities of the woman. However, under a patriarchal culture, most responsibilities of unpaid care and domestic labour are borne by women in marriages. This not only impact the women negatively, but it also affects the children and men in households. Previous studies have often focused on the unpaid labour of women by providing data, and statistics of victims, as seen in Kamau, 2020, Moses et al. 2020, Nchanji 2021. Consequently, this paper looks at the contribution imaginative literature has to offer to the discourse by interrogating how unpaid labour contributes to female subservience.
Mariama Ba’s epistolary novel, titled So Long a Letter will be used as the primary data for this research. The interpretive design will be used as the methodology. Ba’s epistolary was purposively selected due to its engagement with marriages (polygamy and monogamy), unpaid labour and the culture’s support in the subjugation of women. The text is subjected to textual analysis.
The study finds that Bâ’s epistolary reveals the problems of polygamy, patriarchy and female oppression within Kenyan culture. Ba critiques polygamy by exploring the repercussion of unpaid labour and how it encourages the subjugation of women under patriarchy. Hence, this paper examines the portrayal of unpaid domestic work as it relates to female subservience in Mariama Ba’s epistolary novel.
Keywords: Marriages, Epistolary, Culture, Religion, Family, Patriarchy,