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Chapter 39
Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in The Girl with the Louding Voice, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Education, Empowerment, and Self-Worth
Gender Inequality and Solidarity
Wealth, Poverty, and Choice
Survival
Summary
Analysis
Fact: Nigeria has lost billions of dollars of oil revenue to corruption since the country gained its independence. It’s Saturday. Adunni rubs Big Madam’s feet while a man on TV discusses the upcoming election, asking his viewers if Nigeria will vote for “the fedora-hat-wearing man who never had shoes as a child,” or for Muhammadu Buhari. Big Madam doesn’t want Buhari to win, calling him “an enemy of progress” and claiming he will “deal with all those who benefited under Jonathan.”
Being forced to rub Big Madam’s feet symbolically reaffirms the uneven power dynamic between them. Muhammadu Buhari is Nigeria’s current president (as of 2021). He ended up winning the presidential election, which is what Big Madam didn’t want to happen. Big Madam’s criticisms of Buhari could stem from a number of controversies in which he has been involved. In the past, Buhari was quoted as supporting the implantation of Sharia law (Islamic religious law) in Nigeria, and has struggled to suppress the terrorist group Boko Haram. Both of these controversies could lead people, and women in particular, to see Buhari as “an enemy of progress.” The fact that proceeds this chapter is relevant because one of Buhari’s campaign promises was to fight corruption; Big Madam apparently feels threatened by this, which suggests that perhaps she became wealthy through unethical means or is afraid of losing her wealth in a general sense. Big Madam’s comments about “the fedora-hat-wearing man who never had shoes as a child” and “Jonathan” refer to Goodluck Jonathan, who would have been president in 2014, during the events of the novel. Many people regard Jonathan’s administration as be highly corrupt. Big Madam’s comment about Jonathan not having shoes growing up seems to refer to Jonathan’s trajectory from humble beginnings to wealth, education, and power, which appears to earn him Big Madam’s respect.
Themes
Suddenly, there is a knock at the door, and Ms. Tia appears, wearing a t-shirt and jeans. Big Madam tilts her nose in the air, addressing Ms. Tia as “Mrs. Dada.” Ms. Tia asks if Adunni can accompany her to the market at two o’clock. Big Madam says no, pretending not to remember their agreement, and Adunni’s heart drops. Big Madam tells Ms. Tia that she can come back for Adunni on Monday. As Ms. Tia turns to leave, Big Madam angrily suggests that Ms. Tia should find her own maid instead of stealing hers.
Without the intimidation of Big Daddy and the doctor to put her in her place, Big Madam goes back on her decision to let Adunni go to the market with Ms. Tia. Big Madam’s accusation against Ms. Tia about stealing her housemaid positions Adunni as a commodity that can be possessed, stolen, and controlled.
Themes
On Monday, Ms. Tia arrives and brings Adunni to the Dada house. Adunni converses with Ms. Tia as they walk, trying to incorporate some words that she learned in the Collins, though she misuses them. They arrive at Ms. Tia’s house, which doesn’t have a gateman like Big Madam’s does. Ms. Tia’s house is white, and the pathway to the front door is lined with flowerpots. Ms. Tia says that Ken wanted them to live in a huge house, but she couldn’t bear the thought of living so unsustainably. Adunni asks about the glass squares on the roof, and Ms. Tia explains that they are solar panels. Adunni suggests that Ikati village would really benefit from having solar panels—right now, very few houses there have light, as generators are expensive. Ms. Tia loves the idea and offers to bring it up at a work meeting.
Adunni’s efforts to practice the words she has read the dictionary illustrates her eagerness to apply the things she learns about in books to real life. Her misuse of these words establishes learning as a journey Adunni must work at consistently if she wants to grow smarter and find her “louding voice.” It also shows that part of having a louding voice means speaking up without fear of being wrong or being silenced. To have a louding voice is to take a chance, to have the confidence that what one says has value, and to not be afraid of making a mistake or being reprimanded for one’s voice. Adunni’s comments about bringing the solar panels to her village demonstrate her determination to use the things she learns to help others and give back to her community.
Themes
Adunni and Ms. Tia enter the house through the kitchen. Adunni observes that the house is white and sparsely decorated, and she wonders whether Ms. Tia has “a fear to be owning plenty things.” Ms. Tia tells Adunni that she is looking forward to their outing because she wants to take her mind off the fact that she got her period again, and that Ken’s mother wants her to go to a prophet and undergo a fertility ritual that involves taking a bath. Adunni recalls the way Khadija died and encourages Ms. Tia to take the bath, though Ms. Tia is skeptical, not wanting some old man to use the bath as an excuse to feel her body.
Ms. Tia’s sparsely decorated house might speak to her environmentally conscious distaste for excess and waste, but it also highlights the fact that rich people can choose a life of minimalism to suit their aesthetic preferences, whereas poor people often have scarcity forced on them. Adunni seems to want Ms. Tia to take the fertility bath because she doesn’t want to see another female protector get hurt. Ms. Tia’s thoughts on the bath forge a gap between whatever spiritual powers the bath is purported to have and the literal actions involved in the act of bathing. Her skepticism positions her as a woman whose privilege and experience allow her to prioritize personal agency over time-honored (and sometimes problematic) traditions. In other words, Ms. Tia has a “louding voice” of her own that makes her more inclined to listen to her instincts, even as Ken’s mother bullies her.
Themes
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Adunni offers to accompany Ms. Tia to the bath, much to Ms. Tia’s delight. Ms. Tia says that Ken told her that the bath is “harmless,” and that she should go through with it, if only to get his mother off their case. Ms. Tia then changes the subject, telling Adunni that she has a surprise for her.
Ms. Tia’s husband downplays the bath because it doesn’t directly involve him. Just as wealth affords the economically privileged the freedom to entertain a wider range of opinions and choice, so too does Ken’s gender give him the freedom to dismiss the bath as mere superstition and downplay any potentially negative consequences.
Themes
