This study offers an in-depth analysis of Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie’s short story “Zikora,” arguing that the narrative functions as a potent critique of globalized patriarchy as it is experienced by professional African women in the diaspora. This paper makes an original contribution by employing a Diaspora and Postcolonial Feminist framework to analyze how the intersection of cultural displacement and traditional gender roles intensifies societal pressures on the protagonist. The analysis focuses on Zikora, a Nigerian lawyer in Washington, D.C., as she confronts unexpected single motherhood and abandonment. This research moves beyond a simple thematic reading to examine the dialectic between Zikora’s “Western” professional ambition and the “traditional” Nigerian values embodied by her mother. This intergenerational conflict is framed not merely as a clash of cultures, but as a site where local and international patriarchal norms converge. Specifically, the paper investigates how Zikora’s experience of cultural hybridity and displacement in the U.S. is not an escape from, but a re-inscription of, gendered expectations concerning motherhood and partnership. Utilizing close reading informed by Postcolonial feminist studies, the paper’s methodology involves analyzing key narrative moments, particularly the shifts in Zikora’s perspective on her own mother, to demonstrate how the diasporic condition complicates and intensifies gender inequalities. The core argument is that “Zikora” is a crucial text in contemporary African feminist literature because it illuminates how patriarchy adapts and persists across national borders, demanding a nuanced theoretical approach to fully appreciate its critique.

Authors:
Rasha Osman Abdel Haliem, The Higher Technological Institute, Egypt

About the Presenter(s)
Rasha Osman Abd el Haliem, is an English lecturer and TKT (Teacher Knowledge Test) trainer, at AMIDEAST Egypt and The Higher Technological Institute.

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