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
Adunni sits in her room, unable to sleep. Her thoughts are racing, and her chest “is paining from all the things [she] saw today, from a deep longing for Mama.” She thinks about Big Daddy not helping Big Madam care for her sister and contemplates how even having lots of money can’t solve all of their problems.
Despite the many opportunities and choices Big Madam’s wealth affords her, it can’t guarantee her happiness, and it can’t overpower the sexist culture that fuels Big Daddy’s sense of entitlement.
Themes
The next morning, Adunni goes down to the kitchen and greets Kofi, who tells her that Big Madam is still at the hospital. Adunni tells Kofi that she is going out, not bothering to offer an excuse in case Big Madam comes back while she’s gone. Adunni makes her way to Ms. Tia’s, and Ms. Tia welcomes her inside despite the early hour. Ms. Tia looks horrible from yesterday’s beating: her face is covered in scratches, and her eyes look “red and angry.” Ms. Tia apologizes for making Adunni witness the bath yesterday. Adunni apologizes for not stepping in to save her, though Ms. Tia promises that there was nothing that Adunni could have done. Adunni suggests that Ms. Tia rub palm oil on her face to help the lines heal.
Adunni’s choice not to offer an excuse for her absence reflects the hopelessness she feels in the aftermath of Ms. Tia’s beating: it’s immensely troubling for her to see someone with such a confident “louding voice” destroyed by society’s unfair expectations of women. Adunni feels such remorse for not being able to stop the beating because she sees Ms. Tia’s assault as eerily similar to Khadija’s death. Adunni wasn’t able to save Khadija, and she might have thought she could redeem herself by saving Ms. Tia; when she fails again, it’s almost confirmation of Adunni’s powerlessness in the face of the powerful social norms that oppress women. Ms. Tia’s “red and angry” eyes suggest she might have been crying before Adunni arrives at her house.
Themes
Adunni asks Ms. Tia what the doctor said when he saw her. Ms. Tia recounts how the doctor and doctor mama got into a huge fight that ended in him kicking her out of the house. Once his mother was gone, the doctor confided in Ms. Tia that the bath was useless: the doctor cannot get her pregnant because he is sterile, which is what motivated him to help women have babies in the first place. He didn’t tell Ms. Tia before because they’d originally agreed not to have children. Ms. Tia kicks the door and swears. She explains that the doctor hadn’t told her the truth because he was afraid that she would leave him, which frustrates her. In addition to this, she just found out that Ms. Tia’s mother has an infection again.
Despite the fact that Ken is infertile, meaning that he’s the reason they can’t conceive, it’s still Ms. Tia who had to suffer the consequences. Ken’s decision to keep his infertility a secret from his wife suggests that even a marriage with a strong foundation of mutual respect is vulnerable to inequality.
Themes
Adunni smiles and tells Ms. Tia that “tomorrow will be better than today.” Tia smiles back and tells Adunni that she will check the Ocean Oil office after she gets back to check on the scholarship results. Ms. Tia is adamant that she will do everything in her power to ensure that Adunni can go to school. She read Adunni’s essay and now sees the extent of the suffering that Adunni has endured throughout her life. Ms. Tia promises that even if the scholarship doesn’t pan out, she will fight to remove Adunni from Big Madam’s house. Ms. Tia holds Adunni’s hands as tears flow from Adunni’s eyes.
When Adunni responds to Ms. Tia with Ms. Tia’s own earlier words of optimism, she returns the confidence that her mentor passed on to her. Ms. Tia’s promise to remove Adunni from Big Madam’s house, even if the scholarship doesn’t come through, positions the support of other women as the driving force behind women’s empowerment and survival.
Themes
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