How Violence Makes a Man

An Analysis of the Relationship between Violence and Masculinity as Portrayed in Chinua Achebe’s African Trilogy

Abstract

One of the first truths we learn in the human experience is that violence is a foundation of nature. This is not some big secret that lurks behind the corners of walls, it is a truth that stands proudly in the light, waiting for us to look. The relationship between humans and violence is a complicated one, as some are revolted by it and others are elated at its existence and perpetration. One of the most complex facets of the phenomenon is the relationship between violence and identity.

Humans like to relate concepts to create some semblance of understanding of the world and masculinity and violence are a prominent pairing, the hunter that provides for the village or the soldier who bears the scars for his home, but what is the understanding of the relationship between individual perpetrator and communal identity? How does violence make a man? What makes violence a masculine act in the eyes of the social zeitgeist? The colonization of Nigeria and Africa as a whole, led to the ideas around such concepts to change. The injection of Christianity, the legislation that changed the lives of Africans, and the cultural norms that circulated during this period of African History all transformed norms concerning violence and masculinity. To better understand this change in the relationship between violence and masculinity, this article will analyze the African Trilogy by Chinua Achebe, a prolific Nigerian writer whose works are praised to this day. Of course, no one is free from the eye of criticism, so we will be framing his works against criticisms of his writings and the Gender System developed and coined by Maria Lugones.