Subalternity and Insubordination : A Postcolonial Analysis of Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie’s Americanah

Abstract: In Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie’s novel Americanah the young female protagonist is unexpectedly thrown into a life of marginalisation when she migrates from Nigeria to the American East coast. Having grown up in Nigeria her skin colour has neither been an issue nor of consideration to her, but it soon becomes apparent that elsewhere her complexion evokes expectations and functions as a breeding ground for prejudice. The aim of this essay is to discuss the remnants and effects of colonialism in past and present times including how postcolonialism is represented in Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie’s novel Americanah. Additional focus will be placed both on the subaltern’s right to represent and resistance to conform. The intention is to show that through discrimination of minorities, marginalised people are compelled to use mimicry to attain equal status, and thus are forced to compromise their identity. Considering the novel’s protagonist later return to Nigeria, a secondary focus will be placed on the possibility and probability of restoration of one’s identity.