On the title "Americanah" and Assimilation
In Adichie's novel, Americanah, the word Americanah is used to describe Nigerians who have been changed or “Americanized” as a result of them living in America for a period of time. The choice behind the title may signify how it relates to Ifemelu’s experience–but also as a further commentary on the shared immigrant experience of assimilation.
Ifemelu’s attempt to assimilate into American culture is first apparent when she begins to fake an American accent. This happens after Cristina Thomas, a white student at her university, speaks very slowly to Ifemelu insinuating that Ifemelu must not know English well. The novel states, “...she [Ifemelu] should not have cowered and shrunk, but she did. And in the following weeks…she began to practice an American accent,” (Adichie 164). Ifemelu’s loss of confidence in her accent proves the extent to which American society has affected her. In order to avoid future situations that make her feel less than, she fakes an American accent.
Additionally, we learn that adopting an American accent is not something unique to Ifemelu, but rather something that many international African students do. When Mwombeki, an African student, gives a welcome talk at the African Students Association he says, “Very soon you will start to adopt an American accent, because you don’t want customer service people on the phone to keep asking you ‘What?’ ‘What?’,” (Adichie 172). Mwombeki’s assertion that African students would all engage in American accents for the sole purpose to avoid confusion from Americans proves that this is a shared experience of assimilation that is done as a coping or survival method. For this reason, “Americanah” is a loaded term that can relate to both a critique of Ifemelu’s transformation, but also broader reflection on assimilation that can be complex and almost inevitable.
“Americanah” as a title speaks to both Ifemelu’s fears and her truth. She in many ways alters or waters down parts of herself in an effort to assimilate, thus becoming an “Americanah”. However, she also grapples with the issue of not losing her cultural roots while in America. This comes into play when she stops faking her American accent after a telemarketer tells her she sounds American and she asks herself, “Why was it a compliment, an accomplishment to sound American?” (Adichie 215). Her willful choice to speak in a Nigerian accent after recognizing the biases engraved in American society is a form of resistance to the assimilation that is expected of her. Ifemelu not only fears becoming an “Americanah” as it costs her Nigerian roots, but she rejects this and makes it a point to remain her authentic self regardless of social pressures.
For Ifemelu, and for other African immigrants, assimilation is complex as it can be necessary for survival, but it can also strip someone of who they once were. The title “Americanah” marks the issue of assimilation, as both a critique but also an understanding that it is an experience that many African immigrants share. Ifemelu may assimilate into American society in some circumstances, but she manages to not lose certain parts of her Nigerian background in a effort to resist part of that assimilation.
The title "Americanah" represents Ifemelu's evolving sense of self and the intricate racial and ethnic dynamics she encounters as a Nigerian immigrant in the United States. The term "Americanah", adopted for her blog, reflects her complex negotiation of identity within the American cultural landscape. Ifemelu’s choice to hide her accent shows her undergoing acculturation rather than assimilation. Acculturation involves adapting to a new culture while still maintaining elements of one’s original cultural identity, which she did by remaining true to her origins. Ifemelu always shares her truth. A small example of that would be when Ifemelu was babysitting and had the opportunity to educate Morgan on how the simple fact of an orange having seeds didn’t make it wrong, simply different. She does this by explaining that those were the kinds of oranges she would eat growing up on chapter 16. Furthermore, she made sure to attend the African Association meetings. In contrast, assimilation often requires the absorption of the new culture to the extent that one’s original identity becomes unclear or lost. By modifying her accent, Ifemelu strategically adjusts how she is perceived in American society, signaling an adaptation rather than a full surrender of her Nigerian identity. This adaptation reflects her desire to navigate social interactions more smoothly in her new environment without erasing her cultural roots. She later reinstates her Nigerian accent upon meeting Blaine and feeling more confident in her cultural roots. This push and pull is explained by her depiction of the racial hierarchy displayed on the blog at the end of chapter 17, showing her eventual understanding of how others perceived her in the context of race in the United States. Furthermore, she elaborates on feeling the pressure to represent the average Black American when that is not an identity she can speak for throughout her blog on chapter 21. She also identifies that being Black, whether race was an issue prior to an immigrant’s arrival or not, puts an individual at the bottom of the American racial ladder. Her highlighting of the word “strong” as a characteristic often assimilated with Black individuals is also connected to her experience with Kimberly feeling the need to say “rich” when referring to Ifemelu’s culture. Even with a younger child like Dike, descriptors such as “aggressive”, specifically when attached to a Black male can lead to tracking systems in schools that place students of color in lower-rated programs, getting in the way of bright students of color realizing their full potential, which seems to be Dike’s case. The impact of such stereotypes is profound, influencing how Black students are perceived and treated within the educational system as well as how they act and choose to live their lives.
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