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Novel: The River and the source by Margaret Ogola “Even in a patriarchal society, women can succeed” Using illustrations form Margaret Ogoal’s The River and The Source,...

      

Novel: The River and the source by Margaret Ogola
“Even in a patriarchal society, women can succeed”

Using illustrations form Margaret Ogoal’s The River and The Source, write a composition in support of the above statement.

  

Answers

johnson
Introduction
It had been beyond doubt that women can flourish even n societies that are male dominated
For example in Kenya, the late Wangari Maathai died a successful woman who battled every other obstacle to achieve her objectives. The same scenario is depicted in The River and the Source by Margaret Ogoal through Akoko, Elizabeth, Wandia and Vera.

Illustration
To begin with, Akoko stands out to be successful when she become economically independent and has amassed a lot of wealth which is not the expectation in this society. It was expected that a man was and remain the sole breadwinner in a family and he owned the wife body and soul. Pg. 35,’….Have I ever begged for food form you my mother-in-law as all your daughters-in-law do? do I not always have enough to eat and more left over to barter in exchange for cattle, goats and sheep? Indeed the size of her herds had become quite impressive. This confirms the fact that Akoko was quite successful in acquiring wealth and was economically independent though a woman.

Akoko also thrives amidst men when she becomes the first person to seek justice in the hands of the white man and eventually the gluttonous Otieno Kembo who grabs her wealth is forcefully driven out of the chief’s stool after the death of her husband. Pg 73, ‘She knew that as a woman, a widow and a sonless mother, the only male in her direct line being a little bay, she was greatly disadvantaged. This supports the fact that this society has no place for the woman. She therefore seeks justice form the new government and succeeds. Pg. 92,.. ‘…Akoko shall got to the village and forcefully remove the chief. He shall be made to return all that he has grabbed form his sister-in-law and his grandnephew.’ She defends her property and takes the initiative to fight for the future of her grandson’s chieftaincy and is successful. This is in spite of the availability of men who could have fought the injustice wrought by Otieno Kembo. Akoko hence thrives this challenge though a woman.

Success in education is seen in the woman Elizabeth when she becomes the only female among his classmates. Furthermore, she is the top girl in her class and in-turn gets an admission to a teacher training college. Pg. 129, ‘If it was hard for a boy to get education – it was well-nigh impossible for a girl. The purpose of female existence was marriage and child bearing-and by the same token to bring wealth to her family.’ This is outdone by Elizabeth and she succeeds in education eventually becoming a teacher. Pg. 130, ‘Elizabeth Awiti Okumu…No PHD holder ever had such a victory as this barefoot African girl…with the certificate came the invitation to a newly opened TTC.’ This is a clear indicator that female characters can succeed even in a male.

We also see success of women in leadership roles. Leadership was set aside for males and the women were not supposed to claim any position in leadership. This is illustrated in Vera when she becomes the first girl/woman to become a captain in her school. She is also an engineering student-a course that was through to be left for the males only. Pg. 173, ‘When she was seventeen and in the top class of her primary school, they made her the school captain – a position which had only been held by boys before.’ This clearly demonstrates that women can also thrive where men have the greatest powers.

Wandia also becomes successful in pioneering roles when she becomes the only female among men in her medical class; she also beats the male sin exams. Aoro comments that that was the first time she had been beaten by a girl. This means girls were not supposed to take top positions in class. Wandia is also the first woman in the country to achieve a Doctorate degree in Medicine which is equivalent to a PHD. Pg. 300, ‘She was the first Kenyan woman to achieve such a feat in medicine.’ This is indeed a clear indicator that women can also succeed since medicine was course set aside for men only. The concept of an always winning male is shuttered and her success is an indicator of a female being successful devoid of the male dominance in the society.

Conclusion
In summary, it is clear that women can flourish even in a patriarchal society as seen in Wandia, Akoko, Vera and Elizabeth in their success in education, economic independence and leadership. They defy the patriarchal standing of the society presented by the story.
johnson mwenjera answered the question on January 9, 2018 at 05:10

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