In every story there is a plot and within it characters with which we can relate and identify. In Americanah by Chimanda Ngozi Adichie, the main characters are a female, Ifemelu, and a male, Obinze, both originally from Nigeria. Throughout the novel we follow these two characters, their travels abroad and, finally, their return to Nigeria. Both characters have their struggles, but I feel like there is a difference in how Ifemelu and Obinze are portrayed. Obinze, in my opinion, gets an adequate portrayal while Ifemelu's character seems more conflicted. In Americanah Ifemelu and other women are depicted as dependent on the circumstances in which they live and the men around them. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay The first and foremost example of women in our novel depicted in the form of dependency is Ifemelu's Aunt Uju. Aunt Uju seems to have a perfect lifestyle as a doctor in Nigeria, she lives in a nice house, with nice things and socializes with the higher social classes in Nigeria. Aunt Uju is in a relationship with a character called "The General". The general is a married man and Aunt Uju is his lover. One could argue that Aunty Uju is a doctor in Nigeria, so not all of her success comes from the General. However, Aunt Uju also credits this to the General: “The hospital has no vacancies for doctors, but the General made him create one for me” (93). This shows that her employment also depended on her relationship with the General Gets most of the good stuff we see at the beginning of the novel from The General even goes so far as to say to Ifemelu, “You know, we live in an ass-kissing economy. The problem is that there are many qualified people who are not where they should be because they don't lick anyone's ass, or they don't know which ass to lick or they don't know how to lick the right ass” (93). I found this rather funny, but true, and it only highlights her dependence on the General. Once the General dies, we see Aunt Uju's world change almost instantly. Aunt Uju is forced to leave her home and flees the country United States where he can start a new life with his son Dike. When Ifemelu arrives in America she discovers that Aunt Uju's lifestyle is completely opposite to what it once was. He works three jobs, takes exams to become a doctor again and his living conditions are poor compared to those in Nigeria. Aunt Uju is in a place of desperation and works three jobs, paying the bills, so when Ifemelu arrives she uses Ifemelu to watch Dike during the day to save babysitting expenses. Aunt Uju meets a man, Bartholomew. Ifemelu feels that Aunt Uju is outside her social class, but Aunt Uju is in such a state of desperation that she ends up having an affair with him and moves with him to Massachusetts. She ends up staying in a relationship with him until she realizes that she no longer needs Bartolomeo and that he was actually paying some of her bills. If I had to sum up Aunt Uju in one sentence it would be, in her own words, “Do what you have to do if you want to succeed” (146). We can see that Ifemelu actually does what she is supposed to do following Aunt Uju's advice. Our main character, Ifemelu, is not without her flaws, but I feel like the events of her life depend on her circumstances and the other characters around her. It's hard to identify with what Ifemelu truly values. Over the course of our novel Ifemelu has a relationship with three men: Obinze, Curt and Blaine. His character seems to change withtwo of the three people she dates and between these men based on her circumstances. Ifemelu seems like a strong character up until the point where she finds herself in America and has to pay her college debt and rent. He has a hard time finding a job and has to resort to the "massage" of a coach. This is the first point where we see Ifemelu break out of her normal character and do something we didn't see coming. After being pressured for money, she goes to the carriage where, “she put her hand between his legs and curled and moved her fingers” (190). From this we can deduce that he gave the coach a handjob. Following this she is really in conflict with herself and everyone around her. It is at this point that he stops contacting Obinze and goes into a state of depression. I felt that Ifemelu compromised her values ​​and adapted to the circumstances to do what needed to be done, as Auntie Uju told her. Following his depressed state, he meets Blaine on a train. She is attracted to him but loses contact with him because Blaine is having an affair and ignores his calls. Ifemelu meets Curt, a rich white man, Kimberly's cousin. Initially Ifemelu wasn't even attracted to him, the text states: "He began to like her because he liked her" (237). I find it superficial, but we see Ifemelu change in her relationship with Curt. Good things began to happen to her, Curt's positive attitude seemed to permeate her life. As in the case of Aunt Uju, Curt was able to get a job in Ifemelu thanks to his father's connections with public relations. This shows his dependence on Curt and his good fortunes depend on another character. Ifemelu ended up sabotaging her relationship with him, but even states that she "stumbled, trying to remember the person she was before Curt... She no longer knew who she had been then, what she didn't like, what she wanted" (370). I think the following sentences are extremely important because they show that Ifemelu herself states that her identity has been constructed from those around her. She begins a relationship with Blaine after meeting him at a social event. His identity begins to change and he gets a gym membership, begins to let him read and recommend changes to his blogs, has even changed his diet based on Blaine's beliefs. Blaine was more of a man of action while Ifemelu was more of a woman of words. Blaine believed in standing up for what you believe in. Ifemelu lied to Blaine and didn't show up to a protest. Once Blaine found out she was at lunch instead of protesting, they got into an argument that ended up being the end of their relationship. I feel Ifemelu lacks a moral compass. He doesn't understand that lying to your partner is a big deal. This changes the passion in their relationship. I feel like Blaine's passion for President Obama gave Ifemelu something to care about and kept their relationship alive based on this shared interest. Once she graduated from Princeton, she ended her relationship and returned to Nigeria. As a reader it becomes difficult to identify with Ifemelu because she seems to lie very easily to keep people interested. When Pyrie offers to host a wedding for Ifemelu, Ifemelu responds, “Thank you, but I think Blaine will prefer an event without a governor” (492). I don't understand why Ifemelu can't just identify with herself and constantly needs a man involved in her life. Obinze seems to be the only character he can be transparent with; it's as if they operate on the same frequency. When she finally meets Obinze, a week has passed before they see each other again before they start having a relationship. Their relationship reaches a point of friction when Obinze goes to Abuja alone so he can think things through. TO.