If we asked you to reel off your female heroes, the list may go something like: “Mo Abudu, Onyeka Onwenu, Funmilayo Ransom-Kuti, Chimamanda Adichie, Mo Abudu x2…” No, not that there is anything wrong with that. These are really fine women who have all distinguished themselves in both their personal and professional lives. What’s that the kids say these days? These women are #goalsss. But guess who else is goals though?
Flora Nwanzuruahu Nwapa, a late Nigerian novelist born on the 13th of January, 1931, by a mother (Martha Nwapa) who taught drama, it seems the literary life she would eventually choose had chosen her first. Her father, Christopher Ijeoma, was not very different many of the men we have heard and read about from that era; he worked as an agent with the United African Company (UAC).
She grew up to be a very multi faceted woman who led the way for the recognition of African women as important and relevant members of the community. Although Flora Nwapa died on October 16th 1993, today marks the day she would have turned 86 were she still alive today. Google has honoured this this Nigerian Queen on our behalf by making her the Doodle of the day but here are 6 reasons why she was and still remains a superstar:
1. She is the first …everything
“Nothing baffles God”
Yes, people. She paved the way in so many respects we think she should be called “Flora Nwapa, the first of her kind”. Flora Nwapa made history as the first African woman to be published in English language. Her debut novel, Efuru, was published in 1966 just 8 years after Chinua Achebe’s Things Fall Apart.
She has the rightful claim to the throne of Mother of modern African literature. She also became the first female Commissioner of the then East Central State when in 1970 through 1971, she accepted cabinet office as Minister of Health and Social Welfare and then as the Minister of Lands, Survey and Urban Development from 1971 to 1974.
Before her service in governance, she was the Assistant Registrar, University of Lagos from 1962–1967. She was also one of the first African women publishers with her Tana Press which she founded in the 1970s.
2. She redefined feminism even without accepting the appellation
“When I do write about women in Nigeria, in Africa, I try to paint a positive picture about women because there are many women who are very, very positive in their thinking, who are very, very independent and very, very industrious”
Although she never labelled herself a feminist, her works always spoke to the indispensable role of women in traditional societies and community building generally. She has been commended for always making “a persuasive case for women as eminently capable of contributing to the development of their societies like their male counterparts.”
True to her silent strength, she never tried too hard to force her influence on anyone even though she remained less regarded compared to male contemporaries like Chinua Achebe and John Pepper Clark. Instead, she allowed the strength of her work push her to world recognition.
3. She was a very driven woman
“A woman who holds her husband as a father dies an orphan.”
The thread that runs through Nwapa’s life is the promotion of the dignity and economic independence of women whose roles in traditional society are, sometimes, threatened or unappreciated. While she dedicated her life to being an educator, Flora made time participate actively in governance without letting up her literary dreams. After her first novel, Efuru, she went on to write at least four more novels – Idu (1967), Never Again (1975), One is Enough (1981) and Women Are Different (1986) and many poems and short stories too.
Further she worked as a publisher of African literature and promoted women in African society.
4. She lived up the word “Resilience”
Upon publication, the novel was harshly rejected by critics; many considered Nwapa’s writing weak and the story unauthentic (perhaps an indication of the rampant sexism in literary circles). However as conversations on the African woman’s experience expanded, Nwapa’s stories became a source of inspiration to a younger African generation of female writers. Some 50 years later, though Nwapa’s work is still overshadowed by her male contemporaries, Efuru is part of the African literary canon.
5. Her role in reconstruction after Biafra
“What arrogance, what stupidity led us to this desolation, to this madness, to this wickedness, to this war, to this death? When this cruel war was over, there will be no more war. It will not happen again, never again. Never again, never again.”
When the civil war broke out, Flora and her family fled Lagos for East Central State where she remained after the war not only being a member of the cabinet but also working with orphans and refugees who were displaced during the war.
Her words condemning the war will remain relevant forever. Especially now.
6. Even in death, she lives on.
She died of Pneumonia on October 16, 1993 at a hospital in Enugu at the age of 62.
“I do not presume that I have a mission. If you continue to read my books, maybe you could find the mission. But I continue to write because I feel fulfilled. I feel satisfied in what I am doing”
A Flora Nwapa Foundation was set up in her honour after her death. Last year, to mark the 50th year after the publication of Efuru, the foundation began work to promote her legacy by promoting African women literature, encourage young, aspiring female writers
At her funeral in 1993, Kenule Saro-Wiwa said of her:
“Flora is gone and we all have to say adieu. But she left behind an indelible mark. No one will ever write about Nigerian literature in English without mentioning her. She will always be the departure point for female writing in Africa. And African publishing will forever owe her a debt. But above all, her contribution to the development of women in Nigeria, nay in Africa, and throughout the world is what she will be best remembered for.”
And today, Google has reinforced her place in history with this fun reminder.
Creative mind. Enthusiast. Learner. Multipotentialite. And here, an assistant editor.
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