His Only Wife

The King’s Court flat in Accra where Afi Tekple lives after marrying Eli Ganyo is symbolic of the ways patriarchy and financial dependency entrap women. When Afi first sees the flat, she is impressed by its lavish decorations and accommodations. The furniture is plentiful and polished. The kitchen is sprawling and equipped with all manner of appliances. The carpet is wall-to-wall and plush to the touch. These facets of the space delight and impress Afi upon first glance. However, over time, Afi comes to see the flat as a prison. She is left here by herself without any companionship or direction. She does not understand why she is not “living under the same roof as [her] husband” and what she is supposed to do with herself while waiting for him (44). The longer she is there, the more caged and powerless she feels. The flat is expensive and lavish but creates a barrier to her developing relationships with others, leaving her socially isolated and even more dependent on her husband’s presence or absence for comfort. Afi leaves the flat in Chapter 9 and refuses to return to Accra until Eli takes her to his primary house. When Eli finally obliges, Afi tells herself that if he takes her “back to the flat,” she will put up a fight and refuse to enter (195). Her internal resistance at the end of Chapter 9 conveys her distaste for the place and the ways this setting has limited her agency and augmented her anxiety. Afi feels accomplished when she finally leaves the flat and moves to Eli’s compound because she has taken the first step to self-liberation. By the end of the novel, Afi does not let her physical environment limit her possibilities. She breaks into the city’s business, fashion, and social spheres, thus underscoring her determination and empowerment, and she eventually builds her own home, connected to her boutique, creating a home that is hers rather than her husband’s.