52 pages • 1 hour read
Tsitsi DangarembgaNervous Conditions
Fiction | Novel | Adult | Published in 1988A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
Symbols & Motifs
Schools
Multiple schools appear or are discussed in Nervous Conditions. Tambu attends three different schools; she begins her education in a small local school, then moves to the mission school before she is given a scholarship to attend the Young Ladies College of the Sacred Heart, which is a convent school. Other schools that are referenced include government schools and multiracial schools, such as those attended by Chido, Andy, and Brian.
Schools are motifs of both education and assimilation. Education is beneficial to Tambu and the others, as it provides them with the potential means of escaping poverty. However, both the education process and the means of escaping poverty rely on the assimilation of African culture to Western culture and ideals. The schools teach Christian principles to encourage African students to conform to Western values, and they teach subjects and topics of importance in Western culture. Education has both positive and negative impacts for Tambu, Nhamo, and Nyasha; while they receive the benefit of an education, they experience unintended side effects, such as Nhamo’s arrogance causing strife between him and Tambu and Nyasha experiencing mental crises from the conflict between education and assimilation.
Meat
Meat is a motif of affluence that appears throughout the story. Tambu’s family rarely eats meat, generally only killing one of their birds when Nhamo or Babamukuru visit. They can only eat other meat sources—goat and ox—when Babamukuru pays for the luxury. Ma’Shingayi, when criticizing Tambu for assimilating to affluence and forgetting her roots, tells her to go “eat sausage” with Maiguru (143). Her remark reflects her poverty as compared the Sigaukes’ wealth. As a motif, meat reflects The Enduring Impacts of Colonization, as colonization is cited as the primary cause of poverty in the area.
The ox that Babamukuru brings to the homestead for Christmas becomes a symbol of the patriarchal social hierarchy in Babamukuru’s family. Firstly, he ignores Maiguru’s assertions that half an ox is too much food to bring, demonstrating his disregard for his wife’s opinion. When she is proven right and the meat begins to rot, only the higher-ranking family members are allowed to eat the fresh meat: “She took to cooking, twice a day, a special pot of refrigerated meat for the patriarchy to eat as they planned and constructed the family’s future” (138). The use of meat as both a symbol and a motif creates a scornful satirical element in the text. The author demonstrates that it is absurd and unfair for economic and social status to determine whether a person has access to ample nutrition.
Lady Chatterley’s Lover by D.H. Lawrence
When Tambu first arrives at Babamukuru’s house, Nyasha is reading Lady Chatterley’s Lover by D.H. Lawrence. Maiguru criticizes Nyasha’s choice to read the book, and Babamukuru takes away the book while Nyasha is in the kitchen. The book becomes a symbol of Nyasha’s desire for autonomy as she is coming of age and of Babamukuru’s authoritarian parenting.
Lady Chatterley’s Lover is well known for its graphic depictions of sex, the inclusion of a gay relationship, and the use of profane language. Babamukuru feels that it is indecent for Nyasha to read such material, fearing the impact it will have on her. Nyasha does not see the harm in reading the book, and she is striving to expand her mind through reading and studying. However, she chooses to bring the book to the dinner table, knowing that Babamukuru will not approve of it. Rather than discussing why he does not feel the book is appropriate, Babamukuru hides the book and snaps at Nyasha for asking about it. The circumstances surrounding the controversial text serve to introduce both Tambu and the reader to the tense relationship between Nyasha and Babamukuru.
The Latrine
The latrine on the homestead becomes a symbol of Tambu’s missing presence from the homestead. It had been Tambu’s responsibility to keep the women’s latrine clean while she was living on the homestead, and when she leaves, no one attends to the latrine in her stead. It becomes unsanitary and uncomfortable, and although Tambu cleans it while she visits, some of the damage is irreversible.
Tambu has cold feelings toward her family; she views her father as lazy and absurd, and she feels that her mother victimizes herself. The latrine symbolizes the important role Tambu held in her family, particularly representing Ma’Shingayi’s love for Tambu. With Tambu gone, Ma’Shingayi experiences hopelessness and fatigue. As a result, she stops cleaning the latrine. No one else on the homestead—such as Netsai or Lucia—steps into to take over the responsibility of cleaning the latrine, and it is not cleaned until Tambu returns home. In this way, the latrine symbolizes Tambu is irreplaceable, despite her emotional distance from her immediate family.
