American Research Journal of English and Literature

The research looked at the relevance of the indigenous African educated woman in contemporary African society: A case of Chimamanda Adeche’s Purple Hibiscus. The purpose of the study was to use Adeche’s Purple Hibiscus to showcase the position of the educated indigenous African educated woman in contemporary Africa. A qualitative approach was employed to look at views related to the indigenous African woman and her means of asserting herself through education and also adopted the traditional library research approach through the use of books, articles, journals and publications in as much as they contribute to the worth of the study. It was informed by the Feminist theory. The main findings of the study indicate that there have been positive changes in the roles of women over the years. This change has come about as a result of women’s quest to assert themselves through education and contribute towards freeing their families from cultural and societal dogmas in which women were treated to subjugation and marginalization. A remarkable observation was the intentionality of ascribing to female characters more respectable roles in novels by various writers as the years go by. A conclusion drawn from the study is that education is still a major weapon of enhancing assertiveness in women but it is not the ultimate.