TRAUMA OF SPOUSAL ABUSE IN SELECTED AFRICAN NOVEL AND SONGS

Abstract

The cases of traumatized women increase on daily basis and this social phenomenon has drawn attention of artists from print and digital outlets. This essay employs Caruth’s Trauma theory to explore the pathetic experiences of abused spouses in Chimamanda Adichie’s Purple Hibiscus, Amma Darko’s Beyond the Horizon and selected African songs namely: Cina Soul’s “Killi Mi” and Ebony Reign’s “Maame HwE.” It is discovered that physical and economic trauma lead to psychological trauma which eventually makes a victim slides into a critical situation like depression and personality disorder. This essay concludes that individuals’ homes will know peace only if women are treated with good measure of respect and care which will in turn ensure the enthronement of a sane society.