Essay Questions

How does Aguda use supernatural elements to examine generational trauma in stories like "Manifest" and "The Hollow"?

Aguda intertwines the supernatural with familial relationships to examine the weight of inherited trauma. In "Manifest," the protagonist is haunted by her mother’s trauma and legacy, which culminates in a physical transformation and a ghostly resemblance to a deceased ancestor, Agnes. This spectral presence becomes a metaphor for the inescapability of the past. It demonstrates that trauma manifests physically and emotionally across generations. In "The Hollow," Aguda introduces a sentient house that protects women by absorbing and trapping abusive men. The house’s agency becomes a symbolic manifestation of maternal protectiveness that extends beyond natural limits. This house is relentless in safeguarding its inhabitants reflecting how generational trauma can evolve into protective mechanisms. However, this protective force is also suffocating through the paradox of maternal care as both nurturing and potentially destructive. In these stories, Aguda raises questions about how far one should go to protect loved ones and whether it is possible to escape ancestral burdens.

What role does motherhood play in Aguda’s stories and how does it relate to identity and self-sacrifice?

In "Breastmilk," the protagonist grapples with her failure to lactate and inner resentment towards her child who was born out of a fragile marriage. Motherhood is depicted as a natural state, but also as something fraught with difficulty and ambivalence. Aguda uses this narrative to interrogate the societal pressure on women to embody an idealized version of motherhood. On a larger scale, stories like "Girlie" and "Things Boys Do" explore the pressures and expectations placed on mothers to nurture at the expense of their identity and well-being. In "Things Boys Do," fathers are haunted by their past misdeeds; however, it is the absence of maternal figures that forces the men to confront their failures. Aguda complicates the narrative of motherhood by questioning who bears the burden of family legacies and how gendered expectations shape these roles. Through these portrayals, Aguda presents motherhood as a role fraught with emotional and physical sacrifice.

How does Aguda portray the intersection of modern life and traditional beliefs in her stories?

Aguda situates her characters at the crossroads of modernity and tradition, where personal identity is molded by conflicting cultural expectations. In stories like "Masquerade Season" and "The Dusk Market," she delves into how traditional Nigerian beliefs about spirits, curses, and rituals continue to influence contemporary lives. For instance, in "Masquerade Season," the protagonist is drawn into a festival where the lines between the living and the dead blur. It forces them to reconcile their modern understanding of the world with ancient customs. The clash between personal freedom and cultural inheritance is also central to stories like "Manifest." For example, the protagonist’s body becomes a site of battle between her mother’s Pentecostal beliefs and the lingering influence of ancestral spirits. Aguda uses these conflicts to explore how individuals navigate the tension between maintaining cultural heritage and embracing new forms of identity in a rapidly changing world. These stories suggest that identity is fluid from external forces even as individuals strive to assert their autonomy.