Ifemelu: Becoming an American

Ifemelu's relocation was more difficult because she did not know what to expect. Unlike Obinze who had read books about America and was well-versed in its culture, most of the experiences Ifemelu had in America were unfamiliar and because of that, she was eager to fit in. We can see this in the type of food she starts eating, the company she keeps and the blog posts she writes. Some areas of America were relatively easy for Ifemelu to adapt to but a major aspect of American culture that she struggled with was the way Americans talk and by talk, I do not just mean their accent, I also mean the mannerisms that occur. 

Ifemelu's conversation with Cristina Tomas was a significant turning point in her journey in America. After meeting Cristina who says "I bet you do, I just don't know how well" in response to Ifemelu telling her she speaks English (Adichie, pg 163), Ifemelu starts faking an American accent. This reminded me of my first class here which was a presentation class. During the class, I had to repeat myself three times before the professor could understand me and I was worried that my accent was going to affect my grade. This led me to start practicing an American accent also. In terms of mannerisms, Nigerians have been raised to be polite, greeting people, saying sorry even when they are not in the wrong but also only talking when they have something valuable to add to the conversation. So when Ifemelu comes here she is shocked by how different things are but she also starts adapting to it. Even Obinze notices this and tells her "You know you said "excited "?" about her media class (Adichie pg 167). This shows that sometimes it's almost impossible not to adapt to our new environment. However, I like that Ifemelu made a conscious effort to go back to her Nigerian accent because I believe you don't need to change everything about yourself just to fit in. The question Ifemelu asked herself "Why is it a compliment, an accomplishment to sound American?" (Adichie 215) made me think a lot and I realized that British people in America don't fake an American accent, instead, they get complimented but when people from countries in Africa or South Asia talk, it is suddenly difficult to understand what they are saying. This made me make a conscious effort to talk the same way I would if I were back in Nigeria. 

Another area in her journey to becoming an American that was difficult for Ifemelu was the concept of race in America. Coming from Nigeria where practically everyone was black to America which is very diverse was shocking. We see this throughout the book but particularly when Ifemelu says "I came from a country where race was not an issue; I did not think of myself as black and I only became black when I came to America." (Adichie, 359). Throughout the book both Adichie and Ifemelu explore this concept and though they might not get familiar with it, they understand it to a level.