Dangarembga

Dangarembga

If I had to choose any character/ characters from Nervous Conditions that describe me, I would have to say that Tambu and Nyasha. Each can have similar characteristics, but in the end they are all different and have to overcome certain tasks/ difficulties in their lives to make them who they are in the end. Tambu is an all-around girl who starts out as a Shona traditional who just wants to go to school and get an education like her brother. Sadly education is not a well-supported idea for women, and coming from a family who is poor and traditionally disbelieves in educating women she is forced to grow and sell her own corn to pay for school. It is through this kind of experience that I can relate to Tambu, my personal experience is not as important like buying an education as Tambu had to, but it has the same concepts. When I was younger I wanted to be on the little community football team (I was a tomboy), but my parents were against it because I was a girl so they wouldn’t pay the entrance fee for me to play. Being the driven person I am, I ended up every day for almost 3 weeks before the season started, making cookies and selling them at the old IGA store and selling them to in the end making enough money to play just like Tambu did to go to school.

            I can be like Nyasha in the sense that she stands up for herself and what she believes in and that is how I am. Although I have never been in a physical altercation with either of my parents, I have on the other hand been in verbal confrontations with my parents that have almost led up to a fight like Nyasha and her father’s physical fight. It’s scary to be in a situation such as a fight but to stand up for what you believe in as Nyasha had done is a key aspect that can make people prosperous in life.

            When both of the characters are combined one can get tradition and modernity and I think that is the best way to live life, but the only way to live a functional and prosperous life is to balance both. Don’t be afraid to modernize but always hold onto the roots of where you came from your tradition.