UZOAMAKA DORIS ANIUNOH AND HER “BALCONY” STORY


Intelligence is a unique feature in every human, the variation, however, is in the conscious, accurate or otherwise application of it. One is not just intelligent because of his physical attributes, not even the size of his brain; it is, in the most realistic sense, because of the quality which that intelligence displays. I consider Uzoamaka Doris Aniunoh intelligent for the incisiveness in her Balcony story. You may not have heard about Doris, probably you may not even think she is capable of anything. But I tell you of truth, Doris is likely another Nigerian literary topnotch on the rise.

Through art man is able to imitate, supplement, and in some cases even counteract the course and works of nature. And that underscores his incontestable brilliance and wittiness. One of the benefits and beauties of literature is that through it we are able see ourselves, our world, as in a mirror, and review our lives. And “Balcony” a succinctly brilliant story by Doris - a sure literary comer - is an honest testimony of literary beauty. I invite you to read Balcony. Does it not evoke a sense of candid coherence and simplicity, which in turn makes it easier for you to see, in vivid pictures, the character’s own world? I know you cannot agree any less.

And the lessons of the story? The tending consequences of Talatu and UCs’ actions are lucid testimonies. But do Anambara women generally seek to subdue their husbands? Or is the author’s idea, by even imagining that her mother may have thought of “buying stool” for her father just another stereotype? Whatever the truth may be, another truth is just that Doris Aniunoh has succeeded in giving us something to chew and ponder about, and hopefully, the society will be kind enough to look into her lives and change for the better.

The “Balcony” is a remarkable story of our everyday lives, a mirror hugely reflective of the Onitsha society and its people.


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