Analysis of The Jinx by Chinyere Otuu Egbuta

Synopsis

The story revolves around Oji Adindu, a young man who grew up as an orphan. When his mother, Ugbomma, was pregnant, Mazi Uchendu who impregnated her denied the pregnancy. Oji’s mother and his grandmother put up with the shame and put in some effort to take care of Oji. Unfortunately, both his mother and grandmother died when Oji was 10 years old. He was later raised by Revd. Akpan, one of the missionary teachers in the primary school Oji attended. Revd Akpan helped Oji win a scholarship for his secondary education at Government College Umuahia. Later he proceeded to the University of Nsukka to study Agricultural Science.

After his university education, Mazi Uchendu, the man who denied his mother’s pregnancy, visited Oji with his friend Mazi Oduche. When he told Oji that he, Uchendu, was his father, Oji felt bad and called him a gold digger. He refused to listen to what Uchendu had to say. Even when Uchendu reported the case to the Igwe of their clan, Oji refused to listen to Uchendu.

When Oji’s “thought turned seriously to marriage,” the Nigerian civil war became imminent. The first girl he planned to marry was Adaeze, a History major undergraduate at the University of Nigeria Nsukka. The effect of the war made Oji lose Adaeze to an Hausa man who impregnated her during the war. Later, Oji found Nneka Nkemdirim, who later became his wife. Oji was among the wealthy men of Umobia Community. He was not only a teacher but also a commercial farmer, a transporter, and also engaged in politics. It would be said that Nneka had everything in her marriage except children. This made her visit many prayer houses in search of the fruit of the womb. This also made her neglect Oji until it was revealed to her that a curse was placed on Oji’s lineage; that the first child of the family will not be born by the wife but by a third party. Before then, Oji had slept with Nneka’s sister, Ihuoma, who claimed to love Oji more than all the suitors asking her hand in marriage. Ihuoma became pregnant before Nneka, Oji’s wife. Ihuoma transferred her service to Abuja in order to hide the pregnancy and the shame that would come with sleeping with and becoming pregnant for her brother-in-law.

It was when Oji became sick and on the day Nneka was performing her 2nd child’s dedication ceremony that Ihuoma brought back Philip, her child with Oji. This resulted in Oji and Nneka fainting almost at the same time.

Exposition

The structure of the story is in median res. The story opens when Oji is a teacher at Umuobia Community School. By this time he is a graduate of Agricultural Science.

Conflict

There are chains of conflict that move the plot of the story. First, the plot shows when Ugbomma, Oji’s mother was pregnant and how Uchendu denied the pregnancy. Having lost her father, Mazi Michael, the breadwinner of the family who left home to participate in the world war, Ugbomma and her mother found it hard to cater for their needs, and that of Oji. Both mother and grandmother died, leaving Oji an orphan. He was an orphan because he did not know that his father was alive.
There was also the Nigerian Civil War which traumatised the people of Biafra, where Umuobia was located, and which affected their worldview.
The main conflict is introduced when Oji could not father a child. Nneka was mocked by fellow women.

Rising Action

• Uchendu denied Ugbomma’s pregnancy. Later he tried to explain to Oji what happened but Oji refused to listen.
• The teaching experience, the Nigerian civil war, and his involvement in agriculture helped him to grow wealth and become a man of substance which enabled him, as an orphan, to marry whoever he liked and to attract other women like Ihuoma.
• Nneka’s barrenness and her search for a solution are also part of the rising action.

Climax

The climax of the story is at the Ogoja prayer house where Prophet Ezra revealed that it was the curse placed on Oji’s lineage that caused them not to have children. She was told to look for her father-in-law Uchendu so as to break the curse. The reader will at this point wonder if Oji will accept to recognize Uchendu as his father and how the curse will be broken.

Falling Action

We see Oji and Oduche running around in search of Uchendu. When they saw him and brought him home, he explained the curse which has been running in their family from generation to generation. He blessed Oji’s son, Uchendu Jnr, and so broke the curse.

Resolution

The story is tragic. It ends sadly. Although Uchendu blessed Uchendu Jnr to remove the curse, he did not know that Philip exists. Philip is Ihuoma’s and Oji’s son. When Philip appears in his father’s house, Oji fainted. By then, Grandpa Uchendu is dead. If Oji does not wake up to bless Philip, the curse will still run in the family.

Theme

• Ancestral Curse:
  The story revolves around the curse placed on Oji’s genealogy. Uchendu denied Ugbomma’s pregnancy due to the fear of the curse that runs in his lineage. Also, Oji suffered due to Uchendu’s abandonment. Nneka and Ihuoma also suffered based on this theme.

Setting

The novel is primarily set in the traditional Igbo society, Umuobia, and the people’s experience in the pre- and post-Nigeria civil war. It recounts Oji’s participation in the civil war. Before the war, Oji planned to marry Adaeze. Within the period, Adaeze’s father, Mr. Michael, left for Kano to expand his business. It is within that period that the Nigeria civil war started and many Igbos in the North returned home while a good number of them could not return, including Adaeze’s father. Adaeze’s mother and her children became devastated. This and other factors led to Oji’s resolution to join the Biafra army. Unfortunately when the war ended and he returned, Adaeze was already pregnant.
Even after the war, the story remained in the traditional society. This enabled Oji to have space to practice Agricultural Science which he studied at the University.