The Role Appearance Plays in Adichie's Short Stories

In Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie's collection of short stories titled The Thing Around Your Neck, physical appearance has a monumental impact on the fortunes and lives of numerous protagonists. Through the plot of her stories, both the negative and positive impacts of having good looks in life is put on full display. The first example of how an attractive appearance can give someone an advantage in life is shown through Nnamabia from Cell One. Nnamabia is an immature young man who steals jewelry from his own mother and hangs out in gangs that terrorize local residents. Because of how dashingly handsome he looks though, his parents let him off the hook every time with no serious punishment. Another instance of looks working in one's favor is in the form of Nkem from Imititation. Nkem grew up in poverty on the streets of Nigeria, but because she was very beautiful, a rich businessman decided to marry her. Her appearance was able to single-handedly lift her from a life of destitution to one of great luxury. Adichie makes sure to present the pitfalls of being attractive as well in Jumping Monkey Hill. The protagonist in that story, Ujunwa, is constantly hit on and objectified by an old man named Edward who sees her not as a person, but just as a piece of meat. While many desire to be attractive, the truth is that being good-looking doesn't get one that much further in life. While her appearance was able to give Nkem a better life, she felt lonely not being around her friends and wasn't much more than her husband's play toy. Nnamabia never learned responsibility because he was able to charm his way out of every situation using his looks. And Ujunwa was constantly objectified and looked at as less than human. Using these characters, Adichie paints a very vivid picture of the struggles that can accompany being an attractive individual.

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