“It’s 2018, and the thought of wearing natural hair in buttoned-up corporate America instills a perpetual sense of shame and fear in the minds of many black women,”(Allen).  

As an African American female, hair has been an important part of my identity. Throughout the years, growing up I’ve changed my hair interchangeably and that affected how I carried myself. Americanah, by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie tells the story of a Nigerian native migrating to America. Adichie shows what America is like through the eyes of an immigrant and the new challenges Ifemelu, the main character, faces. Throughout the novel hair makes a recurrence to help develop Adichie’s central themes.  In this novel, topics such as identity, race, relationships, etc. are spoken upon and are supported by the symbol of hair.

Ifemelu’s Identity

For a majority of the novel, Ifemelu’s character is set in a hair salon as she goes in and out of flashbacks.  In present time, it seems that Ifemelu has accepted and is confident with her natural hair stating, “I like my hair the way God made it,”(Adichie 15). “Unbeknownst to readers at the time, the struggle with hair continues throughout the novel. For Ifemelu herself, hair symbolizes her struggle for identity and confidence as a Nigerian immigrant and black American. When she comes to America, she becomes insecure once she’s faced with European beauty standards. She soon conforms to these beauty standards by perming her hair to fit in and be more professional.” After perming her hair, “The verve was gone. She did not recognize herself. She left the salon almost mournfully; while the hairdresser had flat-ironed the ends, the smell of burning, of something organic dying which should have not died, made her feel a sense of loss,” (251).“Ifemelu was connected to her hair. With the loss of her natural hair, she felt as if a part herself has died (burned away), meaning her independence and confidence.”Once she starts over (cuts her hair) and reclaims her natural hair, with the help of  “ HAPPILYKINKYNAPPY.COM” (262), she regains her self-confidence, along with self-love for her hair. “Black women’s identity and their relationship with their hairstyle are intrinsically linked” (Peane) . The style of Ifemelu’s hair affected how she felt/carried herself.

Hair Standards in America

Overall in American Society, hair seems to be the gateway for embedded racism in American culture and society. Ifemelu seems to set an example for the overall challenges a black woman goes through in regards to her hair in the workforce. Westernized beauty standards have been set and anything else is seen as “unprofessional” and less attractive. Black women have been forced to change their hair, which defines their cultural identity, by perming it in order to appease white beauty standards. Ifemelu got the job at the office with her permed hair.  “It’s 2018, and the thought of wearing natural hair in buttoned-up corporate America instills a perpetual sense of shame and fear in the minds of many black women,”(Allen).  When Ifemelu couldn’t deal with the perm any longer and she brought back her natural hair, she was ashamed and missed several days of work because she was afraid of how her coworkers would react. When she returned, her coworkers at the office, who were primarily white, did exactly what Ifemelu was afraid of. They began to treat and look at her differently. After Ifemelu had been working there for years and decides to resign, Miss Margaret bids her farewell stating “They need to treat folk better around here. You think your hair was part of the problem,”(Adichie 262). Meaning even after Ifemelu had cut her hair for a while, the people at the office were still judging her for wearing her natural hair. The pressure for black women to change themselves in order to be professional and successful in America still has not been broken.

Self-Hatred and Brainwashing

Hair also defines beauty in America and in Nigeria. Westernized styles such as long, straight/loose curled hair is praised over Ifemelu’s natural hair. In the salon, Aisha, Ifemelu’s stylist, asks her “Why you don’t have a relaxer,”(15) and tells Ifemelu her hair is too rough. Aisha has already been brainwashed that American standards of beauty is the right way and most of attractive. When Ifemelu was walking around with Curt wearing her hair naturally, a black man walked past and stated “You ever wonder why he likes you looking all jungle like that,”(263). He not only makes his disgust for Ifemelu’s hair known, but he also implies that Curt is only with her due to a fetish, not because he genuinely likes her. This is self-hate within the black community because they are denying their own cultural identity to the preference of norm white beauty standards.

In Conclusion…

Hair tends to be more important to females, especially black females. Adichie wouldn’t have been able to tell the story of a African female immigrant without mentioning hair. Adichie’s symbolization of hair can be found throughout multiple themes that she brings up in the article. Hair is important to one’s confidence and individuality so it is easy to see how it plays a role in identity, racism, relationships, etc. This is why Adichie using hair as a symbol was such an easy, adaptable add on to help develop her themes.