Behind the Walls is a 10-chapter fiction which boldly celebrates teachers and challenges the ridiculous ways in which teachers are being treated by some proprietors and parents. It magnifies the relevance of teachers to remove willful oversight and brings readers out of willful forgetfulness.
The novella centres around Miss Beauty Ugochukwu (aka Miss Bee) who makes herself approachable and trustworthy. Students see her as a friend and teacher. Some of her colleagues become jealous and call her names such as Miss Over Syllabus and Miss Pythagoras but she is not discouraged. Notable is her encounter with Madam Olufola whose only son, out of six, always bullies girls in Miss Bee’s class. The mother insults Miss Bee for punishing her son and attempts to slap Miss Bee. The school unjustly demonstrates that parents are indispensable while teachers are expendable. Miss Bee, however, is appreciated by many people.
Chimamanda brilliantly avoided a single story by showing that just as many parents and owners of schools do not appreciate great teachers, many people appreciate and love them. Miss Bee is concerned about the academic and emotional wellness of her students and is able to solve domestic problems in the family of Adifala’s.
Furthermore, of world relevance is the message in Chapter 7, “God has no Religion”. Anyone who has read Bolaji Abdulahi’s Sweet Sixteen will find in this novella a similitude in the way both novellas emphasize the need for tolerance. Miss Bee has Muslim friends and forbids forced conversion into Christianity because she is not a religious fanatic. Finally, the novella demonstrated that when students win prizes, teachers teach them; when schools get glorified with excellence, teachers have taught and when professionals are seen, teachers have taught.
Miss Bee, single at 34, does not let her status bring her down and eventually, she marries a loving man. Chimamanda is a talented writer and a voice for heroes.
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Uchechukwu Nnamdi –
This seems a very good attempt to correct the impression some people have about teachers. Good teachers should be valued and encouraged to enable them continue their good works.
John Omeife –
Germane and impressive read
TOKOSI DÀDA –
I Have Not Read The Book Even Though I’ll Love To But d Small Teaser Read Here Gives d Impression Of a Juicy , Refreshing And “Unputdownable” Book.. Thanks For Whetting Our Appetites For d Book . Looking Forward To Having It Soon Ma. As Always My Rgds.
Adaobi Muo (Ph.D.) –
The School on the Table: Chimamanda Anyagwa’s “Behind the Walls” (Adaobi Muo, Ph.D.)
Chimamanda Anyagwa’s story in “Behind the Walls,” is, by any standard, very interesting and instructive. The young author, through the agency of fiction, adds her voice to the unceasing and sensitive discourse on school and home. The story of the novella revolves around the quintessential teacher, Miss B, whose full name is Miss Beauty Ugochukwu. The protagonist’s ability to successfully navigate through the several challenges of her teaching profession constitute the thrust of the story. One of the strongest points of the text is it’s ability to convincingly dramatise repulsive excesses teachers have to deal with in parents like Madam Iyabo Olufola, and her spoiled brat Seun, as well as Chief Mrs Onyeka. Such attitudes are simply unsettling. However, Miss B’s responses to both shameless displays of adult delinquency in both episodes, especially in a morally depraved and employers’ market society as ours, are admirable and challenging. They are vivid renditions of assertiveness as they prove that the teacher is worthy of her first name. By the way, very few Nigerian teachers will mind having a Rebecca in their classes. After all, who wouldn’t love a beautiful RAV 4 Jeep as a gift!
Furthermore, the attention of “Behind the Walls” to the home is another commendable aspect any vigilant reader cannot but observe. The character Tobi is effectively employed to illustrate the relationship between the home and a child’s performance in school. Moreover, the family is used to briefly attend to gender relationship within the marriage institution. The proffessor’s demand that his wife kneel down to greet him suggests that a typical educated man, in a patriarchal society as Nigeria, hardly goes to school with his entire being.
Chisom is another compelling character and perhaps the most pathetic character of the novel. A number of chapters in Chisom’s story contain some very distressing episodes. Her aunt’s reaction says that Chisom is indeed guilty of her parents’ untimely death. It is reminiscent of the horrible fate of those supposed child witches of Calabar. The complete turn around in her life is also a potent testimony to the power of destiny even in a contemporary world that holds such things in contempt.
In addition, Women With Wisdom (WWW) Caucus adds considerable force to Anyagwa’s narrative, in terms of their female-centered vision, mission and goals. The activities of WWW bespeaks the positive impact of mentoring and modelling on the young generation. Unfortunately, the present Nigerian children and youths hardly have such needed models in Nigeria. Moreover, WWW, as a twenty-first century community of young women, seems deliberately employed to remind one of our present ICT-enabled and Internet-dependent World Wide Web – WWW – and the limitless opportunities it presents to individuals and groups.
Another unforgettable and telling episode is Miss B’s nightmare. Her dream takes one back to Ezeulu’s battles against vociferous voices of accusations appearing in his dreams, in Chinua Achebe’s masterpiece “Arrow of God.”
“Behind the Walls” takes a romantic turn by its recruitment of Folabi. It is good to know that Folabi passed Miss B’s test. His acceptance, as an in-law, by Miss B’s Igbo family is a loud statement on cross-cultural marriage. In a hardly successfully multi-ethnic society like Nigeria, such lessons cannot be ignored.
One very significant aspect of the story a reader must not fail to observe is B’s promotion to the headship of Mercury Children’s School, despite her academic limitations, in relation to the other eleven contenders for the same position. The episode tends to be an advocacy for competence over certificate and specially designed for and delivered to a certificate-crazy environment like Nigeria. Furthermore, Miss B’s demonstration of the deep-rooted ‘Igboness’ in her, through language and dance, adds a new voice to the call for the retention and development of indigenous languages, like Igbo which is already declared endangered by UNESCO’s 1990s “Red Book on Endangered Languages.”
The novel is not without a number of memorable lines. For instance, using the young character Chidera, and in the context of her very dramatic birthday celebration, Amanda reminds the reader that “you cannot win all the time. The world is not yours.” In addition, the author advised the reader to “move with the world … The world does not wait for anybody.” In the present 21st century world of incredible speed, such counsel is necessary. One of the most insightful statements of “Behind the Walls” is that “God has no religion.” It is in agreement with Marie Elena John’s view that “God is not a Catholic” in the novel “Unburnable.” In a world deeply deformed by religious intolerance, “Behind the Walls” provides an example of religious accommodation in Miss B’s attitude towards her Muslim friends. All these facilitate effective communication of the tale’s meaning and contribute to the outstanding merit of the story.
Nevertheless, no objective analysis can afford to overlook the few gaps and flaws found within the pages of the narrative. For instance, one cannnot but wonder why a character like Miss B, decorated with rare virtues, will fail to see her parents who live in the same country with her for twelve whole years. Again, the text maintains some mistakes as observed in the first line of the last paragraph of page 55. However, it must be stated that those inconsistencies lack the capacity to reduce the potency of the tale. It is a story that grabs a reader’s hand and takes him/her on a journey through paths that cross the classroom and home. Indubitably, in Miss B and her students, the book provides a template for a very productive teacher-students-parents relationship.
“Behind the Walls” encapsulates a well-told story with profound lessons for every contemporary home and school. Indeed, the adroit manipulation of literary resources by the eleven-year old Anyagwa in the novella “Behind the Walls” validates Chukwuemeka Ike’s position that “our children are coming.”
Sandra –
This book Is a great message to teachers and parents as well. The work is impressive