AFRICAN PROSE
ASARE KONADU: A Woman In Her Prime
Comment on the fate of childless women in Brenhoma society
Explanation
In Brenhoma, childlessness or barrenness is considered a grave misfortune because a barren woman will doomed to loneliness in her old age. She will have no child to care for her; no grandchild to enliven the compound, as well us no issue of her blood to mourn at her death. Although she will definitely be buried by her relatives, nothing is better than a woman having her own children at her funeral. This is the fate Pokuwaa is desperate not to suffer as being barren in Brenhoma is "the worst thing that would happen a woman".
Again, in Brenhoma the people treat barren women with lots of scorn. Pokuwaa is barren in her prime so people treat her with contempt. Even though she is fond of children and welcomes them heartily to her house; some mothers are not happy with this. For example, when Afua Fofie daughter visits Pokuwaa, Afua storms into the house and without greeting Pokuwaa, takes her little girl away. When Pokuwaa questions her, Afua Fofie cheekily responds by saying she is the mother and so has every right to take her daughter away without greeting Pokuwaa. Pokuwaa is deeply hurt and so resolves to stick to Kwadwo, her lover, and religiously performs her sacrifice as prescribed by the priest of Tano so that the gods and her ancestors will take pity on der and grant her request to have her own children.
When Kwadwo, Pokuwaa's lover, tells his wife that he will be spending seven days with his mistress, 'Fickuwaa, she protests vehemently against it arguing that she will "not sell her rights to any barren woman".
In Brenhoma, it is held that "there is no difference between a barren woman and a man" because women are supposed-to give birth to children who will perpetuate the existence of the state of Brenhoma, as well as defend the land. Thus, Pokuwaa's mother is not happy with her decision to discontinue the sacrifice she is king to the gods to grant her request to have children. She believes strongly that in Brenhoma, "a woman gets well past fifty before her blood stops flowing". To this end, she goes to see the head of the Asona clan, opanin Kofi Owusu and declares 'a woman who says," I will not give birth" is useless, useless!
Besides, in Brenhoma, mothers also suffer the ripple effects of their daughters' fate when they are barren cause Brenhoma is a matrilineal society. Pokuwaa's mother will bear the brunt of Pokuwaa's fate because Pokuwaa is her only daughter; Pokuwna's mother tells her consistently that the children of her five brothers are not her grandchildren. They belong to their mothers' families. She add that Pokuwaa should bear her own grandchildren. Therefore, unless Pokuwaa's mother is angry and frustrated when Pokuwaa discontinues the sacrifice seeking Tano's favour for a child. Consequently, she gets very excited when Pokuwaa becomes pregnant.