Ibrahim Tahir’s The Last Imam: women, marriage, Islam, and culture in the West

African society

PRESENTED BY

Fatin Mohd. Husni

FOR

ENGL 4060: Topics in Islamic LiteratureSection 2

Dr. Umar Abdurrahman

Ibrahim Tahir• Ibrahim Tahir (1938 – 2009) was a Anglophone

African writer, Bauchi politician, university professor, sociologist, humanitarian activist and a great philanthropist.

• He is also known as Ibrahim Tahir the Talban of Bauchi, an honorific title given to an important officer who supervises activities of judges in the emirates.

• He was born in Nigeria.• He received his early education in the Native

Authority school in the North Nigeria.• Later, he received his doctorate title in

Sociology from the Cambridge University.• He worked as a lecturer teaching sociology in

Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, Nigeria.• He was also the president of the Nigerian Red

Cross and was involved in numerous humanitarian activities.

• He died in Cairo, Egypt due to diabetes.

Hausa-Fulani society• The story takes place in a typical Hausa-Fulani cultural setting in

Bauchi.• The area is located in the northern side of Nigeria, in the West

African region.• Hausa is known to be the largest ethnic group in the northern

region of Nigerian, whose people are predominantly Muslims (Parris, 1996).

• The Fulani came to the lands of Hausa bringing in their Islamic influences.o Originally, the Fulani were the early migrants who migrated into the

West African savannah.o Later, the Fulani built in their settlements in the land of Hausa which

consequently resulted to intermarriage and cultural assimilation between these two ethnic groups (Ali-Agan, 2010; Parris, 1996).

• Among the Islamic influences of the Fulani on the Hausa community was the establishment of Islamic caliphate (Ochunu, 2008).

• Gradually, the Nigerians begin to refer to Hausa and Fulani as one group.

Synopsis and characterization of the characters

• The novel The Last Imam revolves around the life of Alhaji Usman, the central figure in this story, as he undergoes life conflicts and dilemmas:o Social and family expectationso Absurd and un-Islamic cultural traditionso Marriage: ‘Aishao Loss love: Hasana and Kassimo People of Bauchio Malam Shu’aibo Inner conflicts: ego, hypocrisy, sexual desire.

• The characterization of Alhaji Usman is skilfully done by the author.• It portrays the real, ideal man who has the both potentials; a person of

potential goodness but at the same time is consumed by his spiritual weaknesses; a result of his pettiness (Bangura, 2000, p. 123).

• It displays Tahir’s mature realism, advocating the idea that a realistic man whose characterisation does not necessarily have to fit single neat descriptions of being good or being bad.

Women as an object of sexual desire

• Alhaji Usman uses his wives as an object to satisfy his sexual desires.o “He lives with them all but kept his distance in the daytime,

enjoying his power over them” (p. 30).o “He felled her without speaking a word” (p. 111).

• Women are expected to be virgins or else, it would be considered shameful.

• The society treats women with no sense of dignity.• The wives are anticipated by the community to inform

them of her virginity on her first nuptial night with her newly wed husband.o “The taking of the wife’s chastity on the first nuptial night had

been ritualised”o “And while her husband was taking her the girl screamed and

howled and announced her pain and her entry into womanhood for all to hear.” (p. 23).

• The practice of using women or slaves as concubines solely for the purpose of satisfying one’s sexual desire.

• The Imam is “overpowered by his excessive passion for concubine” (Ali-Agan, 2010, p. 79).o “In this eager state he acquired after a year, a second wife and

a third and fourth. The last two brought with them two concubines, one each from the descendents of the slaves of their families” (Tahir, p. 30).

• Slavewomen are raped.o “My mother was a slave girl then in the Emir’s court and our

father’s friend and confidant used her for this purpose” (Tahir, p. 160).

o “Our father took my mother, raped her in the same way you took Kasana...” (Tahir, p. 168).

Intense conflicts between un-Islamic cultural practices with Islamic practices

• Although with the coming of Islam, certain un-Islamic practices and absurd cultural traditions are still rampantly practiced by in Bauchi.

• Gwauro practiceo A custom whereby the any man who has

divorced his wife or wives and has failed to rectify their marriage with be captured by the gwauro chief.

o He will be dressed in rags and paraded round the town for people’s entertainment.

• The practice of concubine practice• Their belief in superstitions:• “ ‘When the Bauchi Hyena moans,’ she

replied, ‘disaster strikes.’ ”• The ugliness of events suggesting un-Islamic

practices are illustrated negatively by the author (Bangura, 2000, p. 126).o Ibrahim Tahir likens the victim of the gwauro to

‘the pagan mask gods’ (p. 97).o He also describes “the grim circle of women sitting

there like ritual carvings in juju shrine” (p. 59).

The treatment of polygamous marriage

• Polygamy in the Hausa-Fulani setting in Ibrahim Tahir’s novel is presented as a cultural tradition and a way to legalise illegal relationship rather than an act of moral nobility.

• Back then in the Makkan and early Hijr period, polygamy and concubine taking were allowed during war, as a means to protect female slaves or widows whose husbands were killed in wars.

• “A master is encouraged to cohabit with his slaves not as a form of exploitation but as a means for their quest for freedom” (Ali-Agan, p. 78).

• However, as time passes by, such purpose is no longer applicable.

• It is clearly explained by the author that Alhaji Usman marries his second, third and fourth wives as a means to satisfy his sexual desires.

Abuse of knowledge and power

• As a husband, Alhaji Usman misuses his authority to dominate the women in his house.

• As a religious leader, he misuses his Qur’anic verses and his Islamic knowledge to cover up his religious and moral transgression.o “These were the books which his ancestors and their

calling has bequeathed to him, the same books which gave him the learning he has so selfishly misused” (p. 110).

o “You have perverted doctrine to suit your own purpose!” (p. 112).

Religious hypocrisy

• Alhaji Usman covers up his loss of God consciousness in him by pretending to show zealous acts of worship in front of everyone.o “To allay the suspicions of his father and other

men he felt compelled to make vigorous demonstrations of his enthusiasm in prayer at the mosque and in the lessons at school” (p. 30).

• He has strong inclination towards impressing the people of Bauchi in order to make them realise his authority as the Imam.

Blind loyalty

• The people of Bauchi develop strong sense of acceptance and admiration towards their leaders.

• A mindset deeply rooted from the cultural norms which emphasises that the superiority of the authority shouldn’t be questioned.

• They accept blindly without questioning.o “They had suspected nothing wrong, nothing except

the obsession with perfection they had always associated with him” (p. 146).

Style and language• The tone of narration can be said to possess

some sense of masculinity.o It signifies the emphasis given on men in the Hausa-

Fulani tradition.o Women are considered insignificant.

• Some of the descriptions display Sufi elements.o “His voice reciting the verses to the men and to

Usman, intoxicating him and raising him high” (p. 17).

o “...letting them thread their way into every part of his flesh and setting his heart and his soul on fire” (p. 17).

Conclusion• Ibrahim Tahir’s The Last Imam depicts the conflicts between

absurd cultural practices and Islamic teachings.• The removal of Alhaji Usman from his religious position

signifies the end of the blood line dominance in the administration system.

• The appointment of Malam Shu’aibu as the new Imam signifies the coming of new ruling run by knowledgeable people.o “The Emir or the Sultan can no longer leas the prayers or deliver

the sermons due to lack of required knowledge, hence the need to appoint a ‘knowledgeable’ Mallam to perform the function” (Ali-Agan, 2010, pp. 82-83).

• Metaphorically, The Last Imam puts forward the importance of having the right knowledge and credibility to run or lead the society.

References• Adamu, A. (December 10, 2009). Nigeria: Dr. Ibrahim Tahir (1938-

2009). Daily Trust. Retrieved from: http://allafrica.com/stories/200912110544.html

• Ali-Agan, A. (2010). Conflicts between religion and culture in an African society: a critical analysis of Ibrahim Tahir’s The Last Imam, 1.

• Bangura, A. S. (2000). Islam and the West African novel: the politics of representation. Lynne Rienner Publishers.

• Mohamed, A. (December 10, 2012). Nigeria: Tahir’s son succeeds father as Talban Bauchi. Daily Trust. Retrieved from: http://allafrica.com/stories/201212101095.html

• Ochonu, M. (2008). Colonialism within colonialism: The Hausa-Caliphate imaginary and the British colonial administration of the Nigerian Middle Belt.African Studies Quarterly, 10(2-3).

• Parris, R. G. (1996). Hausa. New York:The Rosen Publishing Group.