The prejudiced preference of the male child over the female is a practice that persists widely in Africa. Women are put under intense pressure to give birth to sons to satisfy the ill-informed practice of society. Women who give birth to only girls are made to feel unhappy and inadequate. They are made to endure harassment from family members and inlaws, when a woman fails to produce sons, the men might resolve to marry other wives in other to achieve their desired aim. To prevent their husbands from taking other wives, many women might resort to giving birth to plenty of children to produce their desired sex-child in the family, which isn’t advisable medically, as this has contributed to the immense increase of maternal death in Africa.
The high importance attached to male children is due to certain cultural barriers placed on female children. The no inheritance rights given to females, the presumption that women are only best for performing house chores, producing and taking care of babies, and the tradition that bars women from bearing their Fathers’ names after marriage. The male child is seen as widowhood insurance to the mother, in some societies like the Igbo community, the widow is only given full rights to the deceased husband’s properties if she has a son or sons. All these cultural barriers placed on females by society have been rebutted by the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. Section 15(2) and section 42(1) prohibit sex-based discrimination.
Africa’s Misogynistic socio-cultural nature, punishes women for several things, things that are out of their control, such as infertility, miscarriages, and several others. Several Nigerian female novelists have raised their voices concerning such issues in writing. Lola Shoneyin’s ” secret lives of baba segi Lola’s wives” Ayobami Adebayo’s “stay with me” and several other books are written by female novelists address these issues.
The prejudiced preference of the male child over the female is a practice that persists widely in Africa. Women are put under intense pressure to give birth to sons to satisfy the ill-informed practice of society. Women who give birth to only girls are made to feel unhappy and inadequate. They are made to endure harassment from family members and inlaws, when a woman fails to produce sons, the men might resolve to marry other wives in other to achieve their desired aim. To prevent their husbands from taking other wives, many women might resort to giving birth to plenty of children to produce their desired sex-child in the family, which isn’t advisable medically, as this has contributed to the immense increase of maternal death in Africa.
The high importance attached to male children is due to certain cultural barriers placed on female children. The no inheritance rights given to females, the presumption that women are only best for performing house chores, producing and taking care of babies, and the tradition that bars women from bearing their Fathers’ names after marriage. The male child is seen as widowhood insurance to the mother, in some societies like the Igbo community, the widow is only given full rights to the deceased husband’s properties if she has a son or sons. All these cultural barriers placed on females by society have been rebutted by the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. Section 15(2) and section 42(1) prohibit sex-based discrimination.
Africa’s Misogynistic socio-cultural nature, punishes women for several things, things that are out of their control, such as infertility, miscarriages, and several others. Several Nigerian female novelists have raised their voices concerning such issues in writing. Lola Shoneyin’s ” secret lives of baba segi Lola’s wives” Ayobami Adebayo’s “stay with me” and several other books are written by female novelists address these issues.
It is never in the place of a woman to determine the sex of a child. Gender is mostly determined by chromosomes. When an egg or sperm is made it only receives one of the sex chromosomes from the parent. Women can only make eggs with X chromosomes, while men can either make X or Y sperm. Literacy is gradually opening our eyes to see the beauty of both sexes, as no sex is inferior to another. Children are gifts from God, Whichever one you have either boy or girl cherish and give them the best that life has to offer.
It is never in the place of a woman to determine the sex of a child. Gender is mostly determined by chromosomes. When an egg or sperm is made it only receives one of the sex chromosomes from the parent. Women can only make eggs with X chromosomes, while men can either make X or Y sperm. Literacy is gradually opening our eyes to see the beauty of both sexes, as no sex is inferior to another. Children are gifts from God, Whichever one you have either boy or girl cherish and give them the best that life has to offer.
