The human mind naturally develops pattern recognition. In psychology, this describes how we make connections between memories and information perceived because our brains want to predict situations from past experiences. Because this behavior is so basic and innate, considering the logic and accuracy of patterns, it seems that we've integrated it into our thinking even when we shouldn't. Throughout our K-12 education, we're taught to analyze characters: what are their key traits? Their conflicts? Their attitudes? And through this, we've gotten into the habit of labeling them and putting them into categories for the convenience of characterizing them. It seems like every character has a distinguished role and a distinguished set of ideals. But in Americanah by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, the main character Ifemelu and those around her challenge this way of thinking. In Americanah, central conflicts arise from status--both finance and race-based. Like the rest of the
Sabrina Song