The book Purple Hibiscus shows a significant amount of the theme of identity specifically focusing on how it relates to the coming of age through the character of Kambili. Kambili has been stuck in her father’s trap. She has never really experienced anything that would make her something of her own rather than something of Papa. As bold as it sounds, Kambili does not have her own identity at the beginning of the story. It is not until she goes to her aunty’s house that she begins to live a life of her own, despite how little she is living. There are many situations in which Kambili grows throughout her time with her aunt and cousins. One of them is when Father Amadi takes her to the stadium. Not long after they had been there he asks her if she knows how to smile, her first response was that she wanted to smile but could not, shortly after that though a smile began to…show more content… Just moments before this scene Amaka and Kambili had been in the kitchen with Aunty when Kambili was asked to help prepare the soup but she did not know how. Naturally Amaka insulted Kambili about her lack of skill and knowledge but she had never talked back to someone so she just let Amaka step on her. It wasn’t until her aunt asked her if she had a mouth that she finally spoke up and said she didn’t know how but that Amaka could teach her. Although it wasn’t much, it was the first time Kambili had ever spoken for herself, she had finally begin to grow up. Lastly, after Kambili and Jaja grandfather came to live with her aunt while they were staying there, Kambili was woken up during the night to go watch him pray. After this it gave her a new knowledge of her grandfather. Everything she had heard about him was bad when all along he really was just someone believing in something so similar to the thing they were all believing in. This step not only allowed her to grow as a person but to grow as a
