The Journey of Self-Actualization of Ebla in From A Crooked Rib by Nurruddin Farah

Abstract

The current research is an attempt to examine the protagonist Ebla’s quest for searching meaning for her existence in From A Crooked Rib (1970) by Nurruddin Farah, a Somalia novelist whose main subject is African Women. She is fetched with all her basic needs (food, clothes, shelter), but there are certain needs of every person that are beyond basic needs. She has been through thick and thin throughout her life, and she has been struggling for searching an anchor to place her meaning of existence. Unable to find any meaning in her being, she keeps on searching, and experimenting with new things in her life. The study is qualitative and the data is collected from the text (primary source) while secondary sources such as books, journals, articles, blogs, etc. are also used for assistance through the close reading method. Ebla's journey of self-actualization is explored by applying Abraham Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs (1943). The results show that Ebla actualizes herself and devises meaning of her existence in the world.

Keywords: Self-actualization, human needs, existence, Ebla, Hierarchy of needs, From a Crooked Rib.