Ebun Falodun: The Struggling Mother in Cursed Daughters
Overview
Ebun Falodun is the mother of Eniiyi, the protagonist of Oyinkan Braithwaite's poetry collection Cursed Daughters. Though not the central figure, Ebun serves as the bridge between the older generation of Falodun women—shaped by the curse—and Eniiyi's quest for autonomy. Her life is defined by financial instability, difficult family relationships, and the weight of a curse she claims not to believe in. This analysis examines Ebun's role in the narrative, her motivations, key decisions, and how she embodies the themes of generational trauma, mother-daughter conflict, and the tension between autonomy and superstition.
Plot Role
Ebun appears in several key moments:
- She attends the funeral of her cousin Monife, feeling that love—not chance—killed her.
- She is the daughter of Kemi, who had her through an affair with a married doctor.
- In a flashback conversation, Monife defends Ebun's reluctance to ask her estranged father for university money.
- At the end of the story, Ebun watches her daughter Eniiyi leave for the UK, apologises for how things turned out, and later moves out of the Falodun house with Grandma East as Oba proposes to her.
Ebun's role is primarily supportive, but her choices and struggles illuminate the curse's impact across generations. She is not a victim who passively accepts fate, but a woman trying to navigate limited options.
Motivations and Traits Shown Through Actions
Protective Instinct
Ebun's strongest motivation is protecting her daughter Eniiyi from the curse and from repeating the mistakes of previous Falodun women. When Eniiyi packs for the UK and her grandmother Sango urges her to stay, Ebun apologises—an act of empathy that suggests she recognises the harm the household has caused. She allows Eniiyi to leave, prioritising her daughter's freedom over family pressure.
Resilience Born of Hardship
Growing up as the illegitimate child of Kemi, Ebun learned early that survival required compromise. In chapter III, Monife explains to Kemi that Ebun would rather drop out of university than beg money from a father she barely knows. This reveals both pride and fear of rejection. Yet Ebun ultimately does ask, showing she can suppress her discomfort when education and opportunity are at stake.
Skepticism Toward the Curse
As a twelve-year-old, Ebun tells Monife she does not believe in curses. Monife replies, "what if the curse believes in you?" This exchange defines Ebun's stance: she rejects superstition intellectually but cannot escape its effects. Her scepticism may be a coping mechanism, allowing her to act as if she has control.
Chronological Arc
Childhood and Adolescence
Ebun is the illegitimate daughter of Kemi, born from an affair with a doctor while Kemi was married to her third husband. When the husband discovered the affair, he threw Kemi out, and she retreated with baby Ebun to her grandfather's house. This origin—rooted in betrayal and displacement—shapes Ebun's early sense of insecurity. She grows up watching Kemi go on dates with married men, sometimes returning with money, sometimes empty-handed.
University Years
The evidence shows Ebun plans to ask her father, a doctor, for university funds. Monife advocates for her, understanding the emotional difficulty. It is implied that Ebun does attend university, though the exact outcome is not detailed. This period marks her first major attempt to gain financial and educational independence.
Motherhood
Ebun becomes the mother of Eniiyi, presumably in her twenties. She raises Eniiyi in the Falodun household, under the watch of Grandma Sango and surrounded by the family's superstitious beliefs. As a mother, Ebun treads a careful line between Sango's traditional expectations and Eniiyi's modern desires.
Monife's Death and Aftermath
Monife's funeral is a turning point. Ebun feels the weight of the curse more acutely, even as she silently disagrees with her mother's platitudes about love. The loss reinforces her determination to give Eniiyi a different life.
Letting Go
In chapter XIII, Ebun makes the painful decision to let Eniiyi leave for England. The narrator reveals that within 24 hours, Sango dies peacefully, Oba proposes to Ebun, and Ebun moves out with Grandma East. This sequence suggests Ebun finally breaks free from the Falodun house, though the curse's shadow remains for Eniiyi.
Relationships
With Kemi (Mother)
Kemi's chaotic lifestyle—chasing married men, gambling with money—leaves Ebun without a stable role model. Yet Kemi also pushes Ebun toward education, insisting she ask her father for funds. Their relationship is complicated: Ebun respects her mother's survival instincts but resents the circumstances Kemi created. The evidence shows Ebun defending her own daughter from similar pressure, indicating she learned what not to repeat.
With Monife (Cousin)
Monife is Ebun's protector and confidante. In chapter III, Monife speaks up for Ebun when Kemi pressures her. Their bond is one of mutual understanding, as both are women trying to escape the curse. Monife's tragic death deepens Ebun's grief and perhaps her resolve to shield Eniiyi.
With Eniiyi (Daughter)
Ebun's relationship with Eniiyi mirrors the mother-daughter conflicts of earlier generations but with a key difference: Ebun does not force Eniiyi to stay. She apologises at the gate, a gesture of humility. Interpretation: Ebun recognises that her own mother used guilt to control her, and she wants a different path for Eniiyi. The narrative shows Ebun eventually moving out, suggesting she also seeks her own liberation.
With Sango (Mother-in-law?)
Sango is Eniiyi's maternal grandmother, likely Ebun's mother-in-law or family elder. Sango embodies the superstitious tradition that Ebun resists. Their relationship is strained but functional; Ebun tolerates Sango's authority until the end, when she chooses to leave.
Key Decisions and Consequences
Asking Her Father for University Money
- Decision: Ebun agrees to approach her estranged father, a doctor, for financial support.
- Consequence: This secures her education but reinforces the pattern of relying on men who have failed their responsibilities. It also deepens her resentment toward the family system.
Raising Eniiyi in the Falodun House
- Decision: Ebun stays in the family home, partly due to tradition and lack of alternatives.
- Consequence: Eniiyi grows up exposed to the curse's mythology, leading to her own internal battle. Ebun's passive acceptance of the environment perpetuates the trauma.
Allowing Eniiyi to Leave for the UK
- Decision: Ebun does not stop Eniiyi from leaving, even offering an apology.
- Consequence: This enables Eniiyi's eventual liberation in the Epilogue. Ebun's choice to let go breaks the cycle of control that previous Falodun mothers exercised.
Moving Out with Grandma East
- Decision: After Sango's death, Ebun leaves the Falodun house to live with Grandma East.
- Consequence: She physically separates herself from the curse's locus. Interpretation: This is Ebun's quiet rebellion and first step toward autonomy.
Theme and Symbol Connections
Generational Trauma
Ebun exemplifies how the curse operates not as literal magic but as a pattern of poverty, abandonment, and emotional neglect. Her story shows the curse as a self-fulfilling prophecy: expecting men to fail leads to failing men. The family tree and curse chapters detail generations of women losing their homes, which Ebun almost repeats.
Mother-Daughter Conflict
Ebun's conflicts with Kemi and with Eniiyi highlight the difficulty of balancing love and control. Kemi pressured Ebun to beg; Ebun does not pressure Eniiyi. This evolution suggests hope for breaking the cycle.
Autonomy versus Superstition
Ebun's scepticism toward the curse positions her as a rationalist, yet she cannot escape its social reality. Her eventual move out of the house symbolises reclaiming agency in a world where the curse is culturally inescapable.
Reincarnation and Identity
While not directly tied to Ebun, the theme of identity across generations is embodied in her name being passed down. Ebun's identity is partly defined by her mother's mistakes and her daughter's future. The narrative hints that she finds a second chance through Oba's proposal.
5 Book-Specific Questions and Answers
1. Why does Ebun tell Monife she doesn't believe in the curse, and what does this reveal about her character?
Explicit fact: In chapter 8, twelve-year-old Ebun says she doesn't believe in curses. Monife responds with a question about whether the curse believes in Ebun. Interpretation: Ebun's statement is a defence mechanism against a frightening reality. She wants to believe in rational cause and effect. This reveals her desire for control and her resistance to the fatalism that paralyses other Falodun women.
2. How does Ebun's relationship with her mother Kemi influence her parenting of Eniiyi?
Explicit fact: Kemi pressured Ebun to ask her estranged father for university funds, causing Ebun great discomfort (chapter III). Interpretation: Ebun learns from Kemi that emotional manipulation harms children. When Eniiyi wants to leave for the UK, Ebun apologises and does not guilt her, showing she deliberately avoids repeating Kemi's tactics.
3. What decision does Ebun make after Sango's death, and how does this change her fate?
Explicit fact: The narrator reveals that after Sango dies peacefully, Oba proposes to Ebun and she moves out with Grandma East (chapter XIII). Interpretation: This decision removes Ebun from the Falodun house, the symbolic centre of the curse. It suggests she gains a chance at a new life, though the curse's effects on Eniiyi persist.
4. How does Ebun feel about Monife's death, and what does she believe caused it?
Explicit fact: At Monife's funeral, Ebun's mother remarks that Monife felt loved, but Ebun silently disagrees, believing love is what killed her cousin (chapter I). Interpretation: Ebun sees Monife's tragedy as a direct result of romantic vulnerability—a warning she carries into her own life. This belief may reinforce her protectiveness toward Eniiyi.
5. In what way does Ebun serve as a bridge between generations in the story?
Explicit fact: Ebun is the daughter of Kemi (curse generation) and mother of Eniiyi (curse-breaking generation). She witnesses Monife's funeral and later releases Eniiyi to the UK. Interpretation: Ebun occupies a middle space: she knows the curse's history intimately but is not the one who defeats it. Her role is to endure its final manifestations and then step aside, allowing Eniiyi to claim victory. Without Ebun's decision to let go, Eniiyi's liberation in the Epilogue might not have been possible.