The Iroko Tree: A Symbol of Secrets, Ritual, and Generational Trauma in Cursed Daughters

What Is the Iroko Tree?

In Oyinkan Braithwaite’s poetry collection Cursed Daughters, the iroko tree is a physical landmark in the courtyard of the Falodun family compound. A large, shade-giving tree with exposed roots, it serves as a quiet stage where characters bury objects, perform private rituals, and confront buried truths. The tree belongs to no one but is claimed by every generation of Falodun women as a place to hide what cannot be spoken aloud.

Where the Tree Appears

The iroko tree recurs across several key moments in the narrative, each time taking on a slightly different weight:

• Chapter 38 – Monife (Mo) buries Golden Boy’s handkerchief under the tree as an “antidote against the curse.” She digs the soil with a trowel, folds the pale‑blue cloth gently, and covers it until the ground looks undisturbed. Ebun watches, dismissive, calling it superstition.

• Chapter 37 – Four‑year‑old Eniiyi sleepwalks out of the house, past the kitchen, and sits on one of the tree’s large roots, staring into the void. Her mother Ebun follows with a candle, feeling her heart plummet.

• Chapter 91 – Mo buries a dying lizard under the iroko tree, opposite the spot where she hid gifts from Golden Boy. She recites a child’s prayer while her brother Tolu mocks her.

• Chapter 101 – After her mother Ebun leaves her at Elegushi Beach, Eniiyi shaves her head and decides to bury Zubby’s bracelet under the tree. While digging, she uncovers a Royal Dansk biscuit tin, hinting at family secrets buried long before her.

How the Meaning Shifts

The iroko tree begins as a personal shrine for Mo. In Chapter 38, she buries the handkerchief not for magical protection but as a physical expression of love—a way to keep a piece of Golden Boy safe. Ebun sees it as mere imitation of her mother’s superstitions, but for Mo the act is instinctive: “a manifestation of her love.” The tree is still neutral ground, a meeting place for the two cousins in an otherwise tense household.

By Chapter 37, the tree has become an object of dread. Eniiyi’s sleepwalking leads her straight to the same spot under the iroko. Ebun watches, unable to understand why her daughter is drawn there. The tree is no longer a personal altar but a gravitational center for the family’s unresolved grief. Mo’s death haunts the tree, and Eniiyi’s unconscious body repeats the pattern Mo began.

In Chapter 101, Eniiyi consciously returns to the tree to bury her boyfriend’s bracelet—mirroring Mo’s earlier ritual. But this time the digging unearths a biscuit tin, an object that suggests the tree holds more than one generation’s secrets. The tree transforms from a private hiding place into an archive of the Falodun curse. Every object buried there becomes a piece of the larger story: Mo’s love, Eniiyi’s fear, and whatever older women placed in that tin.

Connections to Characters and Themes

The tree pulls together the novel’s central themes:

• Generational trauma – Each burial under the tree repeats a pattern of coping with loss. Eniiyi’s discovery of the biscuit tin literalizes the idea that the family’s pain is layered, hidden just beneath the surface. For more detail, see the page on generational trauma.

• The Falodun family curse – Mo explicitly uses the tree as a weapon against the curse, while Eniiyi’s later act shows she still feels its weight. The tree becomes the physical site where the curse is both contested and perpetuated. Explore the curse further on the curse theme page.

• Reincarnation and identity – Eniiyi’s sleepwalking draws her to the same tree where Mo performed rituals, reinforcing the unsettling possibility that she is reliving her aunt’s life. This connection is examined on the reincarnation and identity page.

• Mother–daughter conflict – Ebun’s reaction to the sleepwalking and her later refusal to tell Eniiyi the full story at the beach show the gap between the generations. The tree is where Ebun’s silence meets Eniiyi’s need for truth. More on the mother-daughter conflict.

• Autonomy versus superstition – Mo’s ritual and Ebun’s skepticism embody the friction between personal choice and inherited belief systems. Eniiyi’s final act of burying the bracelet—and discovering the tin—forces her to decide whether she will repeat the old patterns or break them. See the autonomy versus superstition page.

Key characters connected to the tree:

Study Questions and Answers

1. Why does Monife bury Golden Boy’s handkerchief under the iroko tree?

Mo buries the handkerchief because she sees it as an “antidote against the curse.” She cannot explain the urge to Ebun; she calls it a “manifestation of her love.” The act is both a ritual attempt to protect her relationship and a way to keep a physical part of Golden Boy close after he leaves for the UK. The tree becomes a secret vault for her devotion—and, later, for her grief.

2. What does Eniiyi’s sleepwalking to the iroko tree reveal about the family’s unresolved trauma?

Eniiyi’s sleepwalking shows that the trauma of Monife’s death has imprinted itself on the household’s youngest member. Without conscious knowledge, her body repeats Mo’s connection to the tree. Ebun’s dread watching her daughter sit on the root mirrors the dread she felt watching Mo perform rituals there years earlier. The tree functions as a psychological anchor that draws the next generation back to the same unresolved pain.

3. How does Eniiyi’s discovery of the biscuit tin change the symbolism of the iroko tree?

The biscuit tin proves that the tree has been used as a hiding place long before Mo. It transforms the tree from a personal shrine into a communal archive of family secrets. Eniiyi’s intended burial of Zubby’ bracelet becomes an act of joining that archive, whether she wants to or not. The tin suggests that the curse—or at least the weight of secrecy—is passed down through objects, not just blood.

4. Compare Monife’s and Eniiyi’s interactions with the iroko tree. What do their differences reveal about their characters?

Mo interacts with the tree voluntarily and defiantly. She digs with a trowel, speaks to Ebun about it, and claims the act as her own. Eniiyi’s first interaction is involuntary (sleepwalking) and passive (sitting, staring). Her later interaction at age four? (actually older in ch 101) is conscious but shadowed by the discovery of the tin. Mo believes she can control the curse through ritual; Eniiyi is forced to recognize that the curse may control her. Mo is active, Eniiyi is reactive. This contrast emphasizes the shift from Mo’s naive rebellion to Eniiyi’s reluctant inheritance of a legacy she never chose.

Final Thoughts on the Iroko Tree

The iroko tree stands at the center of the Falodun compound, but it is also the emotional center of the family’s story. Every object buried in its soil—a handkerchief, a lizard, a bracelet, a biscuit tin—represents a piece of the larger curse that haunts the women of the family. The tree does not judge; it simply holds what is given to it. In Cursed Daughters, the iroko tree is not a force of nature but a vessel for memory, loss, and the slow, difficult work of unearthing truth.

For a complete overview of the work, visit the main book page. To explore the characters who interact with the tree, see the entries for Ebun, Monife, and Eniiyi.