Summary

The short story “Imitation” by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie begins with Nkem finding out from a friend that her husband has a mistress in Nigeria. Nkem’s friend also tells her that her husband has moved his mistress in the family’s house in Lagos. 

Nkem recalls the time when she and her husband, Obiora, moved from Nigeria to Philadelphia when Nkem was pregnant. Back then, their American neighbors started asking why Obiora was in Lagos for most of the year while Nkem was living alone in Philadelphia. Since then, Obiora has visited his wife and children for only two months a year, as his job in Lagos does not allow him to travel.

Nkem focuses her attention on a Benin mask sitting on the living room mantel. She knows that the mask is an imitation and thinks about the stories that Obiora ...