The Place of Somali Women in Ifrah Hussein’s An Anthology of Grief

Abstract

This study examined how the place of Somali women is depicted in An Anthology of Grief by Ifrah Hussein. The anthology explores the lived experiences of Somali women through themes of gender roles, patriarchy, motherhood, marriage, love, and grief. Using a qualitative research design and textual analysis, the study investigates how Hussein’s poems reveal the patriarchal structures that confine women to domestic spaces and subordinate roles. The findings show that Somali women are depicted as caregivers, nurturers, and preservers of culture, often burdened by social expectations of obedience, endurance, and silence. Through poems such as Mama’s Land, Memoirs of the Mogadishu War in ‘93, and Learning from Hooyo, Hussein highlights how women embody resilience despite cultural oppression and displacement. The study reveals that marriage and motherhood remain key markers of female identity, while women’s grief over loss and violence reflects their emotional depth and social marginalisation. Hussein’s poetry further illustrates how women navigate suffering, nostalgia, and displacement with strength and dignity, offering a voice to Somali women silenced by patriarchal and war-driven trauma. By portraying the dual realities of endurance and vulnerability, An Anthology of Grief not only critiques entrenched gender hierarchies but also celebrates Somali women’s agency and emotional intelligence. The research contributes to gender and literary studies by demonstrating how Somali women writers in the diaspora use poetry as a medium to reconstruct female identity and challenge patriarchal discourse within both traditional and contemporary Somali society.