Adewale Maja-Pearce introduces her symbols with simple directness: “I snapped a twig and threw it into the water. It bobbed on the current and then vanished from sight.”
In this one sentence alone, for example, the reader can deduce the different meanings for the snapping of the twig. The twig could represent Okeke, while the tree represents Veronica, the village and all the village culture and traditions. The action of the twig being separated from the tree is a representation of Okeke being separated away from village tradition, culture and, of course, Veronica as he embarks upon a new life and further education opportunities. The snapping of the twig is also Veronica and Okeke being split apart for she will not move or change from her pattern of existence.
As the twig, “bobbed on the current and then vanished from sight”, the symbol represents Veronica and Okeke who are now going their separate ways, she on the river bank, the safety of what she knew, her village and traditions, and he on the stream, being led to something new and unknown, away from the village and tradition. The twig also exhibits the fact that it bobbed on the current, almost as if it were trying to stay, as if Okeke was trying to stay. Finally, however, it reveals to us that the twig floated down the stream and out of her sight, just as Okeke floated down the stream and left. A further symbol is significant at this moment in the story.
The piece of paper with his address, given to Veronica is particularly striking for she took it and “tucked it in her bosom”. This is particularly representative to the fact that he will always remain close to her heart, just as she will to him. To Veronica, the piece of paper was almost like a parting gift, so precious and valuable. One doubts whether she would ever use it, yet that is not important: it is the act of giving.
When Okeke returns as part of a government scheme to work in the rural districts of the country a village/city clash of culture and tradition is perceptible. The fact that he arrives with “ a couple of nurses, three male assistants and a suitcase full of medicines” is symbolic because it is representative of the fact that Okeke is now a professional. He now has support and has returned with a certain professional and city status, bringing with him symbols of the way to a better life.
However Okeke’s changed position and view is also important. He has returned with an urban point and after having trained, now has a sense of hygiene in the city and is comparing it. From looking at it with city standards, he thinks that it has worsened. This is the case in the next lines: “I was shocked by what I found. Either I had forgotten about the squalor of village life, or it had worsened in my absence. The place was crawling with disease and everybody was living- surviving, rather- in acute poverty.” Okeke thinks that the people of the village are just about managing to survive.
Okeke finds Veronica in the house that she grew up in, and has spent her entire life in. She is now married and is a mother. She had a “baby tied to her back” symbolising that she has not given up on the traditional methods of the village. Okeke then proceeds to ask her where all her brothers and sisters have gone to. Veronica replies; “All over.” She then made a semi-circle with her hand in the air, which is particularly illustrative of the fact that she is caught in this semi-circle of age-old tradition, not only by her culture, but by her family as well. She is keeping tradition going, which is in stark contrast to Okeke, who has broken ties with his past village life.
Just as the medical supplies show modern advancement so the way in which the writer describes Veronica’s house is symbolic of a way of life, which has not changed. Maja-Pearce presents the complexity of change through symbols of modern city life. Veronica assumes Okeke will be married and settled. Yet his reply: “All the women I meet are only interested in money and cars,” reveals the adverse effects of city materialism.
The final symbolism of the story relates to Okeke’s last visit after war had broken out in the rural areas. Three long years have resulted in a dramatic decline, which is explored through symbols of darkness and decay.
The darkness of Veronica’s hut is symbolic of Veronica’s life fading away; the darkness is a representation of her loneliness. Veronica chose to be “huddled on a mat” against the wall just before she dies, as it is symbolic of the fact that it is all she has ever known, - she has been against the wall for her whole life. When Okeke finds her like this, he insists on moving her, but she remains adamant that she wishes to stay here, in peace. “She closed her eyes and turned her face to the wall,” a moving gesture showing that she has lost her husband, her child and her will to live.
The fact that Okeke decides to bury Veronica by the stream is significant as the first time he left to go to the University they met by the stream; it therefore represents their unique friendship. The stream, like the twig, represents life, and as the water never stops flowing, life never stops either. Similarly, it could be said that as the current moves on, so does life. Water is also a symbol of purity, and even though Veronica died of disease, Okeke buries her by the water to purify her and to free her soul. The stream is ultimately a display of how the cycle of life continues.
Therefore the symbolism in “Veronica” is of paramount importance. Without it, the reader would never have been able to fully understand and appreciate the divide of culture and tradition between the city and villages, the changing nature of urban and rural communities in Africa, or the extraordinary relationship shared between Okeke and Veronica.
