The Concept of the Butterfly Effect in Bola Agbaje’s Gone Too Far

Abstract

Nigerians' day-to-day interactions with other immigrants or with British citizens in general, raised issues related to how to balance each one's transmitted or created norms, values, beliefs, and actions that later on decide the actual identity of the individual. Bola Agbaje's strong attachment to her Nigerian cultural heritage and her being so proud of her Yoruba language empower her to give voice to the  new generation and be away from  Diaspora. She dictates that the individuals cannot isolate themselves from others, they have to support each other and that will give them their sense of belonging. The aim of the research is to  analyze how Bola Agbaje employs the concept of the butterfly effect where small choices and interactions among the characters precipitate significant shifts in relationships and self-perception; illustrating the complex and fragile nature of identity within diasporic communities. Ultimately, the research proves that the butterfly effects are skillfully woven in Gone Too Far through the interplay between the characters' social milieu and their cultural roots. The micro – level interactions among the main characters expose the deep rooted macro-level tensions among them that undermine the multi cultural social construction presented in Gone Too Far.