The List: A Novel

The majority of the novel focuses on Ola and her relationship with Michael. By splitting the narrative focus between these two central characters, Adegoke illustrates the ways in which both men and women are impacted by the #MeToo movement and The List. Specifically, Michael’s inclusion on The List changes the trajectory of Ola’s life and career. Before The List, Ola has a reputation as an inspiring activist who speaks out against “patriarchy, rape culture, and toxic masculinity” (40). Ola’s commitment to feminism allows her to obtain a job at Womxxxn, where she is the current affairs editor. Thus, Ola’s activism is inseparable from her career, which also links to her connection with Michael. Their relationship increases her visibility, turning both characters into symbols of “#BlackLove.” However, once Michael appears on The List, the attention backfires. The internet bombards them with negative messages, and as a result, Ola’s “relationship [is] in tatters. Her job is in limbo. Her mental health [is] in free fall” (324). As Ola’s story entwines with Michael’s story, Ola confronts ruin on multiple levels.

In Ain’t I a Woman: Black Women and Feminism (Talyor & Francis, 2014), the contemporary theorist bell hooks argues that feminism should allow all women to “shape their destinies in the most healthy and communally productive way” (e-book, unpaginated).