Things Fall Apart II

Hey guys, Alinne again!To somewhat repeat what we all have been saying, yes the second part is ironic. However, I was not one bit surprised about the downfall of Okonkwo. Because his life was going so perfectly and the title of the book is "Things Fall Apart" we could only expect to have major disappointment in Okonkwo's character. I believe that his downfall began emotional, when he killed his adopted son, which is ironic, because Okonkwo never let his emotions get the best of him. I must say, however, that this second half was so satisfying. I was never fond of Okonkwo's character and to see him suffer a little was a relief. Okonkwo is so bitter, angry all the time, fearing to others that having an event happen that makes him devastated not only keeps the audience intrigued in the plot, but content that he got what he deserved. I had a similar question as Marrisa. What was up with the "Kill one of your sons... then kill yourself" offering that Obierika asked Okonkwo to do? Was he serious? I saw it as foreshadowing about how perhaps both Okonkwo and his son would somehow be sacrificed for someone else. My prediction of Nwoye was correct, if he stays with the missionaries until the end of the story, because in a sense he was sacrificing his beliefs, his lifestyles, and his family to join Christianity. I bet Okonkwo looks back and wished he had killed his son, because he would rather see his son dead then turn on him like a "woman." And lastly, Achebe stopped using the clan language as much in this section, and instead he uses words such as "Commissioner and the court messengers," "Holy Communion," and "society" to describe the circumstances of the clan. We can see, even through Achebe's word choice, that the Europeans have the upper hand and are more powerful than the clan. This foreshadows the destruction of the clan and Okonkwo's character and family; I'm so excited to see what happens!How do we feel about the invasion of the Europeans??The way I see it, the clan is so wrapped up in their world of fearing gods and fear of breaking of the rules that I see the missionaries as an escape. The people that are the quickest to convert aren't so much the only that believe in the white man's God, but because they are tired of living the way they do and want to see some kind of change (as Nwoye did). However, I believe that the Europeans come so unexpectedly that none of the villagers have time to react or think over what they are pushing at them, causing them to either really hate or really accept the new religion. And lastly, so much references to rain and food are made throughout this section. Since the rain is not washing away Okonkwo's regret and it's not cleansing his soul, the rain foreshadows muddy, difficult situations to come that will tear apart some roots and families. The food, on the other hand, shows the relationship between the kinsmen. They only gather for festivities or funerals, even then only the women cook. The men, Okonkwo for example, struggles emotionally to cover their past mistakes, regrets, and "womanly" characteristics. This symbolizes the difference between our society and the clans and how the villagers live among sexism and don't even realize it. I think this also applies to us, however, in the since that we live in a great deal of racism, sexism, and other "ism's" but most of the time we overlook it or ignore it or take it as "the culture." I believe Achebe is exaggerating the characteristics of the clan to portray how terrible our lives are. And just to add: Because next year I will be going to Niger, Africa to do missionary work with my church I found this section of the book extra fascinating! I loved how Achebe tells of the customs and traditions and the way of life in the clans. He allows the audience to grow with the village and even feel sympathy for them. We experience births, deaths, happiness, and sadness with the villagers and this allows the audience to have a connection with the people. When I go next year, I will keep this book in mind and remember how much different my way of living is different of other people's way of living. It's an eye opener, because I didn't see the natives of the land so wrapped up and fearful of their gods. Achebe did a great job of showing the normal lives of the clan, which added to the "No! Don't let it happen" emotion when we saw the clan falling apart. That's it for now folks! =)