THINGS FALL APART
(Chinua Achebe)
Chapter 6
On the second day of the festival, a
fifteen years old boy ‘Maduka’ who is the son of Okonkwo’s friend ‘Obierika’
wins the wrestling contest. On the other hand, oracle comes to inform Ekwefi
that Chielo is interested in her daughter ‘Ezinma’.
Glossary
Chielo the name of the current priestess of Agbala, the Oracle of the Hills and the Caves.
Chapter 7
Nwoye and Ikemefuna started living
like bothers. Okonkwo used to tell them the stories of manly fights and
bloodshed. Ikemefuna takes interest in these stories but Nwoye used to enjoy
the tales of women told by his mother. Nevertheless, Nwoye pretends to dislike
the women’s stories before his father for he knew that he will be punished
otherwise. However, Okonkwo likes this change in Nwoye the credit of which goes
to Ikemefuna, he thinks.
One day, Okonkwo and his sons
(Ikemefuna and Nwoye) were busy in their daily routine works when suddenly the
sky gets dark. Locusts appeared from the horizon. The Umuofians yelled happily.
Everyone collected a mess of locusts, roasted and relished.
Okonkwo, Nwoye and Ikemefuna were
eating this rare food together when Ogbuefi Ezeudu, the oldest man of the
village, calls on Okonkwo. He tells Okonkwo that the oracle decreed Ikemefuna
be killed for retribution. He further advises Okonkwo not to take part in his
killing since Ikemefuna calls him father.
Okonkwo tells Ikemefuna that they are
going to return him to Mbaino. Ikemefuna gets pleased and start thinking of
meeting with his parents. Okonkwo along with a number of men take Ikemefuna
from village into the forest. All of a sudden, a man stabbed Ikemefuna with his
machete. Ikemefuna cries out to Okonkwo, "My father, they have killed
me!" and runs toward Okonkwo. Afraid to appear weak, Okonkwo kills
Ikemefuna with his machete.
When Nwoye hears this sad news, he
recalls the voices of crying babies who were left within the forest to die just
because they were born twins.
Glossary
twins two born at the same birth. Here, according to Igbo custom, twins are considered evil and must be placed in earthenware pots and left to die in the forest.
Chapter 8
For the first time, Okonkwo reacts
like a woman on Ikemefuna’s death. His thoughts return again and again to the
boy who was like a son to him. He could not eat anything for two days. Then, he
went to his best friend Obierika to get an escape from his gloomy thoughts.
However, Obierika disapproved Okonkwo’s role in Ikemefuna’s death. Then, they
discussed and fixed the bride-price of Obierika’s daughter with the suitor.
Glossary
taboo any social prohibition or
restriction that results from convention or tradition.
jigida strings of hundreds of tiny beads worn snugly around the waist.
Chapter 9
Okonkwo’s daughter Ezinma gets ill
and Okonkwo rushes to prepare the medicine for her. It shows that he was good
at heart but he was afraid of being called coward like his father therefore, he
had adopted an aggressive temperament.
The role of children is very much in Umuofian society. Especially, a woman’s status is determined by how many children she bears and how many of them are male. Ekwefi’s nine babies died in infancy and Ezinma was the only that survived. Therefore, she was very dear to them.
Chapter 10
The egwugwu hear the case of Uzowulu who claims that his wife ‘Mgbafo’ has left his home so his bride-price be returned. Mgbafo’s brother insists that Uzowulu beats his sister daily. They are ready to send Mgbafo back only if Uzowulu vows never to beat her again. The egwugwu teach the husband that beating the women is not act of bravery.
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