Things Fall Apart I

Hello, Cynthia here!
Matt, Matt, Matt...I could not agree more with your comments about this part of Things Fall Apart! I have also noticed the huge difference between the way men and women are treated within Umuofia and the surrounding villages. As much as i despice the mistreatment of women and children, sadly that is still the case in many places around the world.

One thing i noticed that really bothered me was that a man with no title in the community was called an "agbala", which is another word for woman. This use of the word implies that women are seen as inferior to men. Another thing I noticed was that the only reason Okonkwo was reprimanded for shooting at his wife was because it was the "Week of Peace". Had it been any other week, it would have been fine for Okonkwo to have beaten his wife.

A few times throughout the reading, Okonkwo has said that he wishes that Ezinma was a man. Okonkwo has aknowledged his daughter's intelligence and skills but is not proud of her or cannot show his pride beacuse she is a female. As a feminist, it does bother me a bit whenever I read about the way women are treated (ie. having to share a husband, basically being sold off to a suitor who gives enough palm wine, being beaten by the husand, and overall just having to be submissive).

In response to your question about how we feel about Okonkwo, I must admit that it's a difficult one to answer.

Okonkwo may be mean, cold-hearted stubborn, and at times too proud, but you have to aknowledge the fact that this is a man who started off at the bottom beacuse of his father's laziness, and managed to work his way to the top. He is simply an ambitious man who only wanted to create a better life for his family that he never had when his father was around. The man may be mean, but he does care for his children, as clearly seen in the scene where Ezinma was taken away by Chielo to see the Oracles of the Hills and Caves. Okonkwo was worried about his daughter and did not want to show it but in the end went to the cave to look out for her and Ekwefi. On page 112( the 5th paragraph) it is obvious how much Okonkwo does care about his children.

As for how he could do certain things such as go ahead and kill Ikemefuna: it may seem cold-hearted and barbaric, but we need to understand that these customs are all part of the Umuofian tradition. Okonkwo did not want to kill his step-son but had to in order to keep with customs and retain his title within the community.

Towards the end of the first part I definitly sympathized with Okonkwo's character because he had not meant to kill Ezeudu's son, but still had to flee the community with his family. Overall, Okonkwo may not be the best man in terms of compasiona nd heart, but his strength and determination overshadow that (at least in my opinion).