An intriguing and thought-provoking look at African culture, this novel brings up some tough themes and discussions in the best way: through narrative as opposed to textbook or scholarly philosophies.
Summary:
Okonkwo is one of the strongest and sometimes harshest men in the Umuofia tribe who has earned a high place amongst his people. But there are many difficult family situations throughout his life which everyone must navigate. Yet after an unfortunate accident, Okonkwo and his family must move away for seven years and survive in a foreign country. When they return, they find that their status and tribe have changed drastically and face a new threat from the white outsiders.
Verdict: 8/10
I have a love-hate relationship with the books teachers commonly choose for summer reading. They're often shorter, very action or narrative driven, and bring up some really great topics - they also usually make me mad. Not because I disagree with anything, but because they usually teach some lesson on humanity, and that's done by showing the best and worst of what humans do to each other. Colonization is one such topic, and while this book did an EXCELLENT job of presenting multiple perspectives, it just makes your heart ache and your head debate.
Even the beginning before Christianity arrives and you're just learning the ways of the town, there's a lot of conflicting thoughts to sort through. Okonkwo is the protagonist and is a strong warlike hero in his tribe. But he's ruthless to anyone under him and regularly beats his children and wives, even going so far as to almost shoot one during one of his angry fits. As the reader, I felt fear for his family and hoped it would come back to haunt him. But when it did, I wasn't happy about it.
That's spectacular characterization! The author firstly shows the culture and upbringing that shapes Okonkwo. He shows how his view of his father made him a workaholic, how the misogynistic society made him act tougher than he really felt, how the bloody traditions made him carry out orders that we would argue against. All this so that throughout the story someone I should hate because of his brutality is also someone I feel for because of his thought process.
This book immediately puts you in the shoes of the town. While the reader may not have grown up with the same traditions, Achebe depicts their importance so that they're seen as beliefs instead of written off as "silly superstitions." Which made it fascinating to "live" for a short time in this society full of bad omens and traditions that are appear more hurtful than helpful like abandoning twins or mutilating dead babies. When you see the belief behind it, while it doesn't make it right, you begin to understand why they do what they do.
And it makes it all the harder to watch the church try and step in. While it's wrong to harm the innocent or belittle the women and so many times you wish the tribe would stop what they're doing, it's also not right to completely remove those traditions and beliefs and take away their culture. The only balance was in Mr. Brown's church which didn't provoke or back away. And I value that Achebe made that distinction between Brown's way of doing things vs Smith's violent attempt at colonization. He presents so many perspectives and gray areas that it feels wrong to make it completely black or white (no pun intended).
This novel is an antithesis to the proposed district commissioner's fictional (but fairly realistic) book “The Pacification of the Primitive Tribes of the Lower Niger” (pg. 209). Achebe shows that even though Umuofia's ways are harsh, they are still a noble and honorable people. And when England tries to “pacify” them, they’re really making them fall apart, both as a clan and as individuals/families.
The family aspect probably was the most interesting to me just to see the dynamics. From our perspective and even from the tribe's perspective at times, Okonkwo is a difficult husband and father. So when his eldest son leaves, we see it coming but the characters don't.
What I may have liked most about Achebe's writing was his foreshadowing. He is a master of hinting at the future. Whether it's imagery or someone telling a legend, you know it's going to come back into play later. But it's never too much. He doesn't give away what is going to happen or how events will play out.
I will say that there were a couple times that an event that I thought would have more bearing didn't end up going anywhere. Like Ezinma's health or the priestess Chielo taking the girl in the middle of the night. To me, the chapter with Chielo and Ezinma was one of the most thrilling. Yet nothing happens. Everyone's fine and returns home without any consequences or lessons (besides that maybe Okonkwo did care about his daughter after all). I was just waiting for her to turn into a priestess at the end or have some extra twist in her hunt for a husband that could be traced back to the event. Her character arc and a few other side characters' seemed somewhat anti-climatic to me.
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