sounded. asked on behalf of the clan to look after him in the interim. And so she brought out her husband's hoes. Only then did she realize. Go ahead and prepare your farm.

He fell and fell and fell until he began to fear that he would never stop falling
He fell and fell and fell until he began to fear that he would never stop falling."Unoka was an ill-fated man. 'When people are invited to a great feast like this." Okonkwo thought within himself. But he always found fault with their effort. "My father told me that he had been told that in the past a man who broke the peace was dragged on the ground through the village until he died. Okonkwo wanted his son to be a great farmer and a great man. and they no longer spent the evenings in his mother's hut while she cooked."How can I know you. The rain fell in thin. The pit was now so deep that they no longer saw the digger." said Obierika. Ogbuefi Idigo was talking about the palm-wine tapper. who stood beside her. At first they were afraid they might die." lied Nwoye's mother. Dangerous animals became even more sinister and uncanny in the dark. long ago. It was Ekwefl's turn to tell a story.

This happened in the rainy season. who came out of her hut to draw water from a gigantic pot in the shade of a small tree in the middle of the compound. And what do you think the Oracle would do then?""You know very well. If you give me some yam seeds I shall not fail you. Ezinma brought her two legs together and stretched them in front of her. and was full of the sap of life. Quick as the lightning of Amadiora. She was very heavy with child. And so nobody gave serious thought to the stories about the white man's government or the consequences of killing the Christians. Without looking at the man Okonkwo had said: "This meeting is for men. He could fashion out flutes from bamboo stems and even from the elephant grass." she answered simply. my child. entered their mothers' wombs to be born again. Then the foo-foo was served. in a cleared spot. drank a little and handed back the horn. Okonkwo. Nwoye's mother carried a basket of coco-yams.

He would return with a flourish. living in a special area of the village. whose feeling of importance was manifest in her sprightly walk. But it turned out to be even bigger than we expected."That is the strange part of it.""It is indeed true. and brought out his snuff-bottle from the goatskin bag by his side.They came in the cold harmattan season after the harvests had been gathered. That was always the trouble with Okeke's snuff.Okonkwo did as the priest said. now desperate. Violent deaths were frequent. 'There is nothing to fear from someone who shouts." said Okonkwo. His love of talk had grown with age and sickness. and in a basket beside her were green vegetables and beans. whom they had asked to leave them for a while so that they might "whisper together. I have only called you together because it is good for kinsmen to meet. She would wait at the mouth.

His words may also be good. like a son. Her voice was as clear as metal. The sound of her benumbed steps seemed to come from some other person walking behind her. I would sooner strangle him with my own hands. Why should I? But the Oracle did not ask me to carry out its decision. It was a warrior's funeral. That was how Okonkwo first came to know that agbala was not only another name for a woman. And he found that Okonkwo did not wish to speak about Nwoye. Obierika.- Onwumbiko died in his fifteenth month.One day a neighbor called Okoye came in to see him. Some of them were not at home and only four came in. into a healthy. as was the custom. an old woman is always uneasy when dry bones are mentioned in a proverb. At last I went to my in-laws and said to them. A man stood there with a machete in his hand. it was true.

and so they made them that offer which nobody in his right senses would accept. Even the enemy clan knew that." he said. And if you stand staring at me like that. and who like a madman had cut the anklet of his titles and cast it away to join the Christians. I sow the yams when the first rain has fallen. "As our people say.That was years ago. But it was as silly as all women's stories." said Ibe. She had not as much as looked at Okonkwo and Ekwefi or shown any surprise at finding them at the mouth of the cave.Am oyim de de de de! flew around the dark. Even the oldest men could only remember one or two other occasions somewhere in the dim past. Obierika. With the help of his mother's kinsmen he built himself an obi and three huts for his wives."Okonkwo had just blown out the palm-oil lamp and stretched himself on his bamboo bed when he heard the ogene of the town crier piercing the still night air. They danced back to the center together and then closed in." came the voice like a sharp knife cutting through the night. The cut bush was left to dry and fire was then set to it.

The suitor just goes on bringing bags of cowries until his in-laws tell him to stop. Evil Forest represented the village of Umueru. It must be the thought of going home to his mother. Ikemefuna had an endless stock of folk tales. He did not cry. He knew it must be Ekwefi." He turned again to Okonkwo and said.""Somebody told me yesterday."My hand is on the ground. It was the first time for many years that a man had broken the sacred peace. and its priests and medicine men were feared in all the surrounding country. she could bear no other person but her father."Ezinma ran in the direction of the barn and brought back two yams from the dwarf wall. when they died. 'When people are invited to a great feast like this. Some of them had been heavily whipped. Then they washed them and cut them up for the women who prepared the soup. who would not lend his knife for cutting up dogmeat because the dog was taboo to him."I do not know the answer.

who had taken two titles. like coco-yams. The priestess in those days was a woman called Chika. in your obi or in her own hut?" asked the medicine man." At the same time the priestess also said. who was the oldest man in the village. as her father and other grownup people did."But this particular night was dark and silent."Listen to me. He turned it on to his left palm. despite his madness. But he now knew that they were for foolish women and children.The night was impenetrably dark. He walked unsteadily to the place where the corpse was laid. But before he could answer. shrill and powerful. You have a manly and a proud heart. When the moon rose late in the night. Before the day was over he was dead.

He lelt a relief within as the hymn poured into his parched soul.""That is true. Nwoye's mother is already cooking. And what was more."What are you doing here?" Obierika had asked when after many difficulties the missionaries had allowed him to speak to the boy.But some of the egwugwu were quite harmless. Uchendu.The sun rose slowly to the center of the sky. They set out early that morning. in which he took a pinch of snuff and sneezed noisily. and in the end Okonkwo overcame his sorrow. and the meeting continued. It was an occasion for giving thanks to Ani.""And have you never seen them?" asked Machi. was a very exacting king. of how his father." replied Uzowulu. Evil Forest then stood up. "Tortoise and Cat went to wrestle against Yams??no.

'It just walked away. And then after another lifetime these men opened the caves again and the locusts came to Umuofia. They must have used a powerful medicine to make themselves invisible until the market was full."I am Evil Forest. He had become wholly absorbed into his new family. "It wounds my heart to see these young men killing palm trees in the name of tapping."I will come with you.But somehow Okonkwo could never become as enthusiastic over feasts as most people. but even if you came into your obi and found her lover on top of her."Go home and sleep. She was very heavy with child." replied Okonkwo. somewhat lamely. Later in the day he called Ikemefuna and told him that he was to be taken home the next day. But almost immediately a shout of joy broke out in all directions. So he began to plan how he would go to the sky.When she had shaken hands."You have not eaten for two days. but no one spoke.

His mind went to his latest show of manliness.As the years of exile passed one by one it seemed to him that his chi might now be making amends for the past disaster. and stayed." He rose and left the hut. And then suddenly she had begun to shiver in the night. Then he took it away to bury in the Evil Forest. and so everyone in his family listened. and also a drinking gourd." And they dispersed. It was like the market. when Okonkwo's in-laws began to leave for their homes The second day of the new year was the day of the great wrestling match between Okonkwo's village and their neighbors. "that I shall bring many iron horses when we have settled down among them." she replied."And it died this morning?"Okonkwo said yes. They sympathized with their neighbors with much shaking of the head. Who knows what may happen tomorrow? Perhaps green men will come to our clan and shoot us. and the smell of burning hair blended with the smell of cooking. "the goddess of the earth. And yet we say Nneka - 'Mother is Supreme.

They were the harbingers sent to survey the land. though his dialect was different and harsh to the enrs of Mbanta. He turned again to Ezinma. almost to himself."And why did you not say so.""What has happened?" asked Okonkwo. some were orators who spoke for the clan. He slapped the ear and hoped he had killed it." But it was a different Chielo she now saw in the yellow half-light. These women never saw the inside of the hut. Nwoye's mother and Okonkwo's youngest wife were ready to set out for Obierika's compound with all their children. If I had not seen the few survivors with my own eyes and heard their story with my own ears. Nwakibie sent for his wives. Mr. Whenever the thought of his father's weakness and failure troubled him he expelled it by thinking about his own strength and success. to the boys and they passed it round the wooden stays and then back to him.All the umunna were invited to the feast.Ezinma grew up in her father's exile and became one of the most beautiful girls in Mbanta. He can curse the gods of his fathers and his ancestors.

" said Ofoedu. Obierika's son. Sometimes another village would ask Unoka's band and their dancing egwugwu to come and stay with them and teach them their tunes. A man stood there with a machete in his hand. perhaps even quicker.""They are not all that young. who sat next to him. But as he walked through the market he realized that people were pointing at him as they do to a madman. ignorant of the love of God. But it was momentary. "But the law of the land must be obeyed. had gone to consult Agbala. He even remembered how he had laughed when Ikemefuna told him that the proper name for a corn cob with only a few scattered grains was eze-agadi-nwayi. and Ikemefuna. They sat in a half-moon.The young suitor. Never make an early morning appointment with a man who has just married a new wife. "Okonkwo! Agbala ekme gio-o-o-o! Agbala cholu ifu ada ya Ezinmao-o-o-oi"At the mention of Ezinma's name Ekwefi jerked her head sharply like an animal that had sniffed death in the air. in which he took a pinch of snuff and sneezed noisily.

His wives. condemned for seven years to live in a strange land."We have heard both sides of the case. But he had recently fallen ill. and they had quickened their steps. conversing with his father in low tones. A palm-oil lamp gave out yellowish light. "There must be a reason for it. But there was one woman who had no doubt whatever in her mind. Some birds chirruped in the forests around. when he was young. I have only called you together because it is good for kinsmen to meet." This was interpreted to them but very few of them heard. With this magic fan she beckons to the market all the neighboring clans. The church had come and led many astray. Okonkwo had not bought snuff from him for a long time."When they had cut the goats' throats and collected the blood in a bowl. And he did pounce on people quite often. Ekwefi muttered.

he had gone to consult the Oracle. He remembered once when men had talked in low tones with his father. He could not take any of the four titles of the clan. Many people looked around. Mr. I did not hang myself. for Mr. His mother might be dead.""And so everybody comes. and people came from far and near to consult it."At last the party arrived in the sky and their hosts were very happy to see them." Okonkwo thundered.""Too much of his grandfather. Di-go-go-di-go-di-di-go-go floated in the message-laden night air. Drums beat violently and men leaped up and down in frenzy."In her hut. They were talking excitedly among themselves because the white man had said he was going to live among them. The missionaries had come to Umuofia. "What will the heathen say of us when they hear that we receive osu into our midst? They will laugh.

Ekwefi tried to pull out the horny beak but it was too hard. And supporting his mother also meant supporting his father. My case is finished. At last Ogbuefi Ezeugo stood up in the midst of them and bellowed four times. If ever a man deserved his success. He walked back to his obi to await Ojiugo's return. I have already spoken to you about him. Palm trees swayed as the wind combed their leaves into flying crests like strange and fantastic coiffure. The elders of the clan replied. "is it true that when people are grown up. They have joined his religion and they help to uphold his government. in the land of his fathers where men were bold and warlike. They all admired it and said that that was the way things should be done."Yes. I am not afraid of work. self-assured and confident. like the prospect of annihilation. His name was Uchendu. If your death was the death of nature.

Ekwefi hurried to the main footpath and turned left in the direction of the voice. "We will allow three or four women to stay behind. Everybody was lean except Cat. They thought the priestess might be going to her house. carrying on their heads various sizes of pots suitable to their years. In the end the fearless ones went near and even touched him. It looked like an equal match. and a great land case began. The people of the sky thought it must be their custom to leave all the food for their king." She sat down and stretched her legs in front of her. 'You are full of cunning and you are ungrateful.The drums beat and the flutes sang and the spectators held their breath. She believed because it was that faith alone that gave her own life any kind of meaning. she could not ignore the fact that some really evil children sometimes misled people into digging up a specious one. his wives and children in their houses could hear him breathe. The sickness was an abomination to the earth. facing the elders. He fell and fell and fell until he began to fear that he would never stop falling. "So look after him.

that night. Tortoise's wife sent for him and he gathered all the bits of shell and stuck them together. He was a very strong man and rarely felt fatigue. Rain fell as it had never fallen before.The year that Okonkwo took eight hundred seed-yams from Nwakibie was the worst year in living memory. "I have even heard that in some tribes a man's children belong to his wife and her family. They had built a court where the District Commissioner judged cases in ignorance. Then the crier gave his message."It will not be very long now before my in-laws come." said Obierika. In these seven years he would have climbed to the utmost heights. "Let us not presume to do so now. "there is no slave or free. their legs and feet."Everybody in the assembly spoke. But very few people had ever seen that kind of wrestling before. for in spite of the palm fruit hung across the mouth of the pot to restrain the lively liquor." He brought down his staff heavily on the floor.Soon after Ofoedu left.

Chielo was not a woman that night. Now Ekwefi was a woman of forty-five who had suffered a great deal in her time.""Is he well?" asked Nwoye. She cut the yams into small pieces and began to prepare a pottage. A young man from one team danced across the center to the other side and pointed at whomever he wanted to fight.The year that Okonkwo took eight hundred seed-yams from Nwakibie was the worst year in living memory. He began to wonder why he had felt uneasy at all.As they trooped through Okonkwo's obi he asked: "Who will prepare my afternoon meal?""I shall return to do it. closely followed by Nwoye and his two younger brothers. Okafo seized it. Every man of Umuofia was asked to gather at the market place tomorrow morning. "1 shall think of another one with a song. But Tortoise jumped to his feet and asked: Tor whom have you prepared this feast?'"'For all of you. They had then drawn patterns on them in white." he said. Nwoye's sister. Each of Uchendu's five sons contributed three hundred seed-yams to enable their cousin to plant a farm. She would want to hear everything that had happened to him in all these years. The first thing he would do would be to rebuild his compound on a more magnificent scale.

who were still outside the circle. pushing the air with his raffia arms." said Ekwefi. He was a wealthy farmer and had two barns full of yams. cutting down every tree or animal they saw. They set fire to his houses. which was only broken when a new palm frond was lifted on to the wall or when a busy hen moved dry leaves about in her ceaseless search for food. building a new red-earth and thatch house for their teacher. one hen. The air was full of dust and the smell of gunpowder. Ikezue strove to dig in his right heel behind Okafo so as to pitch him backwards in the clever ege style. her wrath was loosed on all the land and not just on the offender. We would then not be held accountable for their abominations. He was a wealthy farmer and had two barns full of yams.An iron gong sounded. asked on behalf of the clan to look after him in the interim. And so she brought out her husband's hoes. Only then did she realize. Go ahead and prepare your farm.