I mean, the name is fitting - Clabo

The first half of this book had me going for a bit. I thought to myself, "this can turn around and be a nice, refreshing breeze to what has been a somewhat dark past couple of reading selections." I was wrong. This story unfurled into a chaotic and painful downfall of the primitive tribes. If Achebe's goal was to show what it would look like to have countless generations of tradition and culture suddenly threatened by an outside world with means and customs like never before seen by that people group, then he achieved it. If his goal was also to make a story with a depressing and somewhat unsatisfactory ending, then that was also achieved. Personally, I think that the biggest pitfall of these primitive people, especially Okonkwo, was their disposition towards change. While, yes, there were some of the people who converted to Christianity, this conversion made Okonkwo's envisioned life unattainable. His sole goal of pushing all ounce of weakness in his life was the very thing that made him unable to change and adapt to the newly forming culture. Although Okonkwo was seen differently after his exile, he was still somewhat of an influential character in his tribe, and I believe that if he was more willing to change and adapt, more peace and prosperity would have come to his. Sadly, succumbing to the white man's new ideas and ways of life went against everything he stood for. Did anyone else have feelings or thoughts along these lines?

P.S. I commented on Luke's and Zane's Posts.

Comments

Caroline Tucker said…
While reading your post a new thought came to mind. Okonkwo, like you said, tried to take all of what he thought to be weakness out of his life. I believe what was left was Okonkwo’s weakness. He needed a balance. However, he was at an extreme. That extreme became his weakness.
I’m reluctant to call Okonkwo’s resistance to change a flaw on his part, because it’s the normal response to have when strange foreigners come into your home and turn your ideals on their head. Yes, his resistance was ultimately his downfall, but the intrusive nature of foreign evangelism in the pre-colonial era almost always garnered a similar reaction.