Okonkwo starts to feel very happy and pleased since
Ikemefuna is a very hard worker and will never be lazy to do some work, he
wants his son Nwoye to become a good man who will succeed in life. Nwoye is
getting influenced by him and is finally learning how to be a man, how to put
effort on the things he does and to be determined. Okonkwo calls both to his
obi frequently to tell them masculine stories of violence and blood.
One day Ezeudu comes to tell Okonkwo that Ikemefuna should
be killed for the Oracle and he can´t interfere with the murder. Two days
after, the boy was supposedly taken to his real house, he started thinking
about his home, his sister and mother and suddenly he looked back and was
killed by a man with a machete, Okonkwo didn’t know what to do, instead of
protecting him he went to where the kid was and threw his machete to kill him,
he couldn’t show any feeling or regret since those were signs of weakness.
Okonkwo felt strange, he stopped eating and the more he
tried to stop thinking about Ikemefuna, the more he thought about him. He went
to see his friend Obierika for some good advice in the situation. Okonkwo
thought he hadn’t do anything wrong, he had been obedient with the Goddess, but
Obierika made him think. He said that it didn’t matter what the Goddess had
said, if it he was in Okonkwo’s situation, he wouldn’t let anything happen to his
kids. Although Okonkwo didn’t showed, he felt very bad, Ikemefuna had the
correct spirit unlike Nwoye who was a lot like his father Unoka.
The first night Okonkwo could sleep after what has happened,
Ekwefi, his wife came to wake him because Ezinma had a fever. She was very
worried, since she was a special girl for her, they were as one, and she was
the only one who had survived from the 10 babies Ekwefi had had in her life.
They had already destroyed Ezinma’s iyi-wa but she was sick now. Luckily she relief
quickly from the illness.
All the men from the village attend to a secret house to
talk to the Gods; there are 9 men who wear a mask who will communicate all the
things that the Gods have to tell. They discuss all the village issues that
have to do with the implement of justice.
Ezinma and Ekwefi were sitting after eating dinner in the
floor, chatting and telling stories. Ekwefi tells a story about a tortoise who
convinced birds to invite him to a party and ended feeling possessive and
abusive about the attentions and things the birds had gave him. It was Ezinma’s
turn, she was about to start her story when they heard a loud sound. It was Chielo,
possessed by a Goddess; he came for Ezinma and took her out carrying her in her
back. Ezinma followed in secret because she was afraid something bad could
happen. They ran until they got to farthest village and then returned to a
sacred cave, Ezinma was waiting outside when Okonkwo arrived to stay with her.
Chielo returned Ezinma to her house at dawn.
In the morning, the family started to prepare for Obierika’s
daughter wedding; Ezinma and Ekwefi were going to get a little bit late because
they haven’t slept well form what had happened last night. When they arrived,
everyone gave their blessings; they danced, sang and had a very fun and big
party.
The next day the ekwe
told the village that Ezeudu had died. All the clan attended his funeral; he
was a strong and courageous warrior. Okonkwo was sorry he remembered when he
had come to his obi to tell him that they should kill Ikemefuna, he was still
looking good and never imagined he could have died. During the funeral they
were shooting guns and firing guns, men were jumping and shouting between the
smell of gunpowder. Suddenly everything became silent and they noticed a man
was lying in the floor in a pool of blood. It has been Okonkwo, nothing like
this had never happened; killing a man from the clan was considered one of the
worst crimes against the Goddess, now he had to abandon the village and couldn’t
return in seven years.
Reference:
Achebe, C. (1994). Things fall apart. New York,
Anchor Books.
