the best wrestlers in all the nine villages. Tortoise began to sniff aloud.

"Do you know me?""No man can know you
"Do you know me?""No man can know you. And Okonkwo had already done that." said Ekwefi.The elders. "Who will drink the dregs?" he asked. So he waited impatiently for the dry season to come.""I think she will stay. They faced the elders. and who like a madman had cut the anklet of his titles and cast it away to join the Christians."Odukwe's body. "I shall carry you on my back. his children and their mothers in the new year. An ultimatum was immediately dispatched to Mbaino asking them to choose between war - on the one hand. when he slept."Remove your jigida first. I cannot yet find a mouth with which to tell the story. Odukwe continued:"Last year when my sister was recovering from an illness. A vague scent of life and green vegetation was diffused in the air."That will not be enough. and the sands felt like live coals to the feet. Kiaga. The law of Umuofia is that if a woman runs away from her husband her bride-price is returned. How else could they say that Ani and Amadiora were harmless? And Idemili and Ogwugwu too? And some of them began to go away.Mr. The elders sat in a big circle and the singers went round singing each man's praise as they came before him. He was therefore waiting to receive them.

"Okonkwo has spoken the truth. Nwoye overheard it and burst into tears.Ekwefi rose early on the following morning and went to her farm with her daughter. especially with the children. waving their palm fronds. A man's place was not always there.Seven years was a long time to be away from one's clan. When your neighbors go out with their ax to cut down virgin forests."Forgive me."Come and shake hands with me. took her stick and walked over to the obi. He would be very much happier working on his farm.He was by nature a very lively boy and he gradually became popular in Okonkwo's household. her wrath was loosed on all the land and not just on the offender. but achievement was revered.' Everybody laughed heartily except Okonkwo. A woman fled as soon as an egwugwu came in sight. Ekwefi screwed her eyes up in an effort to see her daughter and the priestess. and which she no doubt still told to her younger children??stories of the tortoise and his wily ways. which."Do what you are told. "As our people say. He would stamp out the disquieting signs of laziness which he thought he already saw in him. leaving a regular pattern of hair.After the singing the interpreter spoke about the Son of God whose name was Jesu Kristi. Then he poured out for the others.

As soon as Unoka understood what his friend was driving at. who were still outside the circle. She must have heard a noise behind her and turned round sharply.Just then the distant beating of drums began to reach them. But no one thought It would be as long as three years. Obierika sent word that the two huts had been built and Okonkwo began to prepare for his return. But you were rich."Don't you know what kind of man Uzowulu is? He will not listen to any other decision." said Uchendu"I swear." asked Obierika."Do what you are told. His younger wives did that.""But someone had to do it. She went. This was about eight days after the fight. And so the two of them refused every offer of marriage in Mbanta. But you lived long. who was a prosperous farmer. How do you think we can fight when our own brothers have turned against us? The white man is very clever. Her heart beat violently and she stood still."Whose cow was it?" asked the women who had been allowed to stay behind. The moon was definitely rising. There was once a man who went to sell a goat. She buried her face in her lap and waited." said his father. The two voices disappeared into the thick darkness.

Then he burst out:"Never kill a man who says nothing. he was already one of the greatest men of his time." replied Okukwe. He held out his hands to them when they came into his obi.Okonkwo did as the priest said. her face streaming with tears. but the elders counseled patience till nightfall. and. when he had worked on one side of the wall and Ikemefuna and Nwoye on the other. And so Tortoise ate the best part of the food and then drank two pots of palm-wine. "The evil you have done can ruin the whole clan. "It's true that a child belongs to its father." The crowd agreed.- they must be going towards Umuachi. she sat down on a stony ledge and waited."Once upon a time."Where is Ojiugo?" he asked his second wife. Ogbuefi Ugonna had thought of the Feast in terms of eating and drinking."After kola nuts had been presented and eaten. The man who dug it up was the same Okagbue who was famous in all the clan for his knowledge in these matters. and the quiet spectators murmured to themselves."Okonkwo bit his lips as anger welled up within him. or ndichie." said Obierika. The air was full of dust and the smell of gunpowder. And although she believed that the iyi-uwa which had been dug up was genuine.

and even now he still remembered how he had suffered when a playmate had told him that his father was agbala. my great friend.As they trooped through Okonkwo's obi he asked: "Who will prepare my afternoon meal?""I shall return to do it. unlike most children. At the end they decided. unlike the deep and liquid rumbling of the rainy season. chewing the fish. But by the end of the day the sisal rings were burned dry and gray."Take away your kola nut. He knew it must be Ekwefi. But they soon returned and everyone was gazing at the rag from a reasonable distance. fifth and sixth years. with a full beard and a bald head. 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. Why was that?"Okonkwo shook his head.' replied the man. It was as if water had been poured on the tightened skin of a drum. Somewhere a man was taking one of the titles of his clan. Her back was turned on the footpath that led out of the hills. Such a thing could never happen in his fatherland. It is a poor soil and that is why the tubers are so small." came her voice." But she could not. They were beaten in the prison by the kotma and made to work every morning clearing the government compound and fetching wood for the white Commissioner and the court messengers." said Obierika. bringing the third dish.

" said Obierika. There was no barn to inherit."Unoka was an ill-fated man. As the evening wore on. But it was the season of rest between the harvest and the next planting season. to inquire what was amiss. You know his first wife who walks with a stick?""Yes. The thick dregs of palm-wine were supposed to be good for men who were going in to their wives. and stake them when the young tendrils appear."We have now built a church." said the leader of the ecjwucjwu.The wrestlers were not there yet and the drummers held the field. saw clearly that Okonkwo had yielded to despair and he was greatly troubled. "Our own men and our sons have joined the ranks of the stranger. the women who had gone for red earth returned with empty baskets. The crowd wondered who would throw the other this year. He was a wealthy farmer and had two barns full of yams. No ogbanje would yield her secrets easily. forty-five." Ezinma said."Answer truthfully. "I warned Nwankwo to keep a sharp eye and a sharp ear. what do we do? Do we go and stop his mouth? No. It was the time for treading red earth with which to build walls. because it had been inadvertent."Ekwefi went to bring the pot and Okonkwo selected the best from his bundle.

Quick as the lightning of Amadiora. She went. Between Chielo's outbursts the night was alive with the shrill tremor of forest insects woven into the darkness. they held them over an open fire to burn off the hair. Some said Ezimili. lest he should be found to resemble his father." and they argued like this for a few moments before Unoka accepted the honor of breaking the kola. The neighbors and relations also saw the coincidence and said among themselves that it was very significant. Okagbue worked tirelessly and in silence." Obierika said to his son. She was going to the stream to fetch water. She could hear the priestess' voice. as most people were." said Okonkwo. All that he required was something to occupy his mind.- then silence descended from the sky and swallowed the noise. "I shall survive anything.Ezinma led the way back to the road. were whispering together."I do not know the answer. He then adjusted his cloth. And so he was always happy when he heard him grumbling about women. for he had no grave. But everybody knew that he was going to die and Aneto got his belongings together in readiness to flee. and within a short time all the birds agreed that he was a changed man. not dead.

""They have paid for their foolishness. moved to the center. Has he thrown a hundred Cats?He has thrown four hundred Cats. He searched his bag and brought out his snuff-bottle. love returned once more to her mother.""Does the white man understand our custom about land?""How can he when he does not even speak our tongue? But he says that our customs are bad. Now you talk about his son. He who brings kola brings life. thus completing a circle with their hosts. go in peace. She broke them into little pieces across the sole of her foot and began to build a fire. where he thought they must be. She was the ultimate judge of morality and conduct. pushing the air with his raffia arms. Tortoise looked down from the sky and saw his wife bringing things out." His tone now changed from anger to command."Where did you bury your iyi-uwa?" Okagbue had asked Ezinma." the men said among themselves. and the children reveled in the thought of being spoiled by these visitors from the motherland. He thought of his mother and his three-year-old sister and wept bitterly. I will only have a son who is a man." he announced when he sat down. She was very heavy with child.""The only other person is Udenkwo. but in doing so he would have taken something from the full penalty of seven years. Nothing wouldhappen to Ezinma.

"Your wife was at fault. Why had Okonkwo withdrawn to the rear? Ikemefuna felt his legs melting under him. Obierika and half a dozen other friends came to help and to console him. Once or twice he tried to run away. went down quickly on one knee in an attempt to fling his man backwards over his head. Okagbue emerged and without saying a word or even looking at the spectators he went to his goatskin bag. And there were indeed occasions when the Oracle had forbidden Umuofia to wage a war. which had been stretched taut with excitement. and everybody agreed that he was as sharp as a razor. dressed in garbs of war. the priestess of Agbala. but the villagers told them that there was no king. And the other boy was flat on his back. That was in fact the reason why he had come to see Unoka. At the end. She looked straight ahead of her and walked back to the village. 'There is nothing to fear from someone who shouts. touching the earth." he asked. The thick dregs of palm-wine were supposed to be good for men who were going in to their wives. "In Abame and Aninta the title is worth less than two cowries. "In Abame and Aninta the title is worth less than two cowries. was the wife of Ogbuefi Udo. The men stood outside the circle. the white man began to speak to them. and the cannon shattered the silence.

The wrestlers were now almost still in each other's grip. Now and again a full-chested lamentation rose above the wailing whenever a man came into the place of death." said Mr. Here was a man whose chi said nay despite his own affirmation. when his father walked in that night after killing Ikemefuna. but he had been too surprised to weep. "And you know how leaves become smaller after cooking. who drank a cup or two each. "They want to ruin us. His younger wives did that.The men in the obi had already begun to drink the palm-wine which Akueke's suitor had brought. and the world lay panting under the live. I weed ?C I??; ??Hold your peace!" screamed the priestess. But two years later when a son was born he called him Nwofia??"Begotten in the Wilderness. and by then he had become gravely worried." said Okonkwo. And so Okonkwo was ruled by one passion - to hate everything that his father Unoka had loved. What crime had they committed? The Earth had decreed that they were an offense on the land and must be destroyed. Like all good farmers. and was about to say something when the old man continued:"Yes. If you think you are the greatest sufferer in the world ask my daughter. "What about you? Can you answer my question?"They all shook their heads. a length of cloth and a hundred cowries. When we gather together in the moonlit village ground it is not because of the moon.Nwoye struggled to free himself from the choking grip. came first.

A deep murmur went through the crowd when he said this. He worshipped them with sacrifices of kola nut. and there had been a mad rush for shelter earlier in the day when one appeared with a sharp machete and was only prevented from doing serious harm by two men who restrained him with the help of a strong rope tied round his waist. It was a miracle. The younger of his sons. I sow the yams when the first rain has fallen.Okonkwo was well received by his mother's kinsmen in Mbanta. and then flew away."Who are the young men with you?" he asked as he sat down again on his goatskin. and before they began to speak in low tones Nwoye and Ikemefuna were sent out. We pray for life. When they carried him away." said Okonkwo. Okonkwo stood by the pit. fifth and sixth years. The short trees and sparse undergrowth which surrounded the men's village began to give way to giant trees and climbers which perhaps had stood from the beginning of things. the sky. "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. He warmed himself in the fire and ate the entrails." replied Okonkwo. through lonely forest paths. Okonkwo and the two boys were working on the red outer walls of the compound. Igwelo had a job in hand because he had married his first wife a month or two before. But I can tell you. And this was the message. someone else rose and filled it.

Okonkwo's first son. The goat was then led back to the inner compound. decorating them with a colorful and plaintive tune. until crops withered and the dead could not be buried because the hoes broke on the stony Earth.An iron gong sounded. Machi. but the fattest of all was tethered to a peg near the wall of the compound and was as big as a small cow. or the teeth of an old woman."Answer the question at once.""I do not. like the prospect of annihilation. He could not ask another man to build his own obi for him. But now she found the half-light of the incipient moon more terrifying than darkness." said Okonkwo. It was as if water had been poured on the tightened skin of a drum. She was particularly fond of Ekwefi's only daughter. the rulers of Mbanta gave to the missionaries." he said."Nwoye did not fully understand. "As our people say."Nwakibie cleared his throat. He came quietly and peaceably with his religion. The men were seized and beaten until they streamed with blood. The oldest member of this extensive family was Okonkwo's uncle. His priestess stood by the sacred fire which she built in the heart of the cave and proclaimed the will of the god. But Chielo ignored what he was trying to say and went on shouting that Agbala wanted to see his daughter.

"1 thought you were going into the shrine with Chielo.The only course open to Okonkwo was to flee from the clan. the god who cut a man down when his life was sweetest to him. when the sun's heat had softened. Di-go-go-di-go-di-di-go-go floated in the message-laden night air. broke into life and activity.The wrestlers were now almost still in each other's grip. One day as Ezinma was eating an egg Okonkwo had come in unexpectedly from his hut." He turned to Odukwe. Its most potent war-medicine was as old as the clan itself. Every man can see it in his own compound. and she swore within her that if she heard Ezinma cry she would rush into the cave to defend her against all the gods in the world. The first day passed and the second and third and fourth. All else was silent. The first cup went to Okonkwo. which were black with soot."And so three goats were slaughtered and a number of fowls. It was only then that they exchanged greetings and shook hands over what was left of the food. It was quiet and confident. I owe them no yams. jumping over walls and dancing on the roof. a long. and before they began to speak in low tones Nwoye and Ikemefuna were sent out." he asked.They sat in a big circle on the ground and the young bride in the center with a hen in her right hand. "We will allow three or four women to stay behind.

hungry swarm. "We will allow three or four women to stay behind. Today Okonkwo was not bringing his mother home to be buried with her people. Do you know how many children I have buried??children I begot in my youth and strength? Twenty-two. Ezeudu is dead.'"None of the birds had heard of this custom but they knew that Tortoise. and during this time Okonkwo's fame had grown like a bush-fire in the harmattan. the distance they had covered. But it is not so." said Ojiugo. and Okonkwo's women and children heard from their huts all that she said.A strange and sudden weakness descended on Ekwefi as she stood gazing in the direction of the voices like a hen whose only chick has been carried away by a kite. hungry swarm. but many of them believed that the strange faith and the white man's god would not last. when he was young. Another one was wailing near his right ear. Hisspeech was so eloquent that all the birds were glad they had brought him. And he had all but achieved it. He tried not to think about Ikemefuna." replied Uzowulu."He uncovered his second wife's dish and began to eat from it.""That is very true.- then silence descended from the sky and swallowed the noise. The same thought also came to Okonkwo's mind. Marriage should be a play and not a fight so we are falling down again.""It is indeed true.

" said Obierika." the men said among themselves. "But I have also heard that Abame people were weak and foolish. Because he had taken titles." said Obiageli."The next day. Some of them were too angry to eat. Old men nodded to the beat of the drums and remembered the days when they wrestled to its intoxicating rhythm." said Okagbue." said Mr. They were duly presented to the women. He could not do anything without telling her. in silence. degenerate and effeminate? Perhaps he was not his son. He died and rotted away above the earth. and when he got home he went straight to Okonkwo's hut and told him what he had seen. this medicine stands on the market ground in the shape of an old woman with a fan. He who brings kola brings life. They scrubbed and painted the outside walls under the supervision of men. Ezinma wielded a strong influence over her half-sister. It was unheard of to beat somebody during the sacred week. She felt cold. That also is true. No! he could not be. Ezinma brought her two legs together and stretched them in front of her. He called his son.

there was always a large quantity of food left over at the end of the day."Oye."We have heard both sides of the case. As soon as the two boys closed in. red in tooth and claw. Ezinma. He had a slight stammer and whenever he was angry and could not get his words out quickly enough. As soon as the two boys closed in. the messenger of earth. She shut her eyes for a while and opened them again in an effort to see. She would die with her. He had called the first child born to him in exile Nneka??"Mother is Supreme"??out of politeness to his mother's kinsmen. All the family were there and some of the neighbors too."I did not know it was you."You will blow your eyes out. Then he would show his wealth by initiating his sons into the ozo society. And then Nkechi came in. And what do you think the Oracle would do then?""You know very well. The eight other egwugwu were as still as statues. also had a basket of plantains and coco-yams and a small pot of palm-oil. "If you had been poor in your last life I would have asked you to be rich when you come again. "We are going directly."Ekwefi went to bring the pot and Okonkwo selected the best from his bundle. stopped them."That is not strange.""Your words are good.

Inwardly. Ikeocha. Indeed he respected him for his industry and success. No matter how prosperous a man was. "Will you go?""Yes. The total effect was gay and brisk. He raised it carefully with the hoe and threw it to the surface. His name was Okagbue Uyanwa." said the convert.Umuofia was feared by all its neighbors.- they must be going towards Umuachi. From a distance the noise was a deep rumble carried by the wind. He never stopped regretting that Ezinma was a girl. Now and again a full-chested lamentation rose above the wailing whenever a man came into the place of death." Okonkwo said. reappeared every year for seven years and then disappeared for another lifetime."Every year. this medicine stands on the market ground in the shape of an old woman with a fan. and the little children to visit their playmates in the neighboring compounds. Okonkwo decided to go out hunting. They sympathized with their neighbors with much shaking of the head. she found her lying on the mat. We put our fingers into our ears to stop us hearing.""But they are beating the drums. But he was happy to leave his father. There was a famine in those days and Tortoise had not eaten a good meal for two moons.

All that he required was something to occupy his mind."Uzowulu's body.As soon as his father walked in. making music and feasting. "Bear no hand in his death. A man belongs to his fatherland and not to his motherland. Ezinma had not wanted to cooperate with him at first.""I can tell you. who would not lend his knife for cutting up dogmeat because the dog was taboo to him. without serious danger to his own health. Without further argument Okonkwo gave her a sound beating and left her and her only daughter weeping. Then all Umuofia turned out in spite of the cold harmattan. Then send him word to fight for us. The ill-fated lad was called Ikemefuna. also carrying an oil lamp.As the men drank." She sat down and stretched her legs in front of her. The women began to talk excitedly. Okonkwo and his wife followed at a respectful distance. Okoye was a great talker and he spoke for a long time. It was deeper and more intimate than the fear of evil and capricious gods and of magic. The suitor just goes on bringing bags of cowries until his in-laws tell him to stop. about their women. As a young man of eighteen he had brought honor to his village by throwing Amalinze the Cat. It was a different woman??the priestess of Agbala. Ezinma went with her and helped in preparing the vegetables.

and about some effeminate men who had refused to come with them. condemned for seven years to live in a strange land. "Perhaps you can already guess what it is. Here was a man whose chi said nay despite his own affirmation. the king of crops. He was a flaming fire. Its most potent war-medicine was as old as the clan itself. And what was more. But he has not come to wake me up in the morning for it. Ekwefi uttered a scream and sprang to her feet. On his head were two powerful horns." said Mgbogo's next-door neighbor. Nwoye's mother carried a basket of coco-yams."He died this morning. She was alive and well. taking each string separately."Do what you are told."He led Umuofia to war in those days. I am worried about Nwoye. She was Okonkwo's second wife Ekwefi. Each of his three wives had her own hut."Don't you see the pot is full of yams?" Ekwefi asked. Nwoye's mother." he said to Okonkwo. This was about eight days after the fight. they settled on the roofs and covered the bare ground.

had gone to consult Agbala. She placed Ezinma carefully on the bed and went away without saying a word to anybody." the medicine man told Okonkwo in a cool. He put them in the pot and Ekwefi poured in some water. He hit the bottle against his knee to shake up the tobacco."I have kola."Do what you are told. There was so much food and drink that many kinsmen whistled in surprise."Once upon a time."Look at that wall. nearly half a day's journey away.""Does the white man understand our custom about land?""How can he when he does not even speak our tongue? But he says that our customs are bad."He sprang to his feet.""They have paid for their foolishness. gazing into a log fire.In this way the moons and the seasons passed. She wore the anklet of her husband's titles."Go to your in-laws with a pot of wine and beg your wife to return to you." said Obierika.'to bring out all the soft things in my house and cover the compound with them so that I can jump down from the sky without very great danger. He ran a few steps in the direction of the women. It was addressed as "Our Father. He did not inherit a barn from his father.""Anyway. But when she lived on to her fourth. It was the time for treading red earth with which to build walls.

Suppose when he died all his male children decided to follow Nwoye's steps and abandon their ancestors? Okonkwo felt a cold shudder run through him at the terrible prospect. She was used to Chielo calling her "my daughter. was a failure.As the palm-wine was drunk one of the oldest members of the umunna rose to thank Okonkwo:"If I say that we did not expect such a big feast I will be suggesting that we did not know how openhanded our son. "People traveled more in those days. This was about eight days after the fight. Ezinma?""She has been very well for some time now. Instead of saying "myself" he always said "my buttocks. He immediately rose and shook hands with Okoye."Ezinma ran in the direction of the barn and brought back two yams from the dwarf wall. He laughed loud and long and his voice rang out clear as the ogene." she called. which was shaved in places. and then flew away. My mother was one of you. But when there is sorrow and bitterness he finds refuge in his motherland. And perhaps those not so young would be playing in pairs in less open places. And that could not be. The relationship between them was not only that of mother and child.""What did the white man say before they killed him?" asked Uchendu. Such a thing could never happen in his fatherland. He would return with a flourish. Her eyes went constantly from Ezinma to the boiling pot and back to Ezinma.Very soon after. where he thought they must be. But there were some too who came because they had friends in our town.

People laughed at him because he was a loafer. Mgbafo. he made sacrifices of atonement and performed an expensive burial ceremony such as was done for a great man. they have killed me!" as he ran towards him. He was a very strong man and rarely felt fatigue. dug her teeth into the real thing. He hoped to get another four hundred yams from one of his father's friends at Isiuzo. He wanted first to know why they had been outlawed. Then everything had been broken." And he did. When the pot fell down and broke she burst out laughing. and the lad Ikemefuna. whom he had thrown away." said Ezinma. He was afraid of being thought weak. They went outside again. twenty-five. A toad does not run in the daytime for nothing. After waiting in vain for her dish he went to her hut to see what she was doing. tall and strongly built." He paused. He was greatly surprised. Twenty. I owe that man a thousand cowries." said Okonkwo."No.

There was a drinking horn in it. It looked like an equal match."We are all well. 'Ogbuefi Ndulue. Then she suddenly turned round and began to walk back to the road. Her daughter was only ten years old but she was wiser than her years. women and children. Ezinma's voice soon faded away and only Chielo was heard moving farther and farther into the distance. because their dreaded agadi-nwayi would never fight what the Ibo call a fight of blame. When the pot fell down and broke she burst out laughing." said the priestess. shiny pebble fell out."Ezinma is dying. What would she do when they got to the cave? She would not dare to enter. Kiaga was going to send into the village for his men-converts when he saw them coming on their own."Everybody thanked Okonkwo and the neighbors brought out their drinking horns from the goatskin bags they carried. And then came the clap of thunder."Thank you. What she had seen was the shape of a man climbing a palm tree.""I think she has."There is too much green vegetable. But his fondness only showed on very rare occasions. With the help of his mother's kinsmen he built himself an obi and three huts for his wives. and saw those who stood or sat next to them. in a terrifying voice.Ezinma did not call her mother Nne like all children.

As for Ikemefuna. for he knew certainly that something was amiss. He did not understand it."The body of Odukwe." he said sadly. and who like a madman had cut the anklet of his titles and cast it away to join the Christians. Kiaga stopped them and began to explain." said the young man Who had been sent by Obierika to buy the giant goat "There are so many people on it that if you threw up a grain of sand it would not find a way to fall to earth again." he said sadly. and gave it to Ibe to fill.""One of the men told me.They came in the cold harmattan season after the harvests had been gathered. and the solid mass was now broken by tiny eyes of light like shining star dust. love returned once more to her mother."1 am one of them. Obierika nodded in agreement." replied Okukwe.Very soon after."Okonkwo was very lucky in his daughters. "The bell-man announced it last night. In ordinary life Chielo was a widow with two children. If you turn against me when I am dead I will visit you and break your neck." roared Okonkwo. Here was a man whose chi said nay despite his own affirmation. The fowl Ekwefi had just killed was in the wooden mortar."Unless you shave off the mark of your heathen belief I will not admit you into the church.

"she will bring you back very soon. Has he thrown a hundred Cats?He has thrown four hundred Cats. came into the obi from outside."The next day a group of elders from all the nine villages of Umuofia came to Okonkwo's house early in the morning. Her eyes went constantly from Ezinma to the boiling pot and back to Ezinma.As for the boy himself. but he did not answer. Aninta. His first two wives ran out in great alarm pleading with him that it was the sacred week. and his relatives. and it could not be done later because harvesting would soon set in. and Okonkwo's women and children heard from their huts all that she said."That is not strange. He slapped the ear and hoped he had killed it. he had begun even in his father's lifetime to lay the foundations of a prosperous future."'We know you too well. He stepped forward. And you. who was fat and whose body shone as if oil was rubbed on it??"She broke off because at that very moment a loud and high-pitched voice broke the outer silence of the night. "There must be a reason for it. as if he was going to pounce on somebody.But it was really not true that Okonkwo's palm-kernels had been cracked for him by a benevolent spirit. They will take him outside Umuofia as is the custom.- they must be going towards Umuachi. As for Ikemefuna. Okonkwo's second wife had merely cut a few leaves off it to wrap some food.

The law of Umuofia is that if a woman runs away from her husband her bride-price is returned. He was to be called All oj you." said Obierika. as everybody knew they would." said Mr. and others who could think of nowhere else open to escape. If your in-law brings wine to you. And so it was time for the final ceremony of confession. I have cleared a farm but have no yams to sow. The white man has no sense. All that is true. They each made nine or ten trips carrying Okonkwo's yams to store in Obierika's barn. "He hardly ever walks. unless it was one of the stubborn ones who returned. Nwoye. "When I think that it is only eighteen months since the Seed was first sown among you.Okonkwo took the bowl from her and gulped the water down."The next day a group of elders from all the nine villages of Umuofia came to Okonkwo's house early in the morning."What did he say?" the white man asked his interpreter.But stories were already gaining ground that the white man had not only brought a religion but also a government. Odukwe continued:"Last year when my sister was recovering from an illness. he kept it secret. Okonkwo brought out kola nut and placed it before the priest. "Our duty is not to blame this man or to praise that. They were among the best wrestlers in all the nine villages. Tortoise began to sniff aloud.