be.The priestess screamed."Come. but achievement was revered. They were duly presented to the women. beat me up and took my wife and children away. Okonkwo. But it was useless.

But it is not so
But it is not so. When they were out of earshot. The ill-fated lad was called Ikemefuna." he said. the god who cut a man down when his life was sweetest to him."No. But his whole life was dominated by fear. yet young people ran about happily picking up the cold nuts and throwing them into their mouths to melt. At first the clan had assumed that it would not survive. "They had been warned that danger was ahead."Is it well?" Okonkwo asked. I want you to be there. hung his goatskin bag on his shoulder and went to visit his friend. "What about you? Can you answer my question?"They all shook their heads. They saw the iron horse and went away again. The iron horse was still tied to the sacred silk-cotton tree. to harvest cassava tubers.' 'You must return the duckling. It must be the thought of going home to his mother. also had a basket of plantains and coco-yams and a small pot of palm-oil. leaving a regular pattern of hair.

" he said. A bowl of pounded yams can throw him in a wrestling match.The moon was now up and she could see Chielo and Ezinma clearly.""Have you heard. entered their mothers' wombs to be born again. a machete for cutting down the soft cassava stem. was a very exacting king. carrying on their heads various sizes of pots suitable to their years. As the rain began to fall more soberly and in smaller liquid drops. She looked straight ahead of her and walked back to the village. but he had never yet come across them. You think you are still a child.' Do you know what he told the Oracle? He said.When she got to the big udala tree Ezinma turned left into the bush. "You will find a pot of wine there." he said. Amadiora or the thunderbolt.They came in the cold harmattan season after the harvests had been gathered. His name was Nwoye.Okonkwo returned when he felt the medicine had cooked long anough."It is near that orange tree.

The wavering converts drew inspiration and confidence from his unshakable faith.' Everybody laughed heartily except Okonkwo.But stories were already gaining ground that the white man had not only brought a religion but also a government. Okonkwo wondered what was amiss. Nwoye went to his mother's hut and told her that Ikemefuna was going home. She was full of the power of her god. and it was he who had received Okonkwo's mother twenty and ten years before when she had been brought home Irom Umuofia to be buried with her people. the priestess of Agbala." said Ezinma. The thick mat was thrown over both.The New Yam Festival was thus an occasion for joy throughout Umuofia. and the planting began. "So he must have a wife and all of them must have buttocks. "You are already a skeleton. A man stood there with a machete in his hand."Where are her children? Did she take them?" he asked with unusual coolness and restraint. "It is not to pay you back for all you did for me in these seven years.It was late afternoon before Nwoye returned. We would then not be held accountable for their abominations.""That is true. So he waited impatiently for the dry season to come.

to the boys and they passed it round the wooden stays and then back to him. The faint and distant wailing of women settled like a sediment of sorrow on the earth. but Okonkwo was as slippery as a fish in water."It was in the second year of Okonkwo's exile that his friend. 'There is something ominous behind the silence." Okonkwo said to the lad. It was addressed as "Our Father. which was full of men who had offended against the white man's law. for his father's relatives to see." said Obierika. They throw away large numbers of men and women without burial. sprang to his feet and gripped him by the neck. "You will find a pot of wine there. Neither of the other wives dared to interfere beyond an occasional and tentative.Ekwefi ladled her husband's share of the pottage into a bowl and covered it. Smoke poured out of his head." He turned to Uzowulu's group and allowed a short pause. not even for fear of a goddess."Your half-sister. An evil forest was. and a girl.

and it was their counsel that prevailed in the end. Yam. Obierika offered him a lobe of the kola nut he had broken with Okonkwo. Ekwefi screwed her eyes up in an effort to see her daughter and the priestess. moved to the center. The man who dug it up was the same Okagbue who was famous in all the clan for his knowledge in these matters."On what market-day was it born?" he asked. He is not my father. And so excitement mounted in the village as the seventh week approached since the impudent missionaries buill their church in the Evil Forest. The next child was a girl. The interpreter explained each verse to the audience. it would not be done."He said nothing. that is a boy's job."When they had eaten." she called. reached Okonkwo from his wives' huts as each woman and her children told folk stories. She buried her face in her lap and waited."Don't cry. holding her breasts with her hands to stop them flapping noisily against her body. Her daughter was only ten years old but she was wiser than her years.

and from the very first seemed to have kindled a new fire in the younger boy. Perhaps down in his heart Okonkwo was not a cruel man. But they always returned to the long rope he trailed behind. "What will the heathen say of us when they hear that we receive osu into our midst? They will laugh. pushed back the bolt on his door and ran into Ekwefi's hut. passed through his obi and into Ekwefi's hut and walked into her bedroom. The hosts nodded in approval and seemed to say. "The children are still very young." said Okonkwo as he took his machete and went into the bush to collect the leaves and grasses and barks of trees that went into making the medicine for iba. Nwoye. She was very friendly with Ekwefi and they shared a common shed in the market.As they trooped through Okonkwo's obi he asked: "Who will prepare my afternoon meal?""I shall return to do it."Ekwefi. In her hand was the cloth pad on which the pot should have rested on her head. The oldest man present said sternly that those whose palm-kernels were cracked for them by a benevolent spirit should not forget to be humble." He sipped his wine. The suitor just goes on bringing bags of cowries until his in-laws tell him to stop. that I am not afraid of blood and if anyone tells you that I am. especially the wooden mortar in which yam was pounded. The old man listened silently to the end and then said with some relief: "It is a female ochu. The new year must begin with tasty.

tall. A child cannot pay for its mother's milk. He had one consolation. The ill-fated lad was called Ikemefuna. more terrible and more sinister than the anger. blew into it to remove any dust that might be there. because Oduche had not died immediately from his wounds. looking up from the yams she was peeling. and he had moments of sadness and depression But he and Nwoye had become so deeply attached to each other that such moments became less frequent and less poignant. Some people even said that they had heard the spirits flying and flapping their wings against the roof of the cave." But Death took no notice."We cannot all rush out like that. but so great was the work the new religion had done among the converts that they did not immediately leave the church when the outcasts came in. and sleepy. even into people's beds. It was an ill omen. and they each gave him a feather. "when she was pregnant. But it is not so. should bring to your mother a heavy face and refuse to be comforted? Be careful or you may displease the dead. Some of them were not at home and only four came in.

He had a large barn full of yams and he had three wives. His actions were deliberate. In Umuofia's latest war he was the first to bring home a human head. "You have offended neither the gods nor your fathers. Nwoye was there. They have joined his religion and they help to uphold his government. but they looked on from the fringe like outsiders. who stood beside her. He just hung limp. Okonkwo cleared his throat. But if you allow sorrow to weigh you down and kill you they will all die in exile. Had she been running too? How could she go so fast with Ezinma on her back? Although the night was cool. asked her""Remember that if you do not answer truthfully you will suffer or even die at childbirth. but ill.Ezinma and her mother sat on a mat on the floor after their supper of yam foo-foo and bitter-leaf soup. Last year neither of them had thrown the other even though the judges had allowed the contest to go on longer than was the custom. Violent deaths were frequent." He laughed a mirthless laughter. I shall give you some fish to eat.""Ee-e-e!""This is not the first time my people have come to marry your daughter. The child was called Onwumbiko.

"But I cannot understand these things you tell me. Ikemefuna looked back." said Ofoedu. But there is one more question I shall ask you. He raised his voice once or twice in manly sorrow and then sat down with the other men listening to the endless wailing of the women and the esoteric language of the ekwe. among these people a man was judged according to his worth and not according to the worth of his father. Okonkwo had not bought snuff from him for a long time. They asked who the king of the village was. it is play'. which was strengthened by such little conspiracies as eating eggs in the bedroom. who only stayed in the hope that it might come to chasing the men out of the village or whipping them."I do not blame you."Go home and sleep. Unoka loved it all. or rather held out her hand to be shaken. When the youngest wife went to call her again to be present at the washing of the body. He was a flaming fire. He still missed his mother and his sister and would be very glad to see them. my daughter. If we allow you to come with us you will soon begin your mischief. "They are young tubers.

A man stood there with a machete in his hand."There is too much green vegetable. her wrath was loosed on all the land and not just on the offender. That woman. The Lord shall have them in derision. she found her lying on the mat. but when they went away Okonkwo sat still for a very long time supporting his chin in his palms. whom she called her daughter.' he said as they flew on their way. Ekwefi had a feeling of spacious openness. And so when the priestess with Ezinma on her back disappeared through a hole hardly big enough to pass a hen. "when she was pregnant. Obiageli took the first dish and returned to her mother's hut. the king of crops. but he did not answer. "Blessed is he who forsakes his father and his mother for my sake. as was the custom. He is an exile. usually before the age of three.""The only other person is Udenkwo." he said.

Some of them were too angry to eat. They became ordinary human beings again. Because he had taken titles. on the other hand. bending very low at the eaves. He had been a great and fearless warrior in his time." said another man. she returned to her mother's hut to help with the cooking. Ezinma shook every tree violently with a long stick before she bent down to cut the stem and dig out the tuber.""He tapped three of my best palm trees to death." came her voice. what do I do? Do i shut my eyes? No! I take a stick and break his head That is what a man does. And so Nwoye was developing into a sad-faced youth. He threw down the gun and jumped into the barn and there lay the woman. Ikemefuna came first with the biggest pot. the earth goddess and the source of all fertility. by Okonkwo's brusqueness in dealing with less successful men.""Nwoye is old enough to impregnate a woman. or Evil Spirit. His two younger brothers are more promising."Three moons ago.

Five matches ended in this way. Okonkwo decided to go out hunting. who at once paid the heavy fine which the village imposed on anyone whose cow was let loose on his neighbors' crops. "Welcome.She walked up to her husband and accepted the horn from him. he kept it secret. What did they know about the man?" He ground his teeth again and told a story to illustrate his point. Uchendu before her. and even now he still remembered how he had suffered when a playmate had told him that his father was agbala."And so three goats were slaughtered and a number of fowls." said Nwakibie. and something seemed to give way inside him. 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. they could gather firewood together for roasting the ones that would be eaten there on the farm. Some of them were accompanied by their sons bearing carved wooden stools." asked another man. taking their bride home to spend seven market weeks with her suitor's family. full of power and beauty. who was laid on a mat. years ago.Okonkwo shook his head doubtfully.

That showed that in time he would be able to control his women-folk.""Once upon a time. The bride's mother led the way.The earth quickly came to life and the birds in the forests fluttered around and chirped merrily. The harmattan was in the air and seemed to distill a hazy feeling of sleep on the world. A bond of sympathy had grown between them as the years had passed. "They will put off Ndulue's funeral until his wife has been buried. Evil Forest then stood up. He had lost the chance to lead his warlike clan against the new religion. Nkechi was the daughter of Okonkwo's third wife.When she had shaken hands. and many farmers wept as they dug up the miserable and rotting yams. "I have never seen such a large crowd of people.At first. 'When people are invited to a great feast like this. Once upon a time there was a great famine in the land of animals.Ezinma brought them a bowl of water with which to wash their hands. You have a manly and a proud heart. "I shall tell them my mind if they do. We pray for life."Did she ask you to feed them before she went?""Yes.

The soup was brought out hot from the fire and in the very pot in which it had been cooked."Okonkwo was very lucky in his daughters. Only a week ago a man had contradicted him at a kindred meeting which they held to discuss the next ancestral feast. but they all refused. A sudden hush had fallen on the women. You have a manly and a proud heart. 'Don't touch!'But when I hold her waist-beads she pretends not to know. Okonkwo had slaughtered a goat for her.""That cannot be." And after a pause she said: "Can I bring your chair for you?""No. She walked numbly along. Once in a while Chielo was possessed by the spirit of her god and she began to prophesy. all talking in low voices. and in the end Okonkwo overcame his sorrow. He does not belong here. Perhaps she has come to stay. The spell of sunshine which always came in the middle of the wet season did not appear. As soon as he found one he would sing with his whole being."She is ill in bed. But if a man caused it." he said.

"You must take him to salute our father. In the end Parrot. he burst out laughing. into a healthy. i fear for the clan." Okonkwo agreed. they held them over an open fire to burn off the hair. And when he did this he saw that his father was pleased. He saw himself and his fathers crowding round their ancestral shrine waiting in vain for worship and sacrifice and finding nothing but ashes of bygone days. At last Vulture was sent to plead with Sky."Let me make the fire for you. There were five groups. The New Yam Festival seemed to him to be a much bigger event here than in his own village. when they came. like the snapping of a tightened bow. what did the mother of this duckling say when you swooped and carried its child away?' 'It said nothing. None of his converts was a man whose word was heeded in ihe assembly of the people. closed hut like tongues of fire. "People traveled more in those days. All that he required was something to occupy his mind. many years.

He is always in a hurry. But almost immediately a shout of joy broke out in all directions." Ofoedu agreed. Kiaga stood firm. and Ikemefuna.""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. and the women sat on a sisal mat spread on a raised bank of earth. When Okonkwo brought him home that day he called his most senior wife and handed him over to her. and Umuofia was still swallowed up in sleep and silence when the ekwe began to talk. Only a few of them saw these white men and their followers. They sang the latest song in the village:" If I hold her handShe says.""That is very bad. He then installed his personal god and the symbols of his departed fathers. Last year neither of them had thrown the other even though the judges had allowed the contest to go on longer than was the custom."Ah. Her name was Nneka.""Ee-e-e!""And this will not be the last. 'There is nothing to fear from someone who shouts.As he broke the kola."The court messengers did not like to be called Ashy-Buttocks. Marriage should be a play and not a fight so we are falling down again.

" Obierika replied sharply. For how else could he explain his great misfortune and exile and now his despicable son's behavior? Now that he had time to think of it. indeed. Nwoye. The story had arisen among the Christians themselves. He worshipped them with sacrifices of kola nut."Will you give Ezinma some fire to bring to me?" Her own children and Ikemefuna had gone to the stream.-but the more he tried the more he thought about him. And then like the sound of his cannon he crashed on the compound. Unoka. but no one thought the stories were true. Even the sacred fish in their mysterious lake have fled and the lake has turned the color of blood. That was always the trouble with Okeke's snuff. In her hand was the cloth pad on which the pot should have rested on her head. When Ekwefi had followed the priestess. His visitor was amazed." Uzowulu replied. It was not very easy getting the men of high title and the elders together after the excitement of the first day. "Use the fan. especially the youngest."Have you slept enough?" asked her mother.

was a very exacting king.""There is no song in the story. had entered his eye. If they became more troublesome than they already were they would simply be driven out of the clan. and two or three pieces of land on which tofarm during the coming planting season. And then the smooth."I was coming over to see you as soon as I finished that thatch. Instead of saying "myself" he always said "my buttocks. I have learned to be stingy with my yams. Okonkwo helped them put down their loads."You must take him to salute our father. Ekwefi picked her way carefully and quietly.He was by nature a very lively boy and he gradually became popular in Okonkwo's household. It was a day old. Nwoye's mother swore at her and settled down again to her peeling. The hymn about brothers who sat in darkness and in fear seemed to answer a vague and persistent question that haunted his young soul??the question of the twins crying in the bush and the question of Ikemefuna who was killed. Unoka prayed to their ancestors for life and health. I would have asked you to bring courage. 'Ogbuefi Ndulue. "Beware of exchanging words with Agbala. to roast plantains for him.

The men then continued their drinking and talking. They all have food in their own homes."Ah. the Creator of all the world and all the men and women.All the umunna were invited to the feast. Many years ago another egwugwu had dared to stand his ground before him and had been transfixed to the spot for two days. But almost immediately a shout of joy broke out in all directions. and tears stood in his eyes. Everybody had been invited??men.""They have indeed soiled the name of ozo. Kiaga that he had decided to go to Umuofia where the white missionary had set up a school to teach young Christians to read and write. Her husband and his family were already becoming highly critical of such a woman and were not unduly perturbed when they found she had fled to join the Christians. If they imagined what was inside. And indeed he was possessed by the fear of his father's contemptible life and shameful death. "is it true that when people are grown up. If you give me some yam seeds I shall not fail you.He was tall but very thin and had a slight stoop. The birth of her children. One day as Ezinma was eating an egg Okonkwo had come in unexpectedly from his hut. because an old man was very close to the ancestors. He would return with a flourish.

The crime was of two kinds. He was therefore waiting to receive them.Just then the distant beating of drums began to reach them."Obiageli broke her pot today. and each wife built a small attachment to her hut for the hens."Is that me?" Ekwefi called back. After a few more hoe-fuls of earth he struck the iyi-uwa. How could he know that his father had taken a hand in killing a daughter of Umuofia? All he knew was that a few men had arrived at their house. Some said Okafo was the better man." she replied." said Obierika. It is the law of our fathers. and they had quickened their steps. But they were still alive. "All the gods you have named are not gods at all. not only in his motherland but also in Umuofia." said Obierika." Okonkwo said."Okonkwo was very lucky in his daughters.""There is no song in the story."Ekwefi turned the hen over in the mortar and began to pluck the feathers.

"Do what you are told. They were all fully dressed as if they were going to a big clan meeting or to pay a visit to a neighboring village. Nwoye passed and repassed the little red-earth and thatch building without summoning enough courage to enter." he had said. and Ekwefi recoiled. 'When people are invited to a great feast like this. The first voice gets to Chukwu. A man belongs to his fatherland when things are good and life is sweet. 1 know how to deal with them."The birds gathered round to eat what was left and to peck at the bones he had thrown all about the floor.The men then continued their drinking and talking. He brought another seven baskets and cooked them himself.'Ask my dead father if he ever had a fowl when he was alive. No! he could not be.The priestess screamed."Come. but achievement was revered. They were duly presented to the women. beat me up and took my wife and children away. Okonkwo. But it was useless.