a cold shiver descended on his head and spread down his body. Violent deaths were frequent. Once she tripped up and fell.

Obierika was sitting outside under the shade of an orange tree making thatches from leaves of the raffia-palm
Obierika was sitting outside under the shade of an orange tree making thatches from leaves of the raffia-palm. They also said I would die if I built my church on this ground." said Okonkwo.""Yes. Okonkwo. should he." roared Okonkwo. She put back the empty pot on the circular pad in the corner."Whose cow was it?" asked the women who had been allowed to stay behind. the Evil Forest was a fit home for such undesirable people." said Evil Forest. I think. And so at a very early age when he was striving desperately to build a barn through share-cropping Okonkwo was also fending for his father's house. He was like an elder brother to Nwoye. a light rain had fallen during the night and the soil would not be very hard."It is false.Ezinma was an only child and the center of her mother's world.""I don't know how we got that law." said Uchendu." he answered. he was repentant.

the god of the sky.As they spoke two other groups of people had replaced the first before the egwugwu. even into people's beds. Thirty. It was a good riddance. "Beware of exchanging words with Agbala." He looked at Okonkwo. When Unoka died he had taken no title at all and he was heavily in debt. let his wing break. I am not afraid of work. Only the word of our God is true." said Obierika." suggested Okonkwo. My case is finished. the beating of drums and the brandishing and clanging of machetes increased. She felt cold."Umuofia kwenu."Come.Okonkwo was sitting on a goatskin already eating his first wife's meal. He would now have to make a bigger farm. was marrying a new wife.

Yam."Our father. And so he killed her. a vibrant silence made more intense by the universal trill of a million million forest insects." He threw his head down and gnashed his teeth. And let me tell you one thing. She was saying again and again that Agbala wanted to see his daughter.""They have paid for their foolishness. Sometimes Okonkwo gave them a few yams each to prepare."Mr. Okonkwo's wives had scrubbed the walls and the huts with red earth until they reflected light. and a man who committed it must flee from the land. "I sold the big ones as soon as you left. a debtor. he would use his fists.Ekwefi had suffered a good deal in her life. Neighbors sat around. and in the end Okonkwo overcame his sorrow." He presented the kola nut to them. It told of one sheep out on the hills."After kola nuts had been presented and eaten.

Okonkwo worked on the outside of the wall and the boys worked from within. took the lump of chalk. "How much longer do you think you will live?" she asked. "A child's fingers are not scalded by a piece of hot yam which its mother puts into its palm. One morning three of them came to my house. Later on I sold some of the seed-yams and gave out others to sharecroppers. the tumult increased tenfold. But his mother and his three-year-old sister?? of course she would not be three now. the people of the sky set before their guests the most delectable dishes Tortoise had even seen or dreamed of. "Your wife was at fault. 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. Then came the voices of the egwugwu. "I warned Nwankwo to keep a sharp eye and a sharp ear. He thought of his mother and his three-year-old sister and wept bitterly. This roasted yam soaked in red palm-oil and eaten in the open farm was sweeter than any meal at home.As they trooped through Okonkwo's obi he asked: "Who will prepare my afternoon meal?""I shall return to do it. "We have been sent by this great God to ask you to leave your wicked ways and false gods and turn to Him so that you may be saved when you die. The lizard that jumped from the high iroko tree to the ground said he would praise himself if no one else did. smiled broadly and said to his father: "Do you hear that?" He then said to the others: "He will never admit that I am a good tapper. Maduka vanished into the compound like lightning. and they had quickened their steps.

he was treated with great honor and respect. Okonkwo had begun to sow with the first rains. and it was said that."Ekwefi. Ekwefi and her only daughter."How can I know you. He did not inherit a barn from his father. As soon as she became pregnant she went to live with her old mother in another village. Okonkwo. but achievement was revered. she was dead."I did not know it was you. It was therefore understood that Ekwefi would provide cassava lor the feast.""Nwoye is old enough to impregnate a woman. Earth's emissary. but nothing came out. The two voices disappeared into the thick darkness. pushed back the bolt on his door and ran into Ekwefi's hut. facing the elders. But although Okonkwo was a great man whose prowess was universally acknowledged. Even a man's motherland is strange to him nowadays.

"Ekwefi came out from her hut carrying her oil lamp in her left hand. "But you ought to ask why the drum has not beaten to tell Umuofia of his death. although one of them did not speak Ibo. They had the same style and one saw the other's plans beforehand. There was no barn to inherit. who was the priest of the earth goddess. He walked back to his obi to await Ojiugo's return. He would have liked to return earlier and build his compound that year before the rains stopped. "1 want Okonkwo to answer me. and the smell of burning hair blended with the smell of cooking. in their due proportions. and she was notorious for her late cooking. Very often it was Ezinma who decided what food her mother should prepare. nearly all the osu in Mbanta followed their example. Such a thing could never happen in his fatherland."The body of Odukwe. Ezinma shook every tree violently with a long stick before she bent down to cut the stem and dig out the tuber. That was how Okonkwo first came to know that agbala was not only another name for a woman. and the sands felt like live coals to the feet. 1 know more about the world than any of you. for although nobody else knew it.

" said Okonkwo. The missionaries had come to Umuofia. Some years the harmattan was very severe and a dense haze hung on the atmosphere.Ezinma was still sleeping when everyone else was astir. else it would break and the thousand tiny rings would have to be strung together again. The other four black men were also their brothers. The first people who saw him ran away.As soon as his father walked in. shook hands with Okonkwo and went into the compound. "Our duty is not to blame this man or to praise that. Some of them were not at home and only four came in. white dregs and said. "You are our teacher. Some years the harmattan was very severe and a dense haze hung on the atmosphere." As he looked into the log fire he recalled the name. There were only four titles in the clan. A deep murmur went through the crowd when he said this. and the smallest group had ten lines." said one of the younger men. and at the end it was decided to follow the normal course of action. New yams could not be eaten until some had first been offered to these powers.

We are only his mother's kinsmen. The first cock has crowed. Am I dead? They said I would die if i took care of twins. As the Ibo say: "When the moon is shining the cripple becomes hungry for a walk. Go and see if your father has brought out yams for the afternoon. and stammered. it seeks sympathy in its mother's hut. Okonkwo told him. At first it appeared as if it might prove too great for his spirit.""That is so. They each made nine or ten trips carrying Okonkwo's yams to store in Obierika's barn. looking at Nwakibie's elder son Igwelo with a malicious twinkle in his eye."Is Anasi not in?" he asked them. Age was respected among his people. He held a short staff in his hand which he brought down on the floor to emphasize his points." said Ezinma. anxiety mounted in every heart that heaved on a bamboo bed that night. He was in fact a coward and could not bear the sight of blood."I have kola. He then invited the birds to eat. I have already spoken to you about him.

"Sometimes I wish I had not taken the ozo title. Every market day.- and in this way the cover was strengthened on the wall." They all laughed. And there he stood in his hard shell full of food and wine but without any wings to fly home. suddenly found an outlet. But good men who worshipped the true God lived forever in His happy kingdom. She would want to hear everything that had happened to him in all these years. But he has not come to wake me up in the morning for it. Okonkwo. and when he recovered he seemed to have overcome his great fear and sadness."1 don't know.She had prayed for the moon to rise. "So he must have a wife and all of them must have buttocks. It was a little village called Mbanta. The next morning they were roasted in clay pots and then spread in the sun until they became dry and brittle."How is your father?" Obierika asked." he said. Kiaga's joy was very great. But there is one more question I shall ask you. my daughter.

As soon as the priestess stepped into this ring of hills her voice was not only doubled in strength but was thrown back on all sides."You are right." said Machi. where they were guarded by a race of stunted men."Yes.When the rain finally came. She started to cry."Forgive me. Amalinze was a wily craftsman. and he sought to correct him by constant nagging and beating." said Obierika. You. one of those evil essences loosed upon the world by the potent "medicines" which the tribe had made in the distant past against its enemies but had now forgotten how to control. had asked Ear to marry him. But Tortoise jumped to his feet and asked: Tor whom have you prepared this feast?'"'For all of you. She was very friendly with Ekwefi and they shared a common shed in the market.His anger thus satisfied. His actions were deliberate. the god of the sky. "Life to you. asked her""Remember that if you do not answer truthfully you will suffer or even die at childbirth.

It was even heard in the surrounding villages.Okonkwo knew these things. i have only a short while to live. folded her arms across her breast and sighed. And they began to shoot. Kiaga. Is it right that you. But although Okonkwo was a great man whose prowess was universally acknowledged. It was Chielo.Many people went out with baskets trying to catch them. And although she believed that the iyi-uwa which had been dug up was genuine. with music and dancing and a great feast. But you were rich. he fled to Aninta to escape the wrath of the earth.Unoka. when he had worked on one side of the wall and Ikemefuna and Nwoye on the other."Odukwe was short and thickset. and on her waist four or five rows of jigida. 'but tell me.""They were fools. Okonkwo was clearly cut out for great things.

Some of them were too angry to eat.""I did not know that.Nneka had had four previous pregnancies and child-births.But it was really not true that Okonkwo's palm-kernels had been cracked for him by a benevolent spirit. Many years ago another egwugwu had dared to stand his ground before him and had been transfixed to the spot for two days. He drank palm-wine from morning till night. And so people said he had no respect for the gods of the clan. "Ee-e-e!""We are giving you our daughter today. The young ailing girl who had caused her mother so much heartache had been transformed. It is the kind of action for which the goddess wipes out whole families."Your buttocks said he had a son. He shrugged his shoulders and went away to tap his afternoon palm-wine. Even a man's motherland is strange to him nowadays. Many of these messengers came from Umuru on the bank of the Great River. and he pointed to a man who sat near him with a bowed head. But he has not come to wake me up in the morning for it.. This happened in the rainy season."It should be ready in four days or even three. she returned to her mother's hut to help with the cooking. Now he is no longer my son or your brother.

" said Okonkwo. where he thought they must be." he always said. She slowed down her pace so as to increase the distance between them. But if they thought these things they kept them within themselves. roasting and eating maize. Once upon a time there was a great famine in the land of animals.. They were already far enough where they stood and there was room for running away if any of them should go towards them." said Nwoye's mother. and. "Umuofia kwenu." Okonkwo said. might have noticed that the second egwugwu had the springywalk of Okonkwo. and the women sat on a sisal mat spread on a raised bank of earth."Look at that wall. but they were really talking at the top of their voices.And then the priestess screamed. Ezeudu was the oldest man in this quarter of Umuofia. And then the locusts came. "My son has told me about you.

""Nwoye is old enough to impregnate a woman. She went.In the morning the market place was full. called on Okonkwo in his obi. Ekwefi uttered a scream and sprang to her feet. When they saw it they drove it back to its owner. "So look after him. Dangerous animals became even more sinister and uncanny in the dark. "They had been warned that danger was ahead. But Okagbue said he was not tired yet. and the children who sang songs of welcome to them. where the white men first came many years before and where they had built the center of their religion and trade and government. and the children reveled in the thought of being spoiled by these visitors from the motherland.""Ee-e-e!""This is not the first time my people have come to marry your daughter. else it would break and the thousand tiny rings would have to be strung together again. one saw that there was sorrow and grief there. But it is your turn now. before the first cock-crow. who was the priest of the earth goddess. He asked them for health and children. you and me and all of us.

The new year must begin with tasty. he was repentant. or how. Obiageli. this feeling. They had built their church there. The new year must begin with tasty. To crown it all he had taken two titles and had shown incredible prowess in two inter-tribal wars. They were grieved by the indignity and mourned for their neglected farms. the suitor. I think. Three converts had gone into the village and boasted openly that all the gods were dead and impotent and that they were prepared to defy them by burning all their shrines. It was for this man that Okonkwo worked to earn his first seed yams. the anger on his face was gone. Perhaps he had been going to Mbaino and had lost his way. Only then did she realize. I have only called you together because it is good for kinsmen to meet. machetes."That is the money from your yams. "Whoever has a job in hand. He looked terrible with the smoked raffia "body.

They sat in a half-circle and began to talk of many things. And what made it worse in Okonkwo's case was that he had to support his mother and two sisters from his meagre harvest. This one had only one hand and it carried a basket full of water."There was immediate excitement and those who were sitting jumped to their feet. and Odukwe bent down and touched the earth. My sister lived with him for nine years. the owner of all land. But they soon returned and everyone was gazing at the rag from a reasonable distance. This year they were the wise ones. All else was silent."He sprang to his feet."Those who knew Amadi laughed.That night a bell-man went through the length and breadth of Mbanta proclaiming that the adherents of the new faith were thenceforth excluded from the life and privileges of the clan.But the war that now threatened was a just war. called him by his name and went back to her hut. I implore you.These outcasts. There were many women. She will be a good wife to you. The old man bore no ill will towards Okonkwo. People made way for him on all sides and the noise subsided.

boomed the hollow metal. But it was impossible to refuse Ezinma anything.Go-di-di-go-go-di-go. The women had come to the church with empty waterpots. The children stood in the darkness outside their hut watching the strange event. because her father had called her one evening and said to her: "There are many good and prosperous people here. He ate a few more pieces of plaintain and pushed the dish aside. "We have men of high title and the chief priests and the elders. It ate rats in the house and sometimes swallowed hens' eggs. but inwardly they were happy for what they took to be their own foresight. and Okeke says we should pretend not to see. And there were again only three. and passed the disc over to his guest. When he died this morning.She had prayed for the moon to rise. But I can trust you. His body rattled like a piece of dry stick in his empty shell. But it is not our custom to debar anyone from the stream or the quarry. she prayed a thousand times. And if the clan did not exact punishment for an offense against the great goddess. The thick mat was thrown over both.

Ezinma was always surprised that her mother could lift a pot from the fire with her bare hands. "We have men of high title and the chief priests and the elders."No. I did not send her away. He led it on a thick rope which he tied round his wrist. and none of them died. 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. Are you deaf?" Okonkwo roared at her. Tortoise looked down from the sky and saw his wife bringing things out. who then unrolled the goatskin which he carried under his arm. He could return to the clan after seven years. Ekwefi hurried to the main footpath and turned left in the direction of the voice. "Welcome. but not overmuch. fifth and sixth years. "1 want Okonkwo to answer me. then. He played on the ogene. She went. a long and thin strip of cloth wound round the waist like a belt and then passed between the legs to be fastened to the belt behind. but he had not expected he would be so generous.

" replied Okonkwo.""We have seen it. "That boy calls you father. tangled hair. We live in peace with our fellows to honor our great goddess of the earth without whose blessing our crops will not grow. somewhat indulgently. It was unbelievable. Everyone was puzzled. and allowed a brief pause.One day a neighbor called Okoye came in to see him. Ezinma went deeper and deeper and the crowd went with her. they take new names for the occasion. It was an angry. "Your wrestling the other day gave me much happiness. which were black with soot. A great evil has come upon their land as the Oracle had warned."The village has outlawed us. yams of the old year were all disposed of by those who still had them. They can steal your cloth from off your waist in that market. the top one."And it died this morning?"Okonkwo said yes.

I implore you. and when there was no work to do he sat in a silent half-sleep." the medicine man told Okonkwo in a cool. Okoye said the next half a dozen sentences in proverbs. How could such a man be a follower of Christ?"He needs Christ more than you and I. The interpreter explained each verse to the audience. "Poor child.All the umunna were invited to the feast. Okonkwo's house was on the way to the stream. The crowd wondered who would throw the other this year."What is iyi-uwa?" she asked in return. "You are not a stranger in Umuofia.""The Earth cannot punish me for obeying her messenger. Okonkwo's youngest wife.That was the kind of story that Nwoye loved.He is fit to be a slave. The fire did not burn with a flame. He was a wealthy farmer and had two barns full of yams. He accepted the half-full horn from his brother and drank it.""Some people say the Oracle warned him that he would fall off a palm tree and kill himself." said Ezinma at last.

But after a while this custom was stopped because it spoiled the peace which it was meant to preserve. the distance they had covered. And so when he called Ikemefuna to fetch his gun. 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. but he had never yet come across them. They sang the latest song in the village:" If I hold her handShe says. "If a man comes into my hut and defecates on the floor. It throbbed in the air. We have heard stories about white men who made the powerful guns and the strong drinks and took slaves away across the seas. a debtor. They guarded the prison. Fortunately. Her heart jumped painfully within her."At last the great day came and Tortoise was the first to arrive at the meeting place." Ezinma said.Okonkwo knew these things."Ekwefi. It was for this man that Okonkwo worked to earn his first seed yams. Now and then a cold shiver descended on his head and spread down his body. Violent deaths were frequent. Once she tripped up and fell.