Tuesday, October 13, 2015

Things Fall Apart-

0.  Summarize your reading so far, and name the main characters and provide a small description of each.

1.  Journal- find 5 proverbs or sayings from Things Fall Apart.

2.  Let's make a list.

3.  Let's figure out what they mean and why they mean what they mean.

4.  Next essay discussion.

5.  HW-  Reading and....




Okonkwo-  Main Character-  Violent, Alpha Male
Unoka-   O’s dad, lazy, drunk, music, in debt.  He’s shameful to O, who is a proud, self made man who cares about appearances.
Nwoye-  O’s son.  Like O’s dad, a little.
Ikemefuna-  Foster son.
Ekwefi- second wife-  always in trouble with O


Saying:

If a child washes his hands, he can eat with kings (8)

What:  If a person cleans up his act, he is the same as a King.
Why:  Kings are seen as above children, but really, when a person washes his or her hands and takes care of what needs to be taken care of, they are the same as a King and are able to sit down and eat with kings as equals.


When the moon is shining, the cripple becomes hungry for a walk. (10)

What:  when times are good, those who can’t do things wish they could.
Why-  Moonlight shining is a good thing.  People walk and play in the moonlight in Okonkwo’s culture.  People who are infirm or otherwise unable to have fun wish they could do the things they used to do.  If one is disabled, that person wishes they could walk again.  In a very abstract sense, this means that we all miss the things we’ve lost.


Looking at a King’s mouth, one would never think he sucked at his mom’s breast. (17) (26)
What-  Kings seem so elevated and regal and are so revered that it’s hard to imagine they came from the same beginning as anyone else.
Why:   Words come from a King’s mouth, and those words are to be obeyed.  In other words, the King’s rule is law, and a King is above everyone else in that he makes the rules.  But, when one thinks about a King, one realizes He, also, had the same beginning as everyone else, despite his current greatness.  So, in some way, Kings are no different from any other person.

A man who pays respect to the greats paves the way for his own.
A toad does not run in the daytime for nothing.


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