Decent information being shared today about the first 6 chapters of the novel. Make sure you have read through chapter 12 for tomorrow.
For this evening please read the following proverb and respond to the questions below it. Remember that a proverb is a saying that often guides principals especially in this Igbo village. If you do not know what benevolent means, LOOK IT UP!
"Those whose palm-kernels were cracked for them by a benevolent spirit should not forget to be humble." - Okonkwo's arrogance in calling Osugo a "woman" at the meeting of the people. p. 26.
Is Okonkwo himself humble? Why or why not? Who is the most humble character in the book? What relationship does humble have with femininity and death? How does this go with the idea of Chi?
18 comments:
I don't think Okonkwo is very humble, himself. I think he is typically a hot-headed, strong man. I believe the old man of the tribe (I can't remember his name) is the most humble character. He teaches people that you should not get yourself all wrapped up over small things. Humbleness has a relationship with femininity because the women in the story are typically more humble than the men. Humbleness also has a relationship with death, because when people are about to die, they are generally humble. I believe this goes hand in hand with the idea of Chi, as well as karma. Basically, you get in what you put in. If you are humble throughout your life, humbleness will come your way.
Cody Dykes
"Those whose palm-kernels were cracked for them by a benevolent spirit should not forget to be humble." - Okonkwo's arrogance in calling Osugo a "woman" at the meeting of the people. p. 26.
I think that Okonkwo is the least humble person in the whole book. There is no body that is as hot headed as him. He beat's his wives/children all the time, and that's not humble. I think the most humble person is Okonkwo's friend (the one that he goes over to in Chp. 8). He' seems very wise and laid back. Those are very humble qualities. I think that humble has a small role in chi. I think that its neutral though.
Okonkwo is far from the word humble. He is very out spoken about how good he thinks he is. The most humble charcter in the book is Okonkwos dad. Because in the book females are less out spoken and usually dont say much. And usually when there is a death people are usually humble when it comes to things like that. This goes along with chi because if some are to humble then your shi is off same with not humble enough. There has to be a steady balance.
Okonkwo is not humble at all. He is very arrogant and full of himself. He's kind of like the dick of the whole tribe. I think that his father was more humlble than him because he was in touch with himself. Although, when Ike died Okonkwo started to become humble because he showed his feelings. Humbleness and the femininity of the book are similar because women tend to be more humble. Usually when you are dieing you become more humble and nice because you dont want to go. Okonkwo might regret his life when he is dieing because he might feel remorse for being mean.
Okonkwo is the least humble individual in this book, (at least until Part II). The proverb is quote a simple and common-sense one. You should be humble when a nice person does something good for you. Okonkwo was arrogant and extremely ungrateful. Although, I do believe he was grateful for his loan of the seed-yams, it didn't turn him into a more grateful person. I would say the most humble character in the book up to part I is Obierka, who often tells Okonkwo what he does wrong and give him sagely advice. I would say that humbleness would be identified as a feminine aspect of chi as the masculine tends to be more selfish, violent and vulgar. However, I do not think humility is in any way a bad thing, as we all should be humble with the things we are able to have, and after-all, humility allows us to appreciate things better.
Okonkwo is not humble at all, rather he is almost an antithesis of humble entirely. He scolds his children and wives for doing honest mistakes, he beats them for doing acts that people should never be beaten for (ex: his wife's taking of banana leaves off of his tree to wrap food in), and he is simply too obsessed with the idea of being a seemingly omnipotent masculine force. He, like I had explained yesterday, is the epitome of imbalance along with his father, whom he tries to be so much different from.
Like Dan, I think that the eldest man of the village is the most humble. Rather, him or Nwoye. I am split in decision. The eldest man, Ezeudu, has umpteen years of wisdom that he imparts onto his fellow folk. He specifically warns Okonkwo not to kill Ikemefuna because he was attached to him; presumably, Ezeudu knew that in killing Ikemefuna Okonkwo would have felt regret and remorse.
Of course, Okonkwo dismisses said warning and kills the boy anyway. Dick.
I think that Nwoye is also a very humble character, for he is just doing what his father tells him and still oft gets punished for it. He develops a very large heart for Ikemefuna and as such, when the latter was killed so too was a party of Nwoye. I think that's a very rare thing for a man to feel in Umuofia, especially for the son of Okonkwo to feel such a feminine emotion.
"Those whose palm-kernels were cracked for them by a benevolent spirit should not forget to be humble." - Okonkwo's arrogance in calling Osugo a "woman" at the meeting of the people. p. 26.
I don't think that okonkwo is a good person. I think he deserves to be beaten. He makes his wives do all this work and he does nothing. He also beats his kids. I agree with Dan that the old man is the most humble character. He stresses that the little things in life matter. I think that those little things in life can turn into big problems. I think okonkwo not being humble has a lot to do with his masculine chi. He has to much of a masculine chi and needs to learn how to control it. Which is the cause of all of his abusiveness too.
Along with what everyone said before me, I agree that Okonkwo is not a humble person what-so-ever. Okonkwo is so infatuated with the idea of not being like his father, that he is willing to even be volgure to everyone around him. I believe that the eldest man in the tribe is the most humble because he is so wise and down to earth. He offers throughout the story much advice to Okonkwo. For example he wisely told Okonkwo not to kill ikemefuna, and Okonkwo is hot-headed and refuses to listen to these words of advice. The relationship humbleness has to do with feminity because like the tribe, as well as society today, to show emoitions is a womens job because it is considered feminine. To be a man it is to show no emotion and strong and fearless. Death also has to deal with being humble, because when people are close to death, it is then that it hits them how much they took things in life for granted and it is then that they are truely humbled. This goes hand and hang with the idea of Chi because if you are humble throughout your life it is believed that there will be good karma in return.
rachel duelo.
I think that Okonkwo tries to be humble, but his actions do not help him with doing so. I think the most humble character in the book is Okonkwo's daughter, Ezinma.
She is nice to everyone and tries her best to do her best. I think that sence she is a female and we think of them to be more humble is why the author did this. Okonkwo being more masculine lacks in this trait. I think that the more humble a person is the better chi they have. Ezinma has great chi, while on the other side Okonkwo's chi is become very negative.
okonkwo overall i would say is not humble. that is, until he has to kill ike. that struck a chord with okonkwo so deep, that he finally displayed his emotion outward. it made him re-evaluate himself, and think of who he is. in my mind, the most humble character is the eldest man in the village, because he outwardly shows respect and compassion for others, unlike okonkwo. humble is associated with femininity, because it requires outwardly displayed emotion, not just towards yourself, and shows a crack in your tough spirit, which can weaken you concluding in weak fighting. the chi cannot therefore be balanced if you are all man, and not woman. rendering the idea of being a tough man in their culture useless.
I do not think Okonkwo is humble at all. I think that he is a man who is looked upon as very strong and he takes advantage of that. People view Okonkwo as a strong leader, and that all gets to his head. Okonkwo beats his wife's and children and that isn't humble at all. I think the most humble character in the book is Okonkwo's friend at the beginning who he shares the cola nut with.
"Those whose palm-kernels were cracked for them by a benevolent spirit should not forget to be humble." - Okonkwo's arrogance in calling Osugo a "woman" at the meeting of the people. p. 26.
Is Okonkwo himself humble? Why or why not? Who is the most humble character in the book? What relationship does humble have with femininity and death? How does this go with the idea of Chi?
I think Okwonko is not humble and is a terrible person. For one he beats his kids. Right there is enough reason for him to be thought of as a bad person. He does not do any work either. His 3 wives do everything for him. Okwonko not being humble has to do with masculine chi I think. A lot of men are not as humble as women. Overall I think Okwonkos dad unoko is a much better person than him even if he owes people a lot.
Okonkwo is not a very humble person at all. He is very full of himself and basically doesnt care about ayone but himself. He thinks he has to be the strongest and toughest guy around when really he doesnt. I think that Okonkwos father is a very humble person in the book. He although owes a lot to people, knows who he is and never hurts anyone. He lives life how he wants to and is a very relaxed person. I think these are reasons that show he is a humble person. Being humble has to do with femininity because in general woman are more humble then men. They are more generous and caring. they arent always focused on their figure in life and mostly know who they are and how they want to live life. Although Woman arent given much apreciation and notice in the book, they are still more humble them men.
I think that Okonkwo is not a humble person. He is always acting hot headed. He makes all his wives do all of the work around the house. That is not how a humble person acts. I think Okonkwos dad is the most humble person in the story. If a person is more humble then they will have better chi. So if you are humble during your life you will always have good chi.
In no way is okonkwo humble. He is arrogent and self-centered. He thinks that just because he grew alot of yams that he didnt get help along the way. I think the most humble character thus far is the old village leader. He has been around and seen many things and this has caused him to be wise. Being wise goes almost hand and hand with humble because the wiser you are the more humble you are as well. This has to do with being feminine because it has more in common with femine chii than with the warrior and strong-willed masculine chi. This goes good with hi because you can either be too humble or not humble enough which can cause you bad chi. But if your humbleness is balanced with everything else then your chi will be good.
Tom Hall
"Those whose palm-kernels were cracked for them by a benevolent spirit should not forget to be humble." - Okonkwo's arrogance in calling Osugo a "woman" at the meeting of the people. p. 26.
Okonkwo is clearly not humble from the way he is patrayed in the book. He is so concerd on being nothing like his father, that he will step on anyones toes, just to be this perfect image he has in his head. He doesn't treat anyone with the right respect they deserve. I would say the most humble character in the book would be Ezeudu because he is the oldest man in Umuofia and is very wise. He tried to give advice to Oknokwo before the killing of Ikemefuna. He seems wise to me because he has been through a lot in life. If you are a huble person in life, you have a good chi. Better things will happen to you in your life and it will be more rewarding. Being humble goes a long way i believe.
Oknokwo is the complete opposite of humble, he is so arrogant and into his own well-being. The proverb stated is very hypocritical and arrogant towards Okonkwo, because he it's something that he should be following these words of wisdom and, and yet he does the complete opposite. Okonkwo is very powerful, and he knows it and and he liked to flaunt and show off his power to the village. He treats not only his own wives and children, but village members around him like they are below him and he is up on a pedastool. His father was the one who was benevolent, and Okonkwo lives his life completely to be the most unlike his father that he can, hen in acutality he should be following the humble characteritics that his father displayed. The most humble character in the book is the oldest man in their village because he is wise and willing to help others when they are in need. When he told Okonkwo not to kill Ikemefuna because he was like a son to him, Okonkwo turned around and did it anyways and regreted it very much. Being humble in their village is what many of the woman portray because they don't have a lot of power, so they really don't have any reason to be arrogant about anything. It seems to be in their village that being humble, only leads you to less power and eventually a closer death because having more power means that you are going to be a lot more arrogant and into yourself like Okonkwo is. Your chi, or your energy should be balanced to be more successful in their village, so being more feminine wit your chi means that you need to be more humble with your words and your ways to balance the chi and keep up your successful ways.
I think the Okonkwo is the most hunble. It showed how he went though a lot when he was younger. From that he has grown up and made something out of himself. I truly think thats amazing when you grow up with having nuthing and when you are you parents age you have eveything. He has his own family and is ahead of his village. most people wouldnt be able to handle that stuff but to him its a evey day thing. Yes he has his bad time but eveyone one does.
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