DFW Empathy and Human Experience in TEWWG

At first glance there isn’t much connecting a 2005 commencement speech about living an empathetic life and a 1937 novel about a woman going through a journey of self-discovering. Though, through further analysis, the texts complement each other. Both of the text conveys the similar theme of understanding the bigger picture. In a sense that, you can never really know what someone’s feelings or what their intentions are unless you experience them yourself. Wallace explores this idea in his speech by discussing how humans subconsciously assume and make judgement of other individuals without understanding the entire situation. Early on in “Their Eyes Were Watching God”, Janie appears to have an idea of what love is. This idea of love is the gears which move her along her journey of finding true love and self-identity. As the novel concludes with her having an entirely different output of what love is, heavily contrasting her idea of it from the beginning of the novel. Hence mirroring the idea of not truly understanding something without fully experiencing it. A more straightforward example of Wallace’s idea comes in the form of Janie’s experiences with Jody Starks. Jody at first seems like the man that will fulfill Janie’s idea of true love that she had been dreaming of. By initially flattering her and spoiling her, Janie sees Jody as a perfect man for her. Though over time Jody begins to start demoralizing Janie, as well as treating her like an object. Only using her as a means of boosting his reputation and power as mayor with her beauty, instead of loving her and giving her the treatment of someone on the same level as he is. This mirrors Wallace’s discussion on the sub conscience judgment that humans have at first glance, and how the struggle to turn off these automatic assumptions will lead individuals to living a more fulfilling life. Also, a cool connection is between Wallace’s idea of worship consuming us and the character of Jody. As Wallace discusses how we all worship something, and that some people worship power and are consumed by it. A similar idea can be seen in the power-hungry character of Jody, who’s character undergoes negative changes as he acquires more and more power. To conclude, both “Their Eyes Were Watching God” and “This is Water”, discuss the necessity to experiencing events and people before making sub conscious decisions about them.

Introduction and Topic Sentences Paper 2

The personal history of an author can have a significant influence on the way meaning is constructed in his/her writing. Comment on specific instances of such influence in Things Fall Apart.

Chinua Achebe’s post colonialism novel Things fall apart, is heavily influenced from Achebe’s bicultural identity that him and many other Nigerians had after a few generations since the Christian missionaries had arrived. The novel tells the story of an Igbo man named Okonkwo, a very devout man to the Igbo traditions and culture. Conflict arises in the story when the arrival of Christian missionaries threatens the Igbo culture’s survival. Achebe explores the beauty, the flaws as well as the complexity of both of these cultures, in order to assist many Nigerians and himself to come to terms with their bicultural identity heading into an independent Nigeria.

Okonkwo’s character is used as a method to explore the accurate reality of the Igbo culture, prior to the arrival of missionaries.

Okonkwo’s outer conflict against the Christian religion is a representation of Achebe and many other Nigerians’ conflicting cultural identities.

The theme of religion throughout Things fall apart, allows Achebe to compare the similarities and 

differences between the Igbo and Christian culture.

Paper 2 Okonkwo

Children often inherit their values from their parents. Explore to what extent this is true of Okonkwo.

Throughout things fall apart, characters are motivated by the fear of becoming anything like his father, hence they resent anything that resembles their fathers’ values. Chinua Achebe from the beginning of the story creates a flashback to introduce the reader to Okonkwo’s father. Through the imagery of the flashback, and diction of words such as laziness and debt. The reader is given the impression that the Igbo people viewed Okonkwo’s father as a failure. In a culture where work and titles would move you further in life, Okonkwo’s father had nothing. As such Okonkwo given nothing by his father was determined to become everything his father wasn’t, in order to prevail in his society that was devoted to the Igbo culture. Resulting in him resenting anything that his father stood for and valued in his life. Throughout the entirety of the book Okonkwo is consumed in his love of excessive masculinity and resents anything that he deems similar to his father or feminine. This is seen in the abuse of his wives throughout the story including the week of peace and the killing of his adopted son Ikenefuna in order to uphold his masculine principles. Additionally, Achebe metaphorically compares Okonkwo to the raging fire, which is symbolic of masculinity, strength, and power, but it also destructive and violent as well.  This shows how Okonkwo goes to great lengths to maintain his masculine principles, defying everything his father was. Though this extreme masculinity would be Okonkwo’s hamartia, which would lead to his eventual suicide. Ironically dying in an abdominal way like his father did. What is also ironic is the relationship between Okonkwo and Nwoye. Okonkwo throughout the book has immense tension with his son, as Nwoye is represents more feminine attributes than he does masculine. Through this inner conflict in Nwoye he opposes his father and the culture he represents, joining Christianity as it is more adherent to Nwoye. Okonkwo realizes this was in due to fault of his forceful values he placed onto Nwoye in the quote “living fire begets cold incompetent ash”. Nwoye has abandoned the values in which his father espouses. In contextual terms abandoning a culture he deemed as unjust for one he sees as justifying the flaws he sees in the Igbo culture. Such as coming to terms with what his father did to his brother Ikenefuna. In Chinua Achebe’s Things fall apart, characters are motivated by the fear of becoming anything like their father, hence they resent anything that resembles their fathers’ values. Okonkwo strives to revolve his entire life around masculinity, resenting anything feminine which reminds him of his father. Similarly, Nwoye resent the violence and ruthlessness that his father displayed top him and his family.