Brennan Shin
10-13-16
Ms. Hume
English II
Ikemefuna
It has been 3 years since I have been living in my father Okonkwo’s household. I have grown close to the family and especially close with my brother, Nwoye. I believe that since my arrival Okonkwo has been more pleased with Nwoye; he has been more inclined to take masculine tasks ever since the first month of my arrival. Although Nwoye has been more pleased with father’s attention, I have noticed that his eyes look off into the distance and shut out father’s voice when he shares tales of bloodshed and stories of battle. I would hear Nwoye at night whispering his mother’s folktales about the tortoise and his wily ways, and of the bird eneke-nti-oba who challenged the whole world to a wrestling match. Whenever we worked around the house and Nwoye’s mother sang songs, I would look at Nwoye as he closed his eyes and rocked himself back and forth to the beat of his mother’s hums. Whenever father comes to check up on us, Nwoye would immediately open his eyes and quickly work. He would say, “Mother! Quiet down, you are distracting ikemefuna and me. Do you see any children here? There is no need for such childish folktales." I could hear the fierceness in his words, but I could not see the fierceness in his expression or eyes. My father would be pleased with my brother’s remarks, for he believed that if Nwoye was more masculine, he would make a great man of the house when my father joins the ancestors.
After a long day of working on the wall and catching locusts, my brother, my father and I were drinking copious amounts of palm-wine. Nwoye and I have been challenging each other as to who has finished more of the wall. Nwoye said that I would have done more if I weren't so tired all the time.
I retorted, “I wouldn’t be so tired if you didn’t hum mother’s songs all night long.” My father shot Nwoye a look of disapproval.
My father got up from his seat when Ogbuefi Ezeudu came in. “Ogbeufi my elder, what brings you here? Please join us in our meal.”
Ogbeufi said, “No, I am not here for a meal Okonkwo, I am here to speak with you.” Ogbeufi said as he looked at me. “Let us talk outside”, he said as he was still watching me.
As soon as the two men shuffled out of the room Nwoye asked, “What do you think he wants with father?” he said with wide eyes,
“I don’t know” I answered. But I had a gut feeling it had something to do with me.
I retorted, “I wouldn’t be so tired if you didn’t hum mother’s songs all night long.” My father shot Nwoye a look of disapproval.
My father got up from his seat when Ogbuefi Ezeudu came in. “Ogbeufi my elder, what brings you here? Please join us in our meal.”
Ogbeufi said, “No, I am not here for a meal Okonkwo, I am here to speak with you.” Ogbeufi said as he looked at me. “Let us talk outside”, he said as he was still watching me.
As soon as the two men shuffled out of the room Nwoye asked, “What do you think he wants with father?” he said with wide eyes,
“I don’t know” I answered. But I had a gut feeling it had something to do with me.
The next day while working, my father told me that I will be taken home.
I was immediately shocked with joy, “Back to Mbaino? Back to my mother and sister?” I asked. My father gave a slight nod with a stern and stoic face.
I couldn’t contain my joy as I leaped towards him and wrapped my arms around him. “Ikemefuna!” he said in a surprised but stern manner. He shoved me away and told me to get back to work. I did not mind his shove for I was too happy to care.
I was immediately shocked with joy, “Back to Mbaino? Back to my mother and sister?” I asked. My father gave a slight nod with a stern and stoic face.
I couldn’t contain my joy as I leaped towards him and wrapped my arms around him. “Ikemefuna!” he said in a surprised but stern manner. He shoved me away and told me to get back to work. I did not mind his shove for I was too happy to care.
The next morning nine men dressed in clothing as if ready to travel to a nearby village greeted my father and me. They made me carry a clay pot filled with wine. We started to walk out of the compound and into the outskirts of the forest. All I could see was green, and a dirt trail that seemed to wind on for eternity. The men talked about their wives and ridiculed some effeminate men who refused to go out with them. As the hours passed and the sun has risen to its peak, we encountered a road that was wide enough to fit two people. My father told me to lead out of everyone. Everyone went silent when we started to walk on this road. I had an eerie and ominous feeling that was stuck at the bottom of my stomach. I continued to walk and heard footsteps behind me. The silence, the thickness of the forest, and the breath of the man behind me started to make me anxious. I decided it was ok because I trust my father. I was never close to my real father, but Okonkwo, I trust.
I started to think about my 3 year old sister, no, 6 year old sister. She must be very big by now, is her smile still the same? Does she even remember me? I then began to ponder about how my mother might react when she sees me. How she would yelp in excitement and hug me. I played this image in my head on repeat.
As we continued to walk on the path, my thoughts were interrupted by the man behind me who was clearing his throat. I looked back, “Keep walking” the man growled. The way the man looked at me sent a shiver down my spine. I then realized I haven’t seen my father in the last hour, why was he at the rear of the group? I heard a loud unsheathing of a machete behind me. When I looked back, the man who barked at me cut into my right shoulder as I dropped the pot of wine. Clutching my right shoulder in pain, I ran to my father. “My father, they have killed me!” I exclaimed. Looking at him for help as I kneeled in front of him. When I looked up into my father’s eyes, I could see a soft and fond expression on his face. He unsheathed his machete and brought it up over his head. I could feel tears streaming down my face as I realized what was to come of my fate. The last thing I saw was my father bringing his machete down upon me.
Bibliography
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“I have noticed that his eyes look off into the distance and shuts out father’s voice when he shares tales of bloodshed and stories of battle”
ReplyDeleteBrennan examines the relationship between Nwoye and Ikemefuna, and the ways in which Ikemefuna picks up on Nwoye’s nuances and subtleties that he gives away when he hears his father speak about war and bloodshed. Ikemefuna gets to know Nwoye in no way that anyone has before, and accepts him for his nonviolent ways. He is extremely perceptive and receives Nwoye in a way that Okonkwo never has. Ikemefuna does not care that Nwoye is not overtly masculine; Nwoye is a brother to Ikemefuna nonetheless. Brennan’s story highlights the way that Ikemefuna seamlessly blends into Okonkwo’s family, making his death even more shocking and painful. Brennan’s story made me feel like Ikemefuna was an old friend, and I could really empathize with Nwoye as well. I understood the way Nwoye felt towards Ikemefuna: admiration and brotherly love, and I saw the slightly protective nature of Ikemefuna towards Nwoye. Ikemefuna did not seem like an outsider at all in Brennan’s story; he seemed like he had been part of the family all along.
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ReplyDeleteI really liked how you focused on Ikemefuna’s personality and thoughts before he died. Previously, we focused a lot on his death and how he died, but I liked how you wrote Ikemefuna feeling like he was a role model and protector of Nowye. You told a very well rounded story because you gave us an insight on who Ikemefuna is and how he thinks as well as telling about how he died.
ReplyDeleteBrennan, your different but captivating version of Ikemefuna’s encounter with family and death was incredible. So far, four of our peers have written about Ikemefuna’s death, and yours was one that especially stood out. Your character seemed authentic and not over characterized; it seemed as if I could relate to Ikemefuna on a deeper level. Great work!
ReplyDeleteI was interested in how Nwoye treated his mother differently when his Okonkwo was around. I found it heartbreaking that Ikemefuna imagined his mother’s reaction to him right before he died. Also, I liked the quick switch from peace to violence and that Ikemefuna did not realize where he was being taken until the very end.
ReplyDeleteProofread comment: Your narrative structure helped to make the storyline more compelling, complex, and resounding. I really liked that you starting with a story of an evening conversation between Okonkwo, Nwoye, and Ikemefuna, as it immediately established their family dynamic: while there are tensions and underlying conflicts between the three of them, Okonkwo is a father figure to both Nwoye and Ikemefuna. These intitial stories conveyed the normality of their relationship, which, when Ikemefuna was killed by Okonkwo just moments later, made the betrayal all the more painful and shocking. By presenting this initial family dynamic, you demonstrate that Okonkwo had seemed to grow fond of Ikemefuna, leading the reader to be surprised at Okonkwo’s final actions and truly illustrating the idea that Ikemefuna is blindsided by Okonkwo’s violence instead of just writing in words that he was surprised or hurt. In this sense, I think that your narrative structure helped to enrich the piece significantly, and I really enjoyed it!
ReplyDeleteI believe the way that the author focused in on Nwoye and Ikemefuna’s relationship, creating anecdotes about their exchanges that were not included in the book, added a lot of depth to the relationship of these two brothers. The exchanges that he created between the two of them showed a deep understanding of the characters in Things Fall Apart, and made them really come alive as people. I was confused by Okonkwo’s “soft and fond expression” when he brought down the machete on his adopted son, but I think that the explanation of his tenderness definitely made sense.
ReplyDeleteThe story is very detailed and includes both facts from Things Fall Apart and more details from the mind of Ikemefuna. The reader gets a good glimpse of what is running through Ikemefuna’s head before and during the walk to his death. Every part of the story was written in great detail and left the reader with no questions. The paragraph describes the difference in the relationships between Nwoye, to Okwonko, and his family. A quote that struck me was “The last thing I saw was my father bringing his machete down upon me.”
ReplyDeleteThe dramatic change between Ikemefuna’s emotions, actions, and tone of thought the moment he is informed of his return home and the moment he discovers his true destiny is illustrated in a way that brings forth great emotion in the reader. The sudden reversal of emotion takes the reader on an emotional journey. “I couldn’t contain my joy as I leaped towards him and wrapped my arms around him,” verses, “I could feel tears streaming down my face as I realized what was to come of my fate.”
ReplyDelete