Marcela Becerra
Ms. Hume
English II
October 17 2016
Obiageli ( Okonkwo’s daughter)
The seven years of my father’s exile were drawing to a close. Relief and pleasure were more and more common in my father’s face as the date drew nearer. I had watched my father’s sorrow when we moved here, and his regret as the years passed. To him it was a tragedy, time lost and wasted. I was only a child when we were cast out of our father's land because of the crimes he committed against our kinsmen; this is the home that I remember, the home that feels comforting and familiar. I have friends and family here, my life is here, but I will leave it, because the opinions of a daughter are not to be voiced or heard. 
In preparation for our departure, we must provide a feast to thank our father’s mother’s kinsmen, and Okonkwo wishes to make it a grand feast. It is the job of the women to provide food like fish, palm-oil, and pepper, as well as harvesting the cassava tuber. Ekwefi, Ezinma and I rose very early one morning and carried our tools to the farm. The harvest would not take very long, for it had rained the night before and the the soil had been softened.
Ezinma had begun to complain about the leaves dripping onto her back and wetting her. She disliked the water, I called her “salt” because of it, as if she was afraid that she would dissolve.
Despite her complaints, Ezinma worked diligently and without hesitation. It is these characteristics in her that made Okonkwo so fond of her. I was not blind; I could see that our father prefered my sister; he even preferred her over his sons, which is a rarity. Ezinma understands our father in ways that none of his other children do. I think this is why she seems so much older than I; she understands the goals and values of our father, the leader of our family, and often helps me understand them. I remember her telling me that we had to wait until we returned to our fatherland before getting married, even though there were already men that were interested in marrying us here, in our motherland. Our father had told her this and she had understood it, agreed with it. I am not so quick, I have always had trouble understanding our father’s actions, as many of my siblings do, but it is not my place to question my father’s authority .
In a week's time my family will return to Umuofia and Ezinma and I will marry shortly thereafter. I have faith that Ezinma always be wise, she will chose a good husband and carry capable children. She will be the greatest that a woman can be. I am less sure about myself and my fate. I will follow the same path but it may lead me somewhere different, time can only tell if it is better or worse. I am not as strong or smart as Ezinma but I am Okonkwo’s daughter and all of Okonkwo children can find strength in Umuofia. 
Sources:
http://www.randafricanart.com/African_maternity_figures_various_people.html
Marcella, I especially enjoyed how you used Obiagelli's point of view to really accentuate Enzinma's characteristics. Certain anecdotes really make the relationship clear between the two characters. I really enjoyed this story.
ReplyDeleteI admire how this story offers a view of Ezinma as the one who gives in to Okonkwo's wishes and commands, while Obiageli is portrayed as the daughter who, though she does not show it, has ideas and wishes that counter those of her father. In this way, this story allows Ezinma to be seen as weaker than Obiageli in that she succumbs to her father's demands without hesitation or second thought, while Obiageli tends to lean towards wishing to go against her father. This portrayal of the two daughters is contrary to the way they seem to be portrayed in Things Fall Apart, in which Ezinma is described to be the stronger and more masculine of the two. This story discusses an emotional and mental component behind the two daughters' actions that Things Fall Apart lacks, leading to varying illustrations of the girls between this story and Things Fall Apart.
ReplyDeleteWhen Obaigeli talks about her inferiority to her sister, it brings an aura of sadness and confusion to the story. I enjoyed this because it made me realize the maturity of Obaigeli. Viewing yourself as inferior disrupts the story of Okonkwo with an opposite point of view.
ReplyDeleteMarcela-I enjoyed the relationship you developed in your story between Obiageli and Ezinma. I thought you effectively portrayed a relationship of jealousy but also respect. Obiageli respects her sister’s wisdom believes she will make a good wife. Also, I liked this new perspective of one of Okonkwo’s daughters who grew up in his motherland and felt like it was their home.
ReplyDeleteWhile reading your story, I was particularly struck by the narrative structure you used for the first paragraph- you started with several sentences describing Okonkwo’s life events, opinions, priorities, and grievances, which immediately established that his feelings were considered the most important, and then, in the last section of the first paragraph, the narrator (Okonkwo’s daughter) expressed her own opinions on her homeland and the town she was leaving. I thought that, by starting the paragraph with details about Okonkwo’s life and preferences, you clearly expressed the different roles within Obiageli’s family; her father’s opinion, both literally and figuratively, comes first, while hers is trated like an inconsequential afterthought. Overall, your narrative structure helped to start the piece off with a strong statement on the cultural norms Obiageli is living with.
ReplyDelete