Things Fall Apart Chapter 11 - 15
On a new moon night, a recovered Ezinma and Ekwefi are interrupted from their nightly ritual of storytelling by the voice of the Oracle, Chielo. Her chants cut through the night and instill fear in Ekwefi’s mind, who hides Ezinma in the hut when she hears Chielo asking Okonkwo about Ezinma. Ekwefi goes out into the compound and learns that Chielo has come to take Ezinma to the caves as Agbala has called for her. Ekwefi attempts to dissuade Chielo by telling her that it is far too late in the night and that she would bring Ezinma to the Oracle the following morning. Chielo ignores Ekwefi and collects Ezinma from the hut on her own, and sets out towards the caves with Ezinma on her back. Ekwefi hears Chielo’s chants fade away as she leaves the house, and the scared woman musters the courage to defy the oracle as she is afraid of something bad happening to her daughter. Okonkwo acts as if he isn’t worried, and lets Ekwefi follow the Oracle on her own.
Ekwefi follows the Oracle from a distance although the Oracle shouts curses at her as she realizes that she is being followed. The Oracle descends into the caves with Ezinma but Ekwefi can’t muster the courage to enter that prohibited place and so she decides to wait for Ezinma at the mouth of the cave. Her wait is soon interrupted by a presence behind her, which turns out to be Okonkwo. The two parents wait together outside the cave, and Ekwefi recalls the time she had fallen in love with Okonkwo. Chielo comes out of the cave as the sun begins to rise, and hands Ezinma back to the waiting parents without expressing any surprise at their presence. Okonkwo’s family is supposed to be participating in a ceremony related to Obierika’s daughter’s wedding, but Ekwefi and Ezinma are far too tired from their night’s sojourn. Okonkwo is similarly tired, although he never reveals that he had made several trips to the caves of the oracle the previous night as he had been quite worried about Ezinma. Obierkia’s future son-in-law impresses the villagers of Umuofia as he sends nearly fifty pots of palm wine for his bride and her relatives.
Obierika’s daughter departs to remain with the groom's family for several market weeks, and the village becomes occupied with another event. Okonkwo learns that one of the most venerated elders of the village has passed away. The villagers mark his death with canons and drums, while the people of the village dance, gnash their machetes, and fire their guns to mark his passing. The village ancestors, the venerated Egwugwu, honor the elder by coming to pay respect to his mortal remains. Okonkwo’s rusted gun misfires so that he accidentally kills the deceased man’s sixteen-year-old son. He understands the meaning of his transgression as he prepares to leave all his holdings behind that very night. Okonkwo has been exiled from the village for spilling the blood of a clan member but his crime is of the female nature as it was committed accidentally, so he can return to the village after 7 years. Obierika and the others help Okonkwo’s family prepare for their departure in the middle of the night. The next morning, the deceased boy’s family destroys Okonkwo’s compound, and Obierika aids them though none of them are doing it out of malevolence. They are only actually following the tradition and trying to please the gods.
Okonkwo goes to his motherland, Mbanta, where he is kindly received by the eldest member of his maternal family, Uchendu, Okonkwo’s mother’s younger brother. Okonkwo begins the slow process of rebuilding his life, but he finds himself growing despondent. The labor that he had once enjoyed so thoroughly no longer brought him the same pleasure. He began to doubt his personal god, his chi, as he began to believe that his actions had no true impact on his fate. Uchendu observes this change in Okonkwo and sets aside an opportunity to speak to him. He explains his feelings by talking about the meaning of a common name among their people, Nneka, which translates to mean “Mother is Supreme.” Uchendu explains that a mother is the ultimate source of comfort and that children turn to their mothers in the most difficult circumstances. He reassures Okonkwo that he is welcome in his motherland and that his family will help him rebuild so that he can return to Umuofia as a more able man.
Okonkwo grows very fond of his uncle, and he soon receives a guest from Umuofia, Obierika. Okonkwo introduces his friend to Uchendu, and the two begin to talk about how much more travel there had been between villages in the past. Obierika brings several bags of cowries for Okonkwo, which is the money he earned by selling Okonkwo’s yams. Obierika tells both Uchendu and Okonkwo about the disastrous events that led to Mbanta’s population being annihilated. Abame was a neighboring village, and the people had killed a visiting white man when their Oracle had told them that the man would bring disaster upon them. Several days later, more white men came to confirm that their comrade had indeed been slain there and then they returned with a large number of soldiers who opened fire on the market square. They killed nearly all the people of Abame, while a few survivors came to shelter in Umuofia. Uchendu criticizes the people of Abame for killing the man when he couldn’t express himself, and Okonkwo criticizes them for being unprepared.
Analysis
In this section of the book, Achebe explores the theme of fate and destiny in more depth as Okonkwo faces a devastating loss. He is forced to abandon the holdings that he has so tirelessly accrued, and the loss occurs not due to any fault of his own but rather an accident. The protagonist journeys to his motherland, but he is faced with the challenge of rebuilding his fortune and reputation, yet he no longer has the vigor of youth. He recalls an earlier saying from the novel, which he had used to explain his success as well as the failure of his father. The saying that the Chi said yes when the man said yes, however, Okonkwo now seems to think that his Chi is saying no, even though he has always said yes. The reader is also introduced to Uchendu in this section, who clarifies the position of the mother in the Igbo culture. In the rest of the novel, the Igbo practices can be categorically seen as being misogynistic and even repressive, however, Uchendu highlights the high status of the woman in Igbo society as a mother.
