Chapter 16

Finally some comedic relief. The funniest part of the book is when the interpreter for the missionary is talking to the village of Mbanta and speaks so that when he tries to say myself he is really saying the Umuofian word for my butt. That's pretty funny. Obierika makes another visit to Okonkwo to ask about Nwoye and his conversion to Christianity. It seems as though Okonkwo has erased the memory of Nwoye because he will not talk about his son, but his wife tells the story. Six missionaries came to the village and spole of Christianity and called the gods of Umuofia false. The crowd basically laughs out loud at the missionaries because they can't understand some of the things that the missionaries are saying to them such as the Trinity, how God had a son without a wife, etc... After a while the whole crowd just leaves They start singing songs about God and Okonkwo joins with the other villagers and believes these men are nuts. Nwoye on the other hand likes what he is hearing and is comforted by the words. I don't know if Nwoye is really into what the missionaries are saying, or if he is just looking for a few answers and thinks that Christianity holds the key, if he is looking for a way to get out of his father's grasp and go looking at what else the world has to offer. You have to pretty much see this coming. I knew from the get go that if anything presented an escape to Nwoye that he would take it because he couldn't stand his father. I wonder what will become of the rest of Okonkwo's family after this.