Close Reading Questions- Things Fall Apart

Tomorrow, April 23, 2013 we will have a grand coversation on all things Things Fall Apart. PLease be prepared by having answers to these twn questions answered in brief. We will all engage in discussion. No late questions are excepted. Essay topics are also distributed. 1. Why is it significant that the novel begins with a comparison between Okonkwo and his father? HOw is Okonkwo's death similar to that of his father's legacy? 2. What is the relationship betwen Okonkwo and his son Nwoye? Restate the epiphany Okonkwo has when gazing into the fire. How could this converse relationship be applied to other parent children relationships? 3. Why are the first converts to Christianity the outcast, the doubters, and the relatively poor and downtrodden? Why is this significant. 4. There is an important proverb that can be applied to Things Fall Apart and any other society in decline-- a strong fire often starts with weak sticks. Explain how this proverb is appropriate? 5.How is Okonkwo ironically like his father? 6. Does Okonkwo fight for his way of life? 7. Is it a sin to be stubborn? 8. Is Okonkwo a hero for rejecting white religion and colonization or a coward for killing himself? 9. Is compromise the same as "selling out"? 10. Why does the village not really notice when Okonkwo returns?