Responses to Other Blogs...

I commented Sam R. and Lisa's blogs. They seemed to think along the same lines as I did. We all agree that this is a very complex religion and would take many many years to fully understand it. I think we all learned a little bit from this podcast. It certianly was unique and interesting. If we did not learn much about Hinduism we did learn a lot about everyday life.

Sam and I basically felt the exact same way this about podcast. We both thought it was neat how they view life as one big play and how God is the director. I thought that this related to Christianity as well with the whole God and the universe thing he was talking about. I was also confused about the whole hide and seek thing just like Sam.

I liked how Lisa used the Shakespeare quote that was really neat and seemed to really relate. I had not really noticed the whole western and eastern side thing before so I am glad that she wrote about it to refresh my mind. At some points though I really thought that Watts seemed to be rambling on and on about random topics that popped into his head, kind of like what Lisa said in her blog.
So basically we all thought this podcast was interesting and learned a little from it. We all bascially got the same idea out of it.

Mythology of Hinduism # 3

This guy has very unique points. He is very inspirational speaker. I liked the whole dream part in the beginning. It really had me thinking about dreams and the whole 75 hours subject. It is very true we have pushed technology very far. That was a very good point about Aladdins lamp about the surprise thing. It does take a lot for someone to have a surprise now a days. It was very funny how he said that we would have to invent a suprise button, but the scary part is that it is true. I think it is neat how Hinduism sees things as a big dream. I like the mythological image of hidism instead of the other part. They started kind of using big words and Im got a little confused on the whole Hinduism religion. It is true that everyone does see God as a man but really no body has any idea, he is just known as the father. It was interesting how he compared the universe as God playing hide and seek with himself. That is a very strange comparison to me. I like the idea of a staged played. That is completely true. "The world is dramatic because it is one big play" I really liked that quote it makes tons of sense. What you do see at a theater is not real but really people make it feel it is real and some people actually do think it is true. That is completely relatable. I like thinking that the world is one big play. Dancing and music does represent the world more than any other arts because it is playful and fun but really not that serious. Many people do take these arts seriously though. He kind of confused me at the ending, but made me really think hard about it. It was like he switched topics completly towards the end. It did not make sense to me and was cofusing. I really did not see how this related to Hinduism very much but it was a very unique with many deep thoughts and left me wondering.

Chapter 25

The last chapter started with the district commissioner arriving at Okonkwo’s compound. At Okonkwo’s they had a whole bunch of his friends there sitting around in a circle. They demanded to know where Okonkwo was and they said not here. I figured he ran far away or was hiding somewhere. When the commissioners told them they would kill them if they did not tell them Okierka told them to follow him. They took him to this bush exactly where Okonkwo was hanging from a tree dead! I really was not surprised though I kind of saw if coming from the beginning. Taking your own life though is really not the way to go he could have solved some of his problems if he was not so stubborn. I bet his friends were really disappointed in him especially Okierka. He could not even take him down even though that is not their customs anyway. Plus he got all tongue tied when he was talking about it. I wonder what his family thought about it and what they are going to do now. Ezinma admired and looked up to him for a while. This book ended really weird. It does not even say what happen to the tribe. They were not going to go to war so Okonkwo really had no choice since he knew he would have been killed for what he did anyway. I guess the whole tribe is going to be wiped out now and not exist. They will be over conquered right from under their noses. The very last sentences were very weird. It was like from someone that was going to right just a paragraph on Okonkwo when it took this entire book, which was kind of funny.

This was definitely not one of my favorite books. I really did not like it much at all. It was very informative on Africa, but the whole story line was not that great. Okonkwo was a jerk and ended up killing himself in the end. I really did not like how it ended that much. The very first part of the book was really good. There was a lot of action and emotion but when it got to the second part I hated it mainly because all it dealt with was religion. The whole topic was religion, which got old very fast and was not that interesting. It became hard to keep my attention and it was very confusing. I became irritated how it kept going on and on about nothing and the same thing. I did learn a lot about the African culture though, which was the main goal!

chapter 24

Everyone in Umuofia is pretty much freaking out right now because they realize how much power the Christians have on them and they cannot do much about it. After the prisoners returned they decided they would have a meeting so they could prepare what their next action was going to be. Okonkwo is a nervous wreck. He could not even eat even though he has barely eaten anything in the last few days. His favorite daughter Ezinma even brought him the food so he tried to force it down his throat. While he was eating everyone noticed the whip marks on his back. I really cannot believe they tortured them like that. I guess Okonkwo finally knows what is feels like to be on the other end of the beatings. Okonkwo could barely sleep he was so worked up about this entire situation. Once the gong was beat in the morning all the men gathered in the market place. There was a ton of men all gathered there. Okonkwo was hoping to convince everyone that they must go to war with these people. He really did not want Egonwanne to be there because he would convince them not to fight. This was a very disorganized meeting and everyone was talking at once. When they were starting to accomplish things they had some visitors. When Okonkwo saw them he was very upset. They wanted to stop the meeting and before they could say much else Okonkwo let his angry take him away and he chopped a man in half with his machete. Then he panicked and ran from the meeting. I really have no idea what is going to happen but I do not think that was very smart of Okonkwo of maybe the whole clan will start the war right there now. That would probably be the best choice in Okonkwo’s case

Chapter 23

Okonkwo is pretty happy with his tribe at this point and feels a little stress free. He feels this is going to be a war and maybe even be able to get his village and clan back. He is feeling really good when the District Comissioner wants to meet and talk. I found it amusing when they put their weapons down because it was obvious they were going to need them very soon. Of course the christians put handcuffs on them and held them prisoner. I thought it was very stupid of them not to fight back and not seeing this coming. They acted all friendly but in the end they are pure enemies. They sent word out to the clan that they had their leaders held captive and that they must pay a fee to get them back. They had these guys all chained up to like a wall and did not allow them to go anywhere not even to the bathroom. These people are mean not even letting them go to the bathroom. They had to stand in their pee that is so gross and horrible torture. I knew I did not like these guys from the start. They also did not feed them. They had to be starving pure tortue. This should really start a war now after all of this. Finally after a few days the clan rounded up enough money to get them out so they were free to go. I really have no idea where this book is going to. Okonkwo seems like a changed man when he returned home and for once I think the clan should listen to him.

Chapter 22

This chapter deals with Brown being replaced with a man named James Smith. He seems to be more aggresive and mean compared to Brown. Smith did not like how Brown was approaching things and wanted different things to occur. Enoch was also mentioned in this chapter as the person who killed and ate the sacred python he also unmaked an egwudwu in public which is a major crime. They tried to hide him so he would not get killed for doing this. This threw the whole village into a confusion and rage. Enoch did this mainly to start a holy war so he was disappointed when they told him to get into hiding for a few days. Smith had a meeting with the high titles of the village but Umuofia did not want to hear anything from them so they took darastic measures and burned down their church instead of killing Enoch.
I was surprised that Enoch lived. I mean they kill everyone else why not kill someone we do not really know all that good. This chapter really confused me and I was not positive what was going on. I really do not think they should trust Brown because obviously the christians will get revenge for them burning their church and it will be on big war.

Chapter 21

Okonkwo is pretty much jealous of the christians because when you think about it he is mad no one noticed he has returned because they are too occupied with the new religion, so he is jealous! He is also mad that no one sees it through his eyes that they need to fight these people and get the away from here. They are destroying their customs and everything they stood for. I think the Christians should not really take over but become friends with them first maybe get to know Umuofia's beliefs first or at least learn their language. I can really see were Okonkwo is coming from. If people that did not even speak my own language came and told me what to believe I would be more than angry and want revenge. Everyone else in Umuofia does not seem to see this though. Mr. Brown seemed to communicate well with the village people. He was nice friendly and listened to what they wanted. He seems to have the right approach, but I am still not convinced if he should be trusted. He became ill so he needed to return home. The one person the people seemed to talk to well is going home, which is probably not a good thing. Okonkwo is angry all the men he use to trust are going to this religiong even some of the people with high titles. They are betrayers now what cruel people. Okonkwo can not believe all these good men are turning into soft people just like women!

Chapter 20

Okonkwo is back in Umuofia! Since it has been seven years since he has been there everything has changed, which is exactly what I expected because nothing stays the same life is always changing. All of his expectations were pretty much smashed to pieces. I like the lizard comparison, "The clan was like a lizard; if it lost its tail it soon grew another."Which bascially means once Okonkwo was gone the clan soon forgot and found a new better person to replace Okonkwo. Okonkwo had this huge life planned out for him. He wanted to become a top cheif, rich, and many other expectations. But the christians ruined it all for him.

He still will not get over the fact that his daughter Ezinma was not a boy. He really just needs to see people how they are and live with it. He loves his daughter though, because he always admires her and brings her up. Appearently she is a beautiful woman and a lot of suitors had asked to marry her in Mbanta, but since her father wished she would wait till Umuofia, she actually followed her father wishes and waited. She really admires her father as well. Once Okonkwo was in Umuofia and seen what has become of it he knew everything was going to go down hill from there.

I found it very funny how they called the court messengers AshyButtocks. That is very amusing even though the guys really did not like to be called that. This chapter talks a little more about the religion and the government. They really do not like this white man that is taking over their way of life.

Chapter 19

This chapter mainly deals with Okonkwo leaving Mbanta. Okonkwo made it through his 7 years so he get to go home! I wonder how they keep track of time there; do they have calender or something? He could not wait to leave Mbanta to become famous in his home town. He did not mind being in this town but feels he could be a lot richer in Umuofia. He really appreciated everything his mothers family did for him and decided to pay them back with a huge feast. They are having another party with a huge dinner. This dinner must have had so much food because everyone was so surprised. I could not imagine seeing or even eating as much food as they described there was. Wonder how many people actually makes up a village anyway, because they always have these feast with everyone in the clan invited? Okonkwo was so anxious to get back to Umuofia that he told his friend Obierika to prepare a few huts for him. He really wanted to be prepared when he got there. He has such high hopes of his home town but I am kind of thinking that the christians may have taken over the whole town so everything is going to be completely different now. I feel he may be very disappointed when he get there so he should just stay where he is since nothing is really long with Mbanta. The Mbanta people seemed to be really happy that Okonkwo threw them a feast so I wonder if they have that many gathering together... This whole part of the book was mainly about religion. I kind of hope the next part is a little better. I got a little bored with all the religion detail.

Chapter 18

This chapter really confused me. I did not really know what exactly was going on in it. It was a lot about religion just like before. Basically talking about the christians and how they are pretty much taking over all the villages and making the village people mad. The Christian people are kind of getting on my nerves. I mean they think they can just take over and believe their religion is the best. People can belive what ever custom tradition and religion they want. They are as bad as Okonkwo as wanting to control everything. This religion welcomes everyone especially twins. They seemed to emphasize that. They also accept rejects like people do not fit in with the other people. These people then shave their head so they will be really picked out of the crowd. This church and religion seems to be really growing. I think they are going to end up taking over everything in the end. The villagers really should not have been that nice to them, which was not a very smart idea from the very begginging. The whole python thing confused me as well. I really did not like this chapter very much at all. It seemed like a pointless chapter and nothing major really happen in it.

Chapter 17

This chapter talks a lot about the missionaries again and how Nwoye was talked into joining their religion. It starts out with the missionaries or chrisitans rather begging for a place to set up their church and stuff. So the clan pretty much gives them the dump or grave yard where they throw all the dead people, hoping they will all wind up dead before long. Of course things do not go as planned and they end up being there for a very very long time. It would be very gross cleaning out that area to build a church. I can not imagine seeing bones and things like that laying around let alone touching them; very gross! What is with the villages killing twins? what do they have against them anyway? It was pretty much Okonkwo's cousin Amikwu who tattled on Nwoye about hanging out with the Christians. Amikwu spotted him one day around the missionares and ran home and told Okonkwo right away. When Okonkwo found out saying he flipped out is pretty much an understatement. He went crazy and was very mad and angry. He already had so low of expectations for Nwoye that this is just the icing on the cake. Okonkwo patiently waited for Nwoye to get home and when he finally did he took his anger out on him. I felt so bad for Nwoye having to deal with his father beating him. For one I bet it hurt and plus it probably crushed him knowing his own father did not support him. Okonkwo does not know one thing about parenting and just makes everything worse. I am very glad Okonkwo is not my father. After Nwoye took his beatings he left to live with the missionaries forever disclaiming his father forever. Okonkwo will never see his son again and never will admit that is his son.

Chapter 16

I am very happy for Nwoye because he decided to break away from Okonkwo and follow his own heart. This chapter dealt a lot with religion. Obierika came back to Mbanta to visit Okonkwo but mainly to find out what the deal was with Nwoye because he had seen him with the missionary people and said Okonkwo was not his father. I was very curious on what exactly that meant so as I read on I realized the missionaries before they settled in Umuofia they visited Mbanta first. While they were there they gave their inspirational speeches about their religion, which is basically what a majority of Americans tend to believe now that heaven and hell exist and there is a God. Most of Mbanta was very offended by this belief except for Nwoye who was very confused on what to believe. He decided to go along with these missionary people, which he found fascinating. Plus he really doubted his old religion because how it told the people to kill Ikemefuna and all its other weird missions. Also in this chapter I found out that iron horses means bicycles, which is a really awesome comparison. I found it very amusing how when the inspirational speaker, the man instead of saying myself he said my buttocks. That kind of made me chuckle. Okonkwo was really embarrassed and ashamed that his own son who he had high expectations for went with them. I think he was really depressed and disappointed. I wonder if Okonkwo actually beat him or gave him some kind of punishment?

Chapter 15

In this chapter Okonkwo’s friend Obierika came to visit him in Mbanta. He must be a really good friend to Okonkwo because it was a very long journey and he also brought him money for his yams way back at home. That was extremely nice of him to watch over Okonkwo’s yams for him and I bet Okonkwo really enjoyed seeing him as well. While Obierika was there he also told Okonkwo what exactly was happening around the place. I was a little confused on the whole story he told though. Apparently Abame village was wiped out by a white man I think. So now there is this tribe that is going around attacking and destroying villages. That would be really creepy being a victim to this. It would be like going out into the middle of a war. I would always be scared that my village would be next. These African villages really do not seem to have much protection. It would also be scary being a white man in Africa. They could easily tell that you did it because it would be very easy to pick out of a crowd. Plus they seem to blame everything on the white man so that is also a disadvantage. What exactly is an iron horse that the man was hanging from? I found it funny when in the end of the chapter they were talking about a guy just getting married and not being able to hear the cockcrow because of that. That is a lot like how people tease each other here now a days. Okonkwo is very lucky to have such a good friend like Obierika. They seem to really be able to count and trust on each other.

Chapter 14

Chapter 14 is all about new surroundings and life for Okonkwo and his family. They arrived in the village of Mbanta. Okonkwo’s uncle welcomed them in. I can imagaine how hard Okonkwo’s family must have worked to get the new crops planted since Okonkwo is a workaholic. All though he was not inspired too much this time to work it did not thrill him as much and in his free time he sat and half slept. He is a changed man maybe. One of Okonkwo’s dreams in life was to become one of the lords of the clan. It does not really look like that is going to happen. I almost feel bad for him; his life is shattering all to pieces. I guess it is Ikemefuna getting revenge on him. One thing I am kind of confused about is why Okonkwo brought his mother’s body back to this village instead of burying her with her husband? Is that what they usually do or did Okonkwo feel his mother should be buried in Mbanta? Also some of the people in Mbanta do not seems too happy that Okonkwo is in their village. They did not give Okonkwo or his family a very welcomed feeling. They asked very rudely what exactly he was doing there. Then they asked him difficult questions that he did not know the answer to. Uchendu basically called Okonkwo a child and kind of insulted his intelligence; I found this a little amusing. I also liked how Uchendu does not feel sympathy for Okonkwo because everyone suffers and has their own problems and sorrows. He does not want to hear Okonkwo complain about how bad his life is because there are even worse people out there suffering, which is absolutely true.

chapter 13

Chapter thirteen was a huge turning point in the book that really surprised me. I did not see this part coming at all. The oldest man in the village died so everyone living there went to the ceremony. I was kind of wondering how old the man actually was it does not say? I wander how old they become in Umuofia? The ceremony was very unique it did not seem like they did very much mourning. It was kind of like a celebration. They sure do seem to have a lot of partying and celebrating in Umuofia. The people at the ceremony sang some sort of national anthem thing that was in their language. The very first line in the chapter kind of reminded me of a theme song from Nick Jr’s television show Go Diego Go! The man that died was a very noble and a well-liked man in the village. He was a warrior so they had a funeral made for a warrior, which means they fired guns during the ceremony. Since Okonkwo has such a bad aim as we learned in a chapter awhile back he had a few problems. While they were firing the last salute he kind of hit a boy right in the heart. It was a sixteen year old and just so happened to be the man that just died sons. That must have been hard for the wife and mother to bear. Now Okonkwo is in trouble with his village and must flee for a while (7 years), which is a tradition if someone murders another one in the clan. This was really hard on Okonkwo’s family because they had to pick up all their belongings and run. Now he had to start all over again in a new village. That would be terrible I would be a little upset if I was his wives. I did not expect this to happen at all. It is such a huge turning point. I just got use to Umuofia now they will be switching to a whole new village

Chapter 12

This chapter is mainly all about Obierika’s daughter’s wedding or Uri, which means that dinner thing last time was not their actual wedding just a time where they figured out who gets what. Ezinma survived the last night’s activities and returned safely at home. Her mother had nothing really to worry about. I am a little confused though on what exactly the spirits did to her while she was down in the cave. We also found out that Okonkwo had actually made four trips back in forth to the cave until he finally seen Ekwefi there. I think he really made Ekwefi proud when he was there it really warmed her heart. That night Okonkwo or Ekwefi did not get that much sleep but they still managed to go celebrate the Uri. I thought it was neat that the entire village attended the Uri, its like they are one big family. The Uri kind of sounded like a wedding we would have here only its no were as fancy and people bring dishes and wine to it. I found it a little selfish that the in-laws wanted a least thirty pots of palm wine. If they did not bring more than thirty they were going to say something, which is really selfish but I guess that is how they do things there. They brought fifty pots so it was all good and everyone was happy. For the Uri the village people dressed up and danced around. The dancing sounded like a lot of fun. I also found the song they sang very amusing; it made me laugh. Now the bride gets to go live with her husband and in-laws for seven weeks. Does she live with them all the time after that then or if she decides she does not like them does she come home?

Chapter 11

This chapter is mainly all about Ezinma. She was recovering from her sickness and her mother was telling her a story about a tortoise and birds. I found the story very interesting and was a good logic for why tortoise’s shell is not smooth. It was not smooth because he fell from the sky when the birds were getting revenge on him because he ticked them, so his shell broke into pieces but the medicine man was able to patch him up. All these little stories in this book are very amusing and have good judgment about them. When it was Ezinma’s turn to tell her story about a tortoise and a cat there was this high pitched screaming voice that was chanting and calling her name. It was the priestess that its name was Chielo. It was the same lady Ekwefi was talking to at the wrestling match who called Ezinma “my daughter”. All though now this lady seemed a lot more terrifying now than before when she was just having a friendly conversation. The priestess wanted to take Ezinma with her to see Agbala in the hills and caves. Ekwefi put up a fight like a good mother would but a person cannot fight with a priestess. After Chielo took Ezinma away Ekwefi felt like she just kidnapped her daughter so she followed her. This would take a lot of courage since Chielo had warned her not too. It would be very hard trudging through woods and desert in the pure darkness but Ekwefi managed it just for the sake of her daughter. She believes they are going to harm Ezinma but I am not really sure what they are going to do with her surely Agbala will not do anything bad to Ezinma she is just a child. Chielo knew someone was following her and even threatened her but Ekwefi still continue the journey. When they finally got to the caves Ekwefi decided not to go in with and just wait. While she was waiting surprisingly enough Okonkwo shows and and volunteers to wait for Ezinma to come out and make sure they do not harm her. This is the first time I was actually proud of Okonkwo for finally doing something right. At least I think it is a good thing he was there. He must really love Ekwefi and Ezinma to actually follow them and help them out. I for once was happy with Okonkwo maybe he does have a little bit of a heart after all….