Chinua Achebe – “Things Fall Apart” (ch. 7)

Ikemefuna spent three years in Okonkwo’s household and became like a foster older brother to Nwoye, who, as often happens with younger kids, matures rapidly trying to keep up with him. He prefers to spend time with his father, and when his mother or another of his father’s wives asks him to do masculine tasks, he grumbles aloud about women and their problems, even though he is secretly gratified. Okonkwo is very happy about it because he thinks it is a sign that Nwoye will be ready to rule his household, especially his women, when his father dies. So now Nwoye spends every evening sitting in Okonkwo’s hut with Ikemefuna and listening to Okonkwo’s stories about wars and bloodshed, even though he still secretly prefers his mother’s folk tales and legends. This continues until one year locusts arrive. In this part of the world, they are once-in-a-lifetime occurrences, but when they do come, they reappear every year for seven years. Okonkwo repairs the outer wall of his compound, with Nwoye and Ikemefuna helping him when the sky becomes black with locusts. Everybody in the village is overjoyed because they know that locusts are very good to eat, even though only a few very old men remember them. At night, everybody goes out to gather them, and then, they are roasted and left to dry.