TFA Okonkwo (copy)

as slippery

as slippery as a fish in water

he would use

he would use his fists

ruled his household

ruled his household with a heavy hand

Okonkwo thundered

Okonkwo thundered and stammered

since i survived

since i survived that year, i shall survive anything

inflexible

inflexible will

manly and

manly and proud heart

tried Okonkwo

tried Okonkwo beyond words

knew how

knew how to kill a man’s spirit

not the man

not the man to stop beating someone halfway

no respect

no respect for our gods and ancestors

he was always

he was always uncomfortable sitting around for days

inwardly pleased

inwardly pleased at his son’s development

that boy calls you

that boy calls you father. do not bear a hand in his death

he was afraid

he was afraid of being thought weak

his eyes were red and fierce

his eyes were red and fierce like the eyes of a rat when it was caught by the tail and dashed against the floor

he felt like a drunken giant

he felt like a drunken giant walking with the limbs of a mosquito

you have become

you have become a woman indeed

not a man of thought

not a man of thought but of action

he had felt very

he had felt very anxious but did not show it

by then he had

by then he had become gravely worried

work no longer

work no longer had for him the pleasure it used to have

very happy

very happy to receive his friend

he is not

he is not my father

suddenly overcome

suddenly overcome with fury

living fire

living fire begets cold impotent ash

ground his teeth

ground his teeth in disgust

waited impatiently

waited impatiently for the dry season

even in his first

even in his first year of exile he had begun to plan for his return

mourned for the warlike

mourned for the warlike men of Unuofia, who had so unaccountably become soft like women

Okonkwo was almost

Okonkwo was almost happy again

Okonkwo was choked

Okonkwo was choked with hate

i shall leave

i shall leave them and plan my own revenge

trembling

trembling with hate

one of the greatest

one of the greatest men in Umuofia

one could almost

one could almost write a whole chapter on him. perhaps not a whole chapter but a reasonable paragraph, at any rate