church, “He led the way out of the hall, smiling and waving at the many hands that reached out to grasp his white tunic as if touching him would heal them of an illness,”(90-91). The “white tunic” is obviously an allusion to Jesus Christ, who is normally portrayed in a white robe. The people trying to touch him as if it “would heal them of an illness” portrays the reverence they hold towards Papa. Healing by touch is something that has been in Christianity for hundreds of years, and is usually reserved for the holiest of saints and relics. After Jaja’s refusal to go to Mass, Papa throws a missal at him and later demands an explanation, to which Jaja replies, “‘Mba, there are no words in my mouth,’ Jaja replied. ‘What?’ There was a shadow clouding
…show more content…
However, in Things Fall Apart, Okonkwo is very open about his hatred and willingness to commit violence towards Christianity while in Purple Hibiscus, Papa is more secret about his violence towards his family and tries to maintain an image of normality while in public. In Things Fall Apart, Okonkwo rages at his village’s policy of appeasement and views violence as a solution to their problems: “‘Let us not reason like cowards,” said Okonkwo. “If a man comes into my hut and defecates on the floor, what do I do? Do I shut my eyes? No! I take a stick and break his head. That is what a man does,”(Achebe 158). Although his village takes the more cautious approach while dealing with the British, Okonkwo prefers to use his approach: violence. He views the British as people disrespecting his village and culture by “defecat[ing] on the floor”, and as a result feels the village is perfectly justified to use physical force and “break [their] head.” Okonkwo’s entire identity has been built on masculinity and strength. “Defecat[ing] on the floor” is generally seen as a sign of disrespect, which Okonkwo fears. This is why he feels so much rage when his former village, which used to be “feared by all its neighbors” and “powerful in war and magic”(Achebe 11), has grown to be weak and as a result lost its respect to the British. Similarly, in Purple Hibiscus, Papa rages towards Kambili and Jaja after he realizes they had spent too much time with his heathen father, who holds beliefs that directly contradict Christianity: In a low voice, Papa says, “‘Kevin said you stayed up to twenty-five minutes with your grandfather. Is that what I told you?’”(Adichie 69). Papa is furious at his children for spending more time with his heathen father than permitted. Acts of rebellion against a central figure generally show that figure’s power is waning, and Papa knows this. He
However, in Things Fall Apart, Okonkwo is very open about his hatred and willingness to commit violence towards Christianity while in Purple Hibiscus, Papa is more secret about his violence towards his family and tries to maintain an image of normality while in public. In Things Fall Apart, Okonkwo rages at his village’s policy of appeasement and views violence as a solution to their problems: “‘Let us not reason like cowards,” said Okonkwo. “If a man comes into my hut and defecates on the floor, what do I do? Do I shut my eyes? No! I take a stick and break his head. That is what a man does,”(Achebe 158). Although his village takes the more cautious approach while dealing with the British, Okonkwo prefers to use his approach: violence. He views the British as people disrespecting his village and culture by “defecat[ing] on the floor”, and as a result feels the village is perfectly justified to use physical force and “break [their] head.” Okonkwo’s entire identity has been built on masculinity and strength. “Defecat[ing] on the floor” is generally seen as a sign of disrespect, which Okonkwo fears. This is why he feels so much rage when his former village, which used to be “feared by all its neighbors” and “powerful in war and magic”(Achebe 11), has grown to be weak and as a result lost its respect to the British. Similarly, in Purple Hibiscus, Papa rages towards Kambili and Jaja after he realizes they had spent too much time with his heathen father, who holds beliefs that directly contradict Christianity: In a low voice, Papa says, “‘Kevin said you stayed up to twenty-five minutes with your grandfather. Is that what I told you?’”(Adichie 69). Papa is furious at his children for spending more time with his heathen father than permitted. Acts of rebellion against a central figure generally show that figure’s power is waning, and Papa knows this. He