Monologue

In my monologue, I am portraying Ikemefuna in the scene where he is being taken away from his family by Okonkwo. Throughout my monologue, I talk to myself, my parents and Okonkwo.

I am so confused right now. What did I do?! Am I in trouble? If not, who are you and why have you come for me? And why must I follow you and leave Mbaino? This is my home. This is where I belong...is it not?! I want to know the reason why I'm being taken away from my mother, my father, and my sister. I had never been so terribly petrified in my whole life. Why was this happening to me? Can somebody give me an answer? Anybody!! But...deep down, I already know something bad had happened. But what is it? What had I done? What!! This wasn't fair. I was a good kid. I always did as I was told. I always helped father sow yams and helped mother take care of my three year old sister. Unless...had I disappoint them? Is this why mother is weeping and crying? I'm so sorry mother, please don't cry. I'm sorry for whatever it is that I have done. I truly am. I'll do better next time, I promise. Please father, don't hand me away to this stranger from Umuofia. Please don't. Give me a second chance. But no, I had to face reality and the reality was that my father was handing me over to this stranger. I can sense the agony and pain building and aching in my whole chest. I still don't understand why but...I was...leaving. Will I ever see my sister again? What about my parents?? Wait. But where are we even going?! Back to Umuofia?...And who is this girl beside you?? Is she coming with us? I wanted to ask so many questions to this stranger. Am I ever coming back to Mbaino? Am I going to die? What is my fate?? All these questions but nothing came out of my mouth; its like my voice ran off with the wind. I would cry now...but all I could do was take one last look at my home, my family, their unforgettable faces, and my beloved village. I guess this was goodbye. But I don't care; whether or not I do come back, my heart will always remain at Mbaino. This stranger can take me a million miles away but my spirit will always stay. And why shouldn't it? This was my home. Like I said, this was where I belong. I know it.

What Makes A True Hero?

What is the first thing I think about when somebody asks me for the definition of heroism? Well first and foremost, I think about determination, loyalty, and faith. I believe that all heroes need to be loyal to their people, determined to reach their goals, and have faith that things will be alright. Originally in my multi-paragraph, I've stated that Okonkwo is in fact a hero. I still stand by my argument, however I have realized that even though Okonkwo can be considered a hero, it is later revealed in the novel that Okonkwo also holds many traits that make him unheroic. 


Okonkwo can be considered a hero because he is fearless, determined, independent, and hardworking. He is honored for his personal achievement of throwing the unbeaten wrestler and his successes in war; this makes him brave. Furthermore, being the son of a man who failed miserably in life, Okonkwo didn't give up. He was independent and hardworking. He was determined to reach his goal which was to live a better life than his shameful father. Moreover, Okonkwo is a great role model for many people. He had many achievements which many can only dream of obtaining; these include becoming a wealthy farmer, having three wives, and taking two titles. But the fact that makes him so heroic with all these successes is that he was still very young when he became one of the greatest men of his time. This shows how somebody who had nothing to start with, can work his way up to the top if he had the determination to work hard. 


However, Okonkwo also shows many traits that make him unheroic. For instance, he would beat his wives, most of the time for insignificant reasons; heroes aren't supposed to take their anger out on innocent people. Furthermore, when Okonkwo committed suicide, he lost all faith and loyalty for his tribe. This ultimately made me reconsider whether or not Okonkwo was really a hero. Heroes aren't supposed to give up just because something is going horribly wrong; Heroes are supposed to always find faith to carry on when everything else seems to fall apart. 


In conclusion, I believe Okonkwo is a hero for many reasons. However, I think he is ultimately a tragic hero as he let all of his irrational fears of being weak and his inability to endure watching his village being taken over by the white society, get the best of him. In my opinion, heroes are supposed to give you that last dose of hope when all hope has already seemed to die out, and Okonkwo failed to provide that to his people.

I choose who I love.

In my novel, Sense And Sensibility, the main conflict in the story revolves around the idea of man vs. man. As sisters, Elinor and Marianne are both very demanding for the type of men that they would love and would want to marry. However, the type of men both sisters would choose differs greatly. Elinor prefers someone who is well-read and wise; she doesn't care as much for appearance and she appreciates a man's nobility and reserve. On the other hand, Marianne desires for a man who is romantic; she gets dazzled easily by a man's appearance and she can be persuaded quite easily with a man's ability to act like a gentleman and with his "sweet talk". Consequently, this leads to both sisters criticizing the type of men the other finds suitable to be her other half. Elinor has met a gentleman named Edward Ferrars who she is quite fond of, however Marianne is disappointed to find that he isn't more striking or more passionate about poetry, literature, and art. This is the reason why Marianne feels that her sister is making a big mistake by planning to devote the rest of her life for Edward as she can't see being with a man who can't fully admire, appreciate and show a burning passion for all the things she is fervent about. Moreover, the man whom Marianne has set her eyes on is John Willoughby. Willoughby has swept Marianne off her feet, literally as he comes along to Marianne's rescue when he carries her home after she twists her ankle, but also when she finds out they have much in common. For instance, they both love dancing, music, as well as the same authors. He is also attractive and overly-romantic like Marianne. However, though Marianne admires this young bachelor, Elinor immediately detects his lack of good sense and feels that he isn't the right man for her sister. Instead, Elinor finds Colonel Brandon, who is quite in love with Marianne, the more suitable bachelor for her sister as she admires his good sense. Unfortunately, Marianne finds Colonel Brandon quite boring, unremarkable, and far too old for her to marry. In conclusion, both sisters have trouble getting the others' approval for whom they choose to love.

This definitely reminds me of my life and I'm sure many people who are reading this can relate as well. Though I can't speak for everyone, I personally feel that whenever I get a crush, there is always one person in my life whether its my friends, family, or people in general, who will find the idea of this boy and I being together odd. However, isn't the question always, "don't I choose who I like/love?"  Then wouldn't the question become, "if you really love me, wouldn't you accept who I like if that person makes me happy?" If you're answering yes for both of these questions like me, then how come people still get so much trouble getting the approval of the person they love by their loved ones? I know that these people are probably looking out for that person in case they make the wrong decision but ultimately, most people feel that their ideals for love is "correct" which is why they will try to influence other people to see their principles. Thus, I feel like love will always behold many obstacles in its path as there will be many conflicts encountered whether its learning to ignore what others think or choose to find a man who satisfies everybody but yourself.

Post-Colonialism

Post colonialism is the outcome of colonialism. In other words, it is the results and effects of countries that were colonized by superior European nations. Though the goals of these European nations were originally to gain more raw materials, they also wanted to expand their empires. In order to do this, not only do these nations need to gain more territory but consequently, the indigenous people living in these colonized countries will have to assimilate and acknowledge the culture and customs of European nations. Europeans viewed the indigenous peoples' way of life as foolish and inferior. Thus, the indigenous peoples living in these colonized nations were forced to familiarize themselves with the Europeans' views on life. One of these views are how Whites are seen as good and beautiful whereas Blacks are seen as evil and ugly. 

In the past, and often times in the present, many ads have used racism as a way of getting their point across. By using these controversial ways of proving a point, it really showcases and encourages the idea that being White is much better than being Black. Below is an example:

  

 The above advertisement is for white paint; its showing how the paint is so effective in covering up dark colors that it can cover Blacks in general. This ad sparked a lot of controversy as it basically encourages the idea that White is good and Black is bad; how Black people should try and look more like White people. Since this ad is from an earlier time period, racist thoughts are bound to be part of the society's way of thinking. However, this definitely showcases one of the many outcomes of the post-colonial theory.

Link to the ad: http://www.holytaco.com/25-vintage-racist-ads/