1. Things Fall
Apart Chapter 3-
4
By Chris Pandiscio & Torsten Nilsson

2. Chapter 3

3. Basic Events
● Unoka goes to oracle
● Okonkwo eats and drinks with Nwakibie
● convinces him to give him 400 seeds
● the weather is not good for farming and his
crops fail

4. List of conflicts
●
Weather vs Okonkwo and his crops

5. Cultural norms,
expectations, rituals,beliefs
● seeing oracle for advice/answers
● formal dinners and drinking wine
● asking more affluent people for seeds
● farming yams

6. Terms and definitions
Agbala - Oracle

7. Connections with today
● farmers success depends on how their crops
do
● Asking for seeds is similar to asking for
someone to invest in a business today

8. Characters
● Chika - Priestess who has power of the gods
● Nwakibie - Wealthy tribe member

9. Questions
● Will Okonkwo’s next attempt at farming be
better?
● Will he use his failed attempt to grow yams
to motivate him to do well next time?

10. Chapter 4

11. Basic Events
● Okonkwo rise from poverty to success is revealed
● Mbaino gives the boy and the virgin to Umuofia
● Okonkwo beats his third wife for not making his meal in time during the
Week of Peace
● The Priest of the Earth Goddess makes Okonkwo repent by having him
give sacrifices to the Goddess’s shrine
● Planting season starts. Okonkwo has Nwoye and Ikemefuna help him
● He constantly scolds them and threatens to beat them in order to make
them tougher
● The rain season arrives
● Ikemefuna and Nwoye become close as Ikemefuna tells Nwoye folktales

12. List of Conflicts
● Whether Mbaino would give the sacrifice or go to war
● Okonkwo beating his third wife
● Rain season preventing anymore planting

13. Cultural Norms, Expectations,
Rituals,Beliefs
● Sacrifices to avoid war
● Week of Peace
● Priest of the Earth Goddess

14. Terms & Definitions
● Chi - One’s personal God
○ Used when describing how Okonkwo went against his chi by beating
his wife and not acting repentful
● Obi - The part of the house where the head family member lives
○ Where Okonkwo goes to wait for his third wife
● Eze-agadi-nwayi - Teeth of an old woman or the name for a corn cob
○ Used when Ikemefuna is describing folktales to Nwoye
● Nso-ani - Sacrilege
○ Used to describe Okonkwo’s actions

15. Connections with Today
● People today have certain traditions where for a period
of time one is restricted of doing things (ex. Moment of
Silence)
● Priests in Catholic religion will sometimes ask people to
repent their sins
● Parents can be hard on their kids too in order to make
them better

16. Characters
● Ikemefuna - Boy that is given as a sacrifice to Umuofia
○ Okonkwo is designated to look after him
● Ojiugo - Okonkwo’s third wife
● Nwoye - Okonkwo’s oldest son
● Eneani - Priest of the Earth Goddess

17. Questions
● Will Ikemefuna ever truly become like a family member
of Okonkwo’s household?
● Will Okonkwo’s temper continue to cause trouble in the
village?