Reading Log
(Dead Men's Path by Chinua Achebe)
I noticed that the story was set in a time when British colonial power invaded into Nigeria. So it's actually a reflection of the clash of culture and religion between the aggressive west and the conservative local people. Mr. Obi stood for the west and western culture, which took it for granted that the belief and tradition Nigerians observed so loyally was nothing. I can feel this from the way he treated the village priest. He thought it was a mission for him to teach locals to abandon their "silly superstitions", regardless of those people's emotional reactions. We all can imagine how one would feel when something he has been so faithful to is humiliated or trashed by someone who in fact knows nothing about it.
Mr. Obi backfired himself. There was nothing wrong with his will to help people get rid of silly thoughts. But even if you mean well, approach also matters, especially when it comes to the clash of two different civilizations. We need communication and the knowledge of others' culture, most critically, on the basis of mutual respect.
Keep it in mind that no form of culture is superior to the other.
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