Reflection on Activity: "Village of Umuofia"

What did you learn about your character and other characters from participating in the role-play?

What I learn about my character and other characters from participating in the role-play was basically, an idea of how the character’s point of view could be present in all of the scenes that we have covered today. Thanks to the Village Crier, and all of the questions that he addressed to ours characters, I was able to look into my own character’s point of view and see what he would think about that situation if he were not present at that time. Personally, I was able to keep learning about the attitude of Reverend Smith, during the activity, like for example that he believed that there was only one god, and that the other gods, in Umuofia were just made from stones and woods. Furthermore, when the Village Crier talked about how Okonkwo was able to beat her wife during Peace Week, I suddenly, started looking for key quotes that would represent the attitude that Reverend Smith would have had if he had been present at that time. Another way to say this would be to see how the missionaries looked at women and their role in society. I also learned about the actions he had towards the African people and how he just wanted to please God by spreading out his word.

Additionally, I was able to learn about other character’s point of view like for example, Chielo’s point of view. I learned that she looked at every problem in terms of their god, Agbala. For example, when the Village Crier asked about what should be done with those people or social groups who do not conform? I totally, did not knew what Chielo would think at that moment, but thanks to this activity I was able to learn that the Oracle of the Hills and Caves was a really important factor in taking a decision and that everything should be consulted in order to decide a punishment. Also, thanks to having many characters at the same time answering the questions, I was able to see how other characters would actually think about a certain situation like for example the role that egwuwu have on the village and their decisions.

Thanks to the questions that were posted in the activity today, I was able to write down some pages that I could then use for concrete evidence on my essay.

Why did certain characters act the way they did during our experience in the Village of Umuofia?

      Certain characters acted the way they did during our experience in the Village of Umuofia because of their certain point of views. There is no character that has the same point of view because that would mean they would be identical people. This is impossible because our attitude and point of view in certain things allow us to be different. However, we could have same point of views towards a thing but at the end, we will react differently, some more violent and others more pacific. This can be seen with the missionaries versus the African People because of their different attitudes and their different cultures. Cultures are the ones that make us react differently on occasions because there is some things are not tolerated on specific cultures so the reactions are different. For example, when the Village Crier ask the villages about the incident when Okonkwo had beaten up her wife, people from Umuofia, the natives, reacted differently than the missionaries because of what their culture says about the role of the women in society. For the natives, beaten a women is normal because she has disrespected her husband, but for the Missionaries coming from Europe, an innocent women should not be punished that way. This means that based on what is good or not in a specific culture, then people will have different points of view and act different.

How was your experience similar to and different from the novel?

      My experience during this activity compared to the novel was similar in some ways and different on other ways. It was similar because in the activity, we always used the book looking for specific parts so I had to analyze that section and then try to comment how my character would react to that event. Basically, during the activity, we actually did keep the context of the book and the incidents that happened and from there; we tried to create our discussion. With having a reference like the book, it helps us because we do not have to create events in the novel because all of the ones that were chosen by the Village Crier were taken into consideration to fit all of the character’s point of view so that we could then share what we think of it in character.

      In terms of being different, I was able to get an extra glimpse from the novel because I had to think and see how would a missionary on that time have reacted to all of the incidents. It definitely tested my knowledge on the novel, but most importantly, the reading comprehension that I had about the character and the research that I did for my character analysis. For a moment, I was able to feel the superiority of the missionaries but also how did the natives felt from all of their actions. I believe that with the novel it is basically creating the character’s physical appearance and all of the background, but with this activity, I was able to get another idea out of the village, some thing more technological. I think this has helped me because now I don’t see the book as how I used to see it because I really liked the technological perspective of the village of Umuofia. I also believe that I am not the only one that has benefited from this activity because having two different perspectives on the same thing actually opens up your comprehension of it and you start to see it differently. By seeing it differently, you are able to get more in-depth knowledge from the novel because you have actually participated. This means that you have actually done something related to the novel, which I believe, is more entertaining than reading the novel.

How has your experience in the Village of Umuofia “virtual reality” changed or enhanced your understanding of the novel and the historical events on which it is based?

            

            My experience in the Village of Umuofia “virtual reality” has changed and enhanced my understanding of the novel and the historical events on which it is based on. I say enhanced because I have learn more perspectives from other characters that I really did not imagine how they would react to certain events. For example, I have a better understanding of Chielo and how she sees everything based on their god, Agbala. I also have a better understanding on Mr. Brown and his intentions on the African people by trying to become friends with the natives and then try to convince them to change religion. I think this is a good thing because before the activity, I had a vague idea about Mr. Brown and I thought all missionaries were like Reverend Smith, mean and cruel with the natives, but now I see that I was wrong and that there is a contrast between two different perspectives and intentions from the characters that belong to the same culture. I can also say that it has changed my understanding on Okonkwo because I first saw him as a cruel person but then when I was able to see the responses made by the students that had investigated him, I was able to see that I had judge him based on just some facts. I did not realized or thought about the different culture he was exposed to and how it was okay to do that. Now I believe in the idea that everyone does what is correct based on your previous knowledge, which happens to be the culture you are in at that time.

In terms of the historical events, I can say that it was really important to do this activity because I was able to do some research while we were actually doing the activity about the cultures and ideas that the Umuofian villagers are exposed to. This has helped me because now I understand how it seem to them some weird what the missionaries were telling them, because for them, there gods and actions were not prohibited and actually they were allowed.