Chapter 1:

• Okonkwo is a well known famous man due to his many personal achievements

• Overthrew a wrestler named Amalinze the Cat which caused him to be well respected around elders in Umuofia

• Okonkwo was “slippery as a fish”, which helped him win

• Okonkwo became really famous and his fame spread as time went on

• Big, scary man who was loud and walked as though he wanted to pounce on someone

• Would use fists when angry and couldn’t get words out fast enough

• Okonkwo’s father, Unoka, was lazy and reckless with money

• Unoka was a debtor and owed everyone money

• Only happy when playing the flute or drinking

• Unoka’s band and dancers would go to other villages and dance and sing for them upon request

• Unoka loved when rain stopped and the dry season started with people flying kites and singing songs

• Unoka would bring a kite that he found home while singing as a kid

• Unoka grew up to be a failure: wife and kids didn't have enough food, and he was in a lot of debt

• Unoka’s neighbor, Okoye, came to visit him with a kola nut

• Unoka didn’t like war and blood

• Okoye spoke in proverbs before directly asking Unoka to pay him back, which caused Unoka to say that he will not pay him back now but will soon

• Unoka died with lots of debt and no titles, making it clear why Okonkwo was ashamed of him

• Okonkwo had the same respect as elders due to his achievements

Chapter 2:

• The crier tells everyone that they need to come to the market in a tragic tone

• Darkness was feared among the Igbo: kids were told not to whistle at night, snakes were called string, insects echoed in the silence

• Moonlight nights are a lot happier with people celebrating and kids playing with each other: “When the moon is shining the cripple becomes hungry for a walk”

• Okonkwo could stand the sight of blood and handled war unlike his father

• A daughter of Umuofia was killed, causing people to want revenge

• An ultimatum with Mbaino of whether they wanted to give a boy and a virgin or go to war was given

• Umuofia’s war, magic, and medicine men were feared

• Other villages would prefer a peace settlement over war

• Umuofia would always consult and Oracle before waging war to make sure the war was just

• Okonkwo took care of the boy that was brought from Mbaino

• Okonkwo’s wives and children were afraid of him

• Okonkwo wasn’t afraid of external things, but he feared becoming like his father

• He wants to hate everything his father loved, including gentleness and idleness

• Okonkwo’s son Nwyoe was scaring him due to his laziness, and the punishments he gave caused his son to become a very sad person

• Ikemefuna, the boy from Mbaino, came from watching his mom crying due to having to give him up and was very afraid because he didn’t understand what was happening to him or that his father was involved in killing a woman

Chapter 3:

• Okonkwo didn’t inherit a barn, title, or wife from his father

• When Unoka went to ask the priestess why his harvest was so weak, he was told he needed to start working harder and his laziness was the problem

• Unoka died due to swelling in the Evil Forest, and he took his flute with him

• Fear of his father’s failure caused Okonkwo to become very motivated to work hard in life

• Okonkwo worked under a powerful man named Nwakiebie to get his first yam seeds

• Okonkwo brought a kola nut, alligator pepper, and plan wine to Nwakiebie’s house

• Everyone drank the wine in order of status and age after Okonkwo (The father, the sons, then the wives)

• After all the customs were completed, Okonkwo asked for yam seeds

• Okonkwo received 800 yam seeds out of respect for his hardworking nature

• Okonkwo was able to support his family with the seeds he received, which unfortunately for him included his father

• Okonkwo’s mother and sisters grew women’s crops such as coco yams, beans, and cassava while Okonkwo grew yams, the man’s crop

• The year Okonkwo received the yam seeds were very bad in terms of weather and rain

• The yams wouldn’t grow properly because there was no sun and only leaves formed

• One man in the village ended up hanging himself

• Okonkwo felt that he could handle anything after this

• Unoka encouraged him by saying that Okonkwo was a much better man than him