Prove by Contrast

I think Achebe uses contrasts more than any other literary device to bring his points home. He draws parallels between Christianity and the tribe's religion, and insodoing he makes their differences clear. He draws parallels between justices and government, and thereby emphasizes differences in leadership and ties in gender issues (by bringing up the queen in contrast to the tribe leaders.

In part 2, Achebe troubles the customs of the tribe by contrasting Okonkwo's father's tribe with his mother's. On page 165, during the feast hosted by Okonkwo at the end of his exile, the following prayer is delivered by Uchendu:

"We do not ask for wealth because he that has health and children will also have wealth. We do not pray to have more money but to have more kinsmen. We are better than animals because we have kinsmen. An animal rubs its itching flank against a tree, a man asks his kinsman to scratch him."

I was struck by this quote because immediately it did not seem to me like it was a prayer Okonkwo would endorse or agree with, but he had no objection. I considered why I thought this prayer was in contrast with Okonkwo's lifestyle, and I saw that I had previously thought of Okonkwo as someone who would never ask his kinsman for help. Upon considering this I realized that in fact Okonkwo had already asked for help several times in the novel by asking for donations of seed yam. Here is where I found the real contrast. Where I had initially interpreted this prayer as a means of contrasting Okonkwo's father's tribe with his mother's, I discovered that this prayer actually serves as a greater contrast between this native value scheme and the values of the colonizer. In America, immense emphasis is placed on independence. It could be said that manliness is defined by the ability to fend for oneself in all aspects of life. In Okonkwo's mind, success and strength is paramount, but despite this his sense of manliness does not demand that he never ask for help. I found that to be a really striking and different way of thinking.