WEEK 5

Siti Noor Amira binti Mohammad Johari

1) Based on your reading of "Things Fall Apart",what aspects of the Igbo culture allow the British to take over?

2) Since Sarawak has also undergone colonisation, how has this affected aspects of culture in our society?

3) Are there any changes brought about in the lives of the indigenous tribes in Africa and Sarawak ?

     Based on my understanding, one aspect of Igbo culture that allows the British to take over is when the missionaries try to persuade the Igbo people by using many strategies, and they are easily fall to it. In this novel, we can see missionaries tried to convince by giving them the "iron horse" or bicycle and the other was the use of rhythmic singing and clapping to draw attention to their message. These show that their allegiance towards their belief is not totally strong. Besides, one of the villagers that converted to Christianity was Nwoye, Okonkwo's son. Okonkwo was not satisfied with Nwoye's attitude. He was always complaining about Nwoye who was not possesses manliness as he was. So, Nwoye felt he did not belong to his father and he also questioned himself about the killing of Ikemefuna and the twins. These make Nwoye converted to Christianity which this religion teaches them that everyone was brothers and sisters. Other than that, Igbo people also believe on the Evil Forest was filling with evil spirit which men that killed themselves, ogbanje and twins. Then, when the missionaries came to the village, they gave the forest for the missionaries to build a church. They believed when the missionaries built up a church there, they will be destroyed. Unfortunately, their belief was wrong instead the church made the British more powerful as they could spread their religion easily. 

     In Sarawak society, there are some aspects from colonisation of British that affected in this culture. One of them is their language which still maintaining the English language. As I know, the older still use English words in their daily communication. Such as, ball is 'bola' but they still call 'bol' and also resident is  'pejabat daerah' and they still call 'residen'. Other than that, in that time majority of Sarawakian are influenced by the attire of British. I saw in the picture of the wedding of my parents's friend, they wore coat,necktie,gown,and etc as their wedding attire rather than wearing traditional dress. This shows how British have influenced them indirectly. Besides, in the social perspective, in that time way of life of Malay-Muslim community began to be absorbed by the Western elements. For instance, they built many entertainment center such as Kampung Tanjung Kesenangan Club (1926), Sarawak Malay Tennis Club (1929), Sinjan Music Club, dan Surabaya Jolly Minstrels (Zulkiple Abdul Gani & Juanda Jaya, 2003:643). Besides, from the perspective of eating manner and etiquette, some of Malay Sarawakian rather to use spoon and fork when they eat. It is different from most of the people in West Malaysia which we tend to use bare hand to eat. It is a way for us as Malay Muslim in eating informally. 

     There are many changes that occur in the lives of the indigenous tribes in Africa such as they were not consulting Agbala when they had problems. They converted to Christianity and this made Jesus as their god. Besides, I think there was development in their life. They will go through modernization as the missionaries will help them in developing themselves. It can be seen in the novel, when the Igbo people didn't know the bicycle but they called it 'iron horse'. When the missionaries came, they will teach the Igbo people about technology. Other than that, they also will believe that everyone is the same. There is no more “title” among them because in Christianity, everyone is same. Meanwhile in Sarawak, there are many changes that we can notice here. When there is a colonisation in a country, it makes the country starts to be strong to fight for their right. They will arise to protect their own land and not only see it will be taken by other parties. Thus, this spirit makes them stronger and good enough to fight on. Besides, the colonisation also makes them to be thrived in the technology as well as highly moral standard. When the colonisation takes place, they will introduce new technology and as they go back to their own country, they will leave the knowledge to residents. So, in indirectly the people can go through modernisation by their help. So, we can see from this aspect, not all colonisation will cause bad effects but they also give us some advantages. From the cultural aspect, I believe the indigenous tribes have been influenced by the colonisation. They still maintained the used of west attire in their wedding. Besides, from the political aspect, Malaysia practised Parliamentary Democracy. This system is based from the Westminster System which was totally from British. British brought it to Tanah Melayu and until now we still practise it. 

WEEK 4 Perfect Character A Delusion or Reality

SITI NOOR AMIRA 

In the novel Animal Farm, the hope for a better world remains unattainable. Even with the change of governance, the animals are eventually mistreated. How is it possible that the longing for good can turn awry when the person is in power for long?

In the case of Okonkwo, he is not painted as someone who is without fault. In fact, he is in many ways a tragic hero. Neither is he a person who is evil despite his part in killing Ikemefuna. Based on your understanding of him in the novel, reflect on the following questions:

• How has Okonkwo been a figure of inspiration and disappointment to his people? 
• What are the characteristics of Okonkwo that you can find in your nation’s leader?

Okonkwo plays as the main role in the novel Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe. It is shown as a tragic hero who in the beginning, the author represents him as a tough and brave man. A man who possesses a quality of masculinity.  In his youth, he brought honor to his village by beating Amalinze the Cat in a wrestling contest. Until his match with Okonkwo, the Cat had been undefeated for seven years. This shows how powerful Okonkwo is. He is an inspiration for the youngest. He also does not portrays the attitude of his father. His father is lazy man and he is totally different from him. He gains wealth by his own effort. He does not depend on anybody just like some of the villagers that inherit from their heir. It will be a proof that Okonkwo is a character that we should emulate. Unfortunately, not all people can achieve the glory until they die. Okonkwo is going to fall down when the missionaries come. It begins when his son turns back on him. He chooses to follow the missionaries then the villagers also one-by-one try to adapt the new religion. From here, Okonkwo starts to give a disappointment not only for the villagers but also for the readers. He cannot face the problem and lastly he commits suicide by hanging himself on a tree. 

Okonkwo's characteristic that I find in my nation's leader is brave to face the enemy. Lately, our country has been attacked by the intruders from Sulu tribe. It was very violent when they came to Malaysia to claim for Sabah. They killed the policemen and armies and this cannot be forgiven. Our Prime Minister said that Government will not compromise on the safety, sovereignty and territorial integrity of Malaysia. It shows that he does not afraid of any threat given by the enemy. 

WEEK 3 Religions and superstitions

SITI NOOR AMIRA  

Karl Marx once commented that 'religion is the opium of the people'. Do you agree with him? In the case of Umuofia, do you think their native religion stunts their development? Is the 'new' religion seen as a way of bringing development to Umuofia?

Apart from religion, superstitions play an important part in the Ibo culture. Do you have your own sets of superstitions which you find difficult to discard?

The following points can help you as you write your reflective post on the role of religion and superstition in the novel and in your life:

• Analyse how superstitions and religions play in the life described in the novel. 
• Do superstitious beliefs and religion affect the development of a country? How?
• How does one's beliefs affect the nation in terms of politics and culture?

In the novel Things Fall Apart, at first it seemed that everyone was superstitious and truly believe in their god. They believe in the killing of the baby as the twins will bring bad luck to their society. So, they just followed the the superstition blindly without think it logically. Besides, the incident when they killed Ikemefuna for the fault of his father. It is a criminal as they cannot punish or execute someone who is not doing the crime. It is his father's fault but Ikemefuna has to endure and face it. It is very unfair. 

I think, superstitious beliefs and religion can be both side, which they can affect the development of a country and they also can be an advantage to develop the country itself. It is because if we believe something blindly and do not think of its consequences it will affect of the development of the country. For example, the villagers killed the twins but they did not know perhaps in future, the killed baby will give an advantage to their village. So, we must avoid in taking someone live. Besides, if we believe in something in appropriate ways, for sure we will find the truth and it also can guide us to produce a bright future. It is stated that every religion has the goodness and we must follow it. 

If a person do good things based on his religion, for sure he will be a good person. It is because, from our religion, we are forbidden to begin an unhealthy environment. We have to live in harmony and peace. So, if a person totally learns in depth about his religion and applies it in real life, there will no any disputes and any people who love to begin a conflict. Thus, religion plays an important role in shaping a good human capital.

Perspective towards women in Things Fall Apart

SITI NOOR AMIRA 

Reflection on Things Fall Apart (Week 2)

•  How are the women treated in the novel? Do all members in the community agree with the status quo? Why? 
• What contributions are made by the Igbo women to the survival of their culture? 
• What are the changes in women’s roles in this present world?

Based on the novel Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe, I believe that women had been treated in a balance way. It is not all the women had been treated badly. For example, women play role as the priestess who the villagers consult when they have problems. It is shown when Okonkwo's father consulted Agbala when he wanted to know why he had a misery life. Here we can see that even the villagers lifted the women to be high in status. It is undoubtedly that women does not get the right as they suppose to get. Achebe represents women as has little in power rather than men. They cannot do what men can do and only has to listen the words of men. For instance, when Ojiugo came late to home and did not prepare the food, Okonkwo beat her badly until he forgot that week is Week of Peace which is forbidden for them to beat somebody. I don't think all the community agree with the status quo. It is because some of them even try to deny the status itself. It is because the status does not show the equality between man and woman. 

Even women status is being underestimated, their contribution also can be the same as the men. The woman is the one who teach the children by giving them advice through story telling. For instance, Ekwefi tells her daughter Enzinma the fairy tale entitled Tortoise. She tries to teach her daughter by showing her the consequences or benefits in the action takes. Besides, women also is the priestess that the people will seek if they have any problems. Here, the contribution of the women is they are trying to solve or find the solution for the people. So, we can't deny that there is no contribution of women towards the culture. They also one of the important roles in order to produce a quality generation. 

Nowadays, the stereotype that women should stay at home and looking after the children is cannot be used anymore. We can see that women spend their time by searching or seeking the chances to be in the same level of men. If a man can be an engineer, a woman also can. Even she can be better than man. It is true that the job is focusing on men but it is no wrong if women take the challenge to be the part of it. Besides, the women also can be one part of the bread-winner of the family. It is from the career women. They can help the expenses in home in order to reduce the burden of the husband. Lastly, a lot of women nowadays as succeed as the men. It proves when they even went to higher education. They are free to further their studies and the equality between men and women can be seen through this. 

Reflection on Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe

Siti Noor Amira binti Mohammad Johari

1) Based on your reading of "Things Fall Apart",what aspects of the Igbo culture allow the British to take over?

Based on my understanding, one aspect of Igbo culture that allows the British to take over is when the missionaries try to persuade the Igbo people by using many strategies, and they are easily fall to it. In this novel, we can see missionaries try to convince by giving them the "iron horse" or bicycle and the other is the use of rhythmic singing and clapping to draw attention to their message. These show that their allegiance towards their belief are not totally strong. Besides, one of the villagers that is converted to Christianity is Nwoye, Okonkwo's son. Okonkwo is not satisfied with Nwoye's attitude. He is always complaining about Nwoye who is not possesses manliness as he is. So, Nwoye feels he is not belongs to his father and he also questions himself about the killing of Ikemefuna and the twins. These make Nwoye converts to Christianity which this religion teaches them that everyone is brothers and sisters. Other than that, Igbo people also believe on the Evil Forest is filling with evil spirit which men that kill themselves, ogbanje and twins. Then, when the missionaries come the village, they give the forest for them to build a church. They believe when the missionaries build up a church there, they will be destroyed. Unfortunately, their belief is wrong meanwhile the church makes the British more powerful as they can spread their religion easily. 

2) Since Sarawak has also undergone colonisation, how has this affected aspects of culture in our society?

In Sarawak society, there are some aspects from colonisation of British that affected in this culture. One of them is their language which still maintaining the English language. As I know, the older still use English words in their daily communication. Such as, ball is 'bola' but they still call 'bol' and also resident is  'pejabat daerah' and they still call 'residen'. Other than that, in that time majority of Sarawakian are influenced by the attire of British. I can see in the picture of the wedding of my parents's friend is they use coat,necktie,gown,and etc as their wedding attire rather than use traditional dress. This shows how British has influenced them indirectly. Besides, in that time way of life of Malay-Muslim community began to be absorbed by the Western elements. For instance, they built many entertainment center such as Kampung Tanjung Kesenangan Club (1926), Sarawak Malay Tennis 
Club (1929), Sinjan Music Club, dan Surabaya Jolly Minstrels (Zulkiple Abdul 
Gani & Juanda Jaya, 2003:643).

3) Are there any changes brought about in the lives of the indigenous tribes in Africa and Sarawak ?

There are many changes that occur in the lives of the indigenous tribes in Africa such as they are not consulting Agbala when they have problems. They convert to Christianity and this makes Jesus as their god. Besides, I think there is development in their life. They will go through modernisation as the missionaries will help them in developing themselves. It can be seen in the novel, when the Igbo people don't know the bicycle but they call it 'iron horse'. When the missionaries come, they will modernised the people there. Other than that, they also will believe that everyone is the same. There is no more rank among them. 

Meanwhile in Sarawak, there are many changes that we can notice here. When there is a colonisation in a country,it makes the country starts to be strong to fight for their right. They will arise to protect their own land and not only see it taken by other parties. Thus,this spirit makes them stronger and good enough to fight on. Besides, the colonisation also makes them to be thrived in the technology as well as highly moral standard. When the colonisation takes place, they will introduce new technology and as they go back to their own country, they will leave the knowledge to residents. So, in indirectly we can go through  modernisation by their help. So, we can see from this aspect, not all colonisation will cause bad effects but they also give us some advantages.