January 23, 2010
Every calling is great when greatly pursued,” the celebrated American man of letters, Oliver Wendell Holmes, once said. Chinua Achebe, the very epitome of the African novelist with an aura of inescapable legend and undiminished mystique, greatly pursued the writer’s call and became greatly successful — with an army of loyal fans on the one side and a legion of critics.Whether it’s literary charm or just plain luck (his critics say it is the latter), Achebe’s books have had surprising staying power and have been the subject of unending analysis, academic discussions, gossip, dislike, adoration and rumour.
As 2010 unfolds, Achebe will be the subject of many discussions by fans and critics, as this year marks the 50th anniversary of his second novel, No Longer at Ease, which he wrote in 1960.
To commemorate this milestone, Wellesley College (Massachusetts, US) is planning a three-day anniversary conference in March. One of the major highlights of the conference will be a scholarly symposium dubbed, No Longer at Ease 1960-2010: Literature, Politics, and the Challenges of Africa at the Crossroads.
As scholars, writers, lecturers and critics debate No Longer at Ease in the US, it is prudent for us to also reflect on the timeless message in Achebe’s novel — one of the books most relevant to Kenya as a country at the crossroads.
As one of the conference organisers, Prof Margaret Cezair-Thompson, notes, “The title alone No Longer at Ease seems to be especially resonant today. Having had about half a century now of independence and post-colonial realities, for many in the former colonies, African Diaspora and/or scholars of African literature and culture, the conference is being set aside as a time to look at the past, present, and future of African political and literary expression, with the novel as a central text in this process.”
It is a fact that the wars of Independence did not bring much political or economic respite to THE majority of African countries. Decades after independence, African nations from Morocco to Lesotho and Kenya to Nigeria, are “no longer at ease.” From bloody riots to violent coups, from bloodless takeovers of power to post-election violence, we are “no longer at ease.”
Achebe’s No Longer at Ease is a sad story. It deals with the disappointment of Africans on finding out that so called self-rule did not only not solve their problems, but sometimes, made things worse.
The main character Obi Okonkwo, is the pride of his village Umuofia. His people, ordinary Ibo villagers, send him to England for further education. When he returns to Nigeria, everyone agrees he’s a young man full of promise. In a way, he is a prototype representing a newly independent African countries, brimming with potential, but later miserably failing.
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The book opens with a court case in which Obi is found guilty of taking bribes. What happened to Obi, we wonder. It is what seemingly happens to our political leaders, academia, professionals and even men of the clothe they join politics and somehow, either become idiotic sycophants or compromise their principles for personal gain.
Obi’s court case brings to the fore one of Africa’s greatest nemesis — tribe and its associated negative ethnicity.
Obi’s community (Ibo) rallies behind him and even pays for a lawyer to defend him.
No wonder corruption is entrenched in most African countries. And this is where all our problems lie. The situation is made even more dire by weak or non-working institutions, which have resulted in failed societies and countries in which nothing works. No doubt, therefore, Achebe’s No Longer at Ease is still relevant today as it was 50 years ago when it was first published.
The writer is the publishing manager of Macmillan Kenya Publishers
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