Essay Draft Three

Cecilia Xie
June 14, 2007
Draft Three

Flexibility and Conflicts

Conflicts lend uncertainty and complication to life. Even a person with good intentions can not avoid misunderstandings and conflicts that follows. Conflicts may take place between a severe father and a young daughter, as well as a serious boss and a mentally-toughened employee. However, when conflict steps up to tradition and modern civilization, the situation is more difficult to deal with.

Nigeria, at the turn of the twentieth century, is a good example of culture conflicts mentioned above. A Christian Nigerian, Chinua Achebe, who was born and raised in Igbo but attended a mission school, experienced the tension between tradition culture and modern civilization. “Dead Men’s Path”, which Achebe wrote in 1953, painted a vivid picture of culture conflicts in a time of social transformation. In the story, Michael Obi, a “young and energetic headmaster” (52) who had zeal to change the backward of the Ndume Central School, closed a “dead men’s path” which is considered “the whole life of this village depends on it” (54) by the tribal people, in spite of the advice from the colleagues and the warning of the tribal priest. As a result, the destruction of the school compound by the tribal people leads to his failure in the report on the white supervisor’s inspection of the school. The ending was ironical but it is within my imagination. Flexibility, which Obi lacks, is a necessary element in dealing with the conflicts between tradition culture and modern civilization.

Obi was a proud and confident man who stock to his opinion and judgment before he was appointed headmaster. At the beginning of the story Mr. Obi was described as a young and energetic man who had great enthusiasm and ambition to catch the wonderful opportunity of running an unprogressive secondary school by his modern principle and ideal. Mr. Obi was frank and unreserved in his attitude towards the traditional culture. In the value system of Obi, he looked down at the tribal culture. He disdained “the narrow views of those older and often less-educated ones” (52). Obi made up his mind to change the backward situation. His determination to change the backward is reasonable and deserves credit and respect. Nevertheless, his way of change the backward situation is lacking in deep insight to reality and accessibility and feasibility of the solution. In Obi’s mind, superstitious and backward situation should be replaced by the modern ones through the only way which he thought could get effect instantly: civilization. Obi’s a combative impulse and firm stand separated himself from other teachers as “a pivotal teacher” (52).

When appointed as headmaster, Obi still insists on the firm stand and solid way of the traditional culture. As a new and vigorous headmaster, Obi put his efforts to build it according with his standards—high quality teaching and a gorgeous school compound. He considered his swift acts as the effective way of eliminating superstition and changing backward situation. But the reality was a little cruel despite his efforts. The backward situation resulted from the backward conception while the backward conception was deeply-rooted in people’s heart and hard to eliminate. Rome wasn’t built in one day. We have to slow down our steps to transform the backward society to an advanced one little by little. The process may cost several generations. Patience and compromise are needed throughout the process. But Obi did not have the patience and elastic attitude. At the sight of “faint signs of a disused path through the school compound” (53), he was shocked and then raged. Obi shook his head to show his puzzled spirit and remarked on it as “simply incredible” and “scandalized” news (53). The exaggerated word, “incredible” and “scandalized”, reflects Obi’s attitude towards the dead men’s path. He disliked and disdained the dead men’s path.

The revival of dead men’s path is a signal of the traditional culture’s re-prosperity. Obi can’t bear such ridiculous acts that happen under his very eyes. “Heavy sticks were planted closely across the path at the two places where it entered and left the school premises. These were further strengthened with barbed wire.” (54) Without taking counsel with tribal people, he closes the dead men’s path. Obi even ignores his colleague’s advice and insists on closing it without hesitation. He considers his swift and reckless acts as his style of civilization, his way to eliminate the backward tribal culture. It never occurs to him that a step-by-step, programmatic approach maybe the optimism solution.

But does “planting heavy sticks” work? Does it eliminate the backward situation? The answer was definitely not. Since Obi refuses to compromise with the tribal people on the issue of the “dead men’s path”, the village’s priest of Ani called on Obi and they had a big quarrel. His swift and reckless acts do bring about the conflicts, as well as his rude and inflexible attitudes. Those above all lead to conflicts, undoubtedly.

When the priest of the village called on him, Obi did not yield to his warnings. He even did not wait for the end of the old priest’s first words and interrupted him. No matter how the old priest told the past of the “dead men’s path”, or put emphasis on the importance of it, Obi turned a deaf ear to it. Mr. Obi gave an unqualified refusal “We can not allow people to make a highway of our school compound.”(54) He cuts off all the hope and space for maneuver and laughs at the concept of “dead men’s path” and staunchly defends the modern civilization. In his mind, “the whole purpose of the school is to eradicate just such beliefs. Dead men do not require footpath.” (54) The impatient and impolite act fuels the fierceness of their dialog. The conversation did not arrive at a compromise because of both the firm stand and inflexible ways.

Obi evaluates wrongly the power of the traditional culture. As the priest has said, “The whole life of this village depends on it. Our dead relatives depart by it and our ancestors visit us by it.” (54), the dead men’s path has close, or rather inseparable, tie to the tribal people’s belief and faith. It represents life in tribal people’s mental world. The revolutionary campaign in the mental world is not a good method to change the backwardness. Enlightening the tribal people, a step-by-step, programmatic approach is necessary. Evolution, not revolution, is the key to dealing with the conflicts between the tradition culture and modern civilization. The radical way has no efforts except aggravating the contradictions. So flexibility should be kept in mind to deal with the cultural conflicts. But unfortunately, Obi did not. It is the cause of the tragedy.

Obi’s way of dealing with the conflicts between the tradition culture and modern civilization is worth thinking. Owing to his inflexibility and intolerance, the school compound was destroyed while Obi was evaluated by the supervisor as a headmaster with “misguided zeal” (54). The climax of conflicts added a brilliant touch to the story. When different cultures conflicts, like the traditional culture and modern civilization, a mind of flexibility is a fundamental attitude to deal with the problem. Refusing compromising to the traditional culture and ignoring a step-by-step, programmatic approach only deteriorate the problem. If Obi could be flexible, compromising to the reality and adjusting the way of solving the problem, he would do a good job in dealing with the conflicts of tradition and modern cultures.

Work Cited

Chinua Achebe. “Dead Men’s Path” 1953 Rpt in The International Story: An Anthology with Guidelines for Reading and Writing about Fiction. Ruth Spack. New York: St. Martin’s,1994  52-54

27.5.07 15:44