Dead Men's path Character Study essay

1. Linda Robinson
Humanities and Social Sciences Access to Higher Education Page 1
Critical Analysis of a Text:
Task One- Dead Men’s Path Character
Study Essay
Dead Men's Path by Chinua Achebe is a story about the clash of two sets of values; this story
presents the conflict between world-views and value systems.
Chinua Achebe was born Albert Chinualumogu Achebe, he was a Nigerian novelist, poet, professor,
and critic.Raised by his parents in the Igbo town of Ogidi in southeastern Nigeria, Achebe excelled at
school and won a scholarship for undergraduate studies. He became fascinated with world religions
and traditional African cultures, and began writing stories as a university student.
Achebe's novels focus on the traditions of Igbo society, the effect of Christian influences, and the
clash of Western and traditional African values during and after the colonial era. His style relies
heavily on the Igbo oral tradition of story telling
Dead Men's Path is set in Nigeria in 1949, Chinua Achebe’s story Dead Men’s Path is about Michael
Obi, a modern and ambitious young man who is appointed headmaster of the un-progressive
Ndume Central School.
Obi decides to beautify the school. One evening, Obi sees a woman walk on the flower bed and
notices a path that leads to the village across. Obi asks a teacher why the villagers are allowed to use
the foot-path.
Consequently he found out that the path is very important to them because it leads to their burial
grounds of their ancestors. However since Obi’s concern is the beauty of the path instead of the
traditions of the villagers, he decides to close it despite the village priest reasonably requesting Obi
to reopen the path; to which he says no.
Two days later a young woman in the village dies in childbirth. A diviner recommends heavy
sacrifices to appease the spirits who are insulted at having the footpath blocked. In the night the
flowers and hedges are torn up and trampled to death and one of the school buildings is torn down.
When the Government Education Officer arrives, he gives Obi a bad review and writes "a nasty
report" on the "tribal-war situation developing between the school and the village."
The key themes explored in this story are the conflicts between traditional Nigerian culture, beliefs
and the modern, westernised ideology established by European colonialism. For example when Obi
talks to his colleague regarding the path he says “… it amazes me… that you people allowed the
villagers to make use of this footpath. It is simply incredible.”
The use of language by Obi emphasizes the division of beliefs and traditions, calling his fellow
colleagues and the villagers ‘you people’ is demeaning and highlights the distain Obi feels towards
the villagers and their rituals.
Another message that Achebe projects throughout the story is the unwavering manner of Obi who
kind of symbolises the colonial change that was apparent in Africa at the time. For instance when
Obi and the priest are discussing the ancestral path the priest warns that if Obi redirects the path,

2. Linda Robinson
Humanities and Social Sciences Access to Higher Education Page 2
then he will cut "the path of children coming in to be born."•
Obi ridicules the elder, informing him that the purpose of the school is to eradicate such beliefs and
to "teach our children to laugh at such ideas.” However it is the priest that is willing to compromise
he says “If you reopen the path we shall have nothing to quarrel about. What I say is ‘let the hawk
perch and let the eagle perch’, suggesting a compromise but Obi mocked the priest suggestion and
suggests that “…the ancestors wouldn’t find the detour burdensome.”
Michael Obi continuously disregards his childhood cultural teachings as modernisation and
progression was more important than history.
Within the first paragraph of the story, the central character; Michael Obi is described as young,
energetic, enthusiastic, and outspoken. Achebe links Obi’s youthful energy to his passion for
modernizing the education of African children. The first line of the story says “Michael Obi’s hopes
were fulfilled much earlier than he had expected”, which suggests that Obi is ambitious and has had
a plan and goal to reform African education.
Another trait of Obi’s personality is his ability to influence others; including his wife, Achebe uses the
metaphor when he says that “... In the two years of married life she had become completely infected
by his passion for ‘modern methods’ and his...” Despite his wife not being an employee of the school
she has also like her husband become completely immersed and engrossed in the modernisation of
the school and its teachings.
The first thing that appears in the story is ‘Michael Obi’; even the name that Achebe uses for the
main character is representative of the equal blend of European and African origins.
Michael Obi is portrayed as a condescending and disrespectful in a conversation he has with the
priest who has come for the path to be reopened. Obi is described as “listening with a satisfied
smile”. Here the author uses alliteration to draw the reader’s attention to Obi’s response, also the
word ‘satisfied’ suggests that he is smug and looks down on the priests and villagers as being un-
superior of no concern.
Obi is described as a “pivotal teacher” which suggests that that he has a record of reform therefore
the expectations expected of him were high; this may explain his zealousness and unwavering
manner.
However despite Obi being portrayed a young and energetic, Achebe uses the technique of
juxtaposition when describing Obi posture; “He was stoop-shouldered and looked frail. But he
sometimes surprised people with sudden bursts of energy. In his present posture however, all his
bodily strength seemed to have retired behind his deep set eyes, giving them an extraordinary
power of penetration, He was only twenty-six…”
The use of juxtaposition emphasises the energetic yet weakened persona of Obi; due to the
responsibility he has to reform and change the present education system.
Also in the above quote Achebe uses the literary technique of imagery and alliteration as we get a
clear picture of Obi in his chair and the words “power of penetration” gives us a good image to what
Obi’s face looks like and his ability to control and project his wife and people around him.

3. Linda Robinson
Humanities and Social Sciences Access to Higher Education Page 3
Personally I think Obi shows some good qualities but eventually his downfall is his zealousness and
lack of compromise that creates the resulting judgement from the inspector and retaliation from the
villagers. Moreover Achebe’s use of detail; such as the barbed wire that blocks the path and the
comments of the Supervisor (who is, ironically, white) that Michael has precipitated a “tribal-war
situation” may be Achebe’s clever yet controversial way of telling us that the conflict between
established tribal customs and “modern methods,” so trivial here, may in fact lie behind the
devastating civil wars and tribal genocide that have plagued Africa since the end of the colonial
period.