Dead Men's Path

537 Words2 Pages

The story “Dead Men’s Path” by Chinua Achebe readers are presented initially with the point of view of Michael Obi, the protagonist or more so the anti-hero, and his wife Nancy—their excitement and hidden fears of Obi becoming the youngest headmaster. Obi aspired to alter the unprogressive ways of the school with the various ideas he had been hoping to one day put into action. Its in my opinion that Obi looses his sense of compassion as the review approaches for the school. Obi is striving for the school to seem flawless and in that Obi begins to place a higher value on the school and how he is portrayed as a headmaster. When the village priest of Ani confronts Obi on the blockage of the path, it seems that his character is to personify tradition/religion—the path for the dead relatives to travel, ancestors to visit, the children to be born—in regards to Obi’s standing that the path holds no justifiable meaning to allow the villagers to travel through the school grounds and continue to destroy the flower beds planted by his wife, Nancy.

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