Things Fall Apart: ObiErika and Nwoye

          After reading the first two parts of Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe, Obierika and Nwoye are two characters that have really caught my attention. Just to make things clear, this is not only due to the fact that Obierika has my name in it! 
       Like everyone else in their clan, Obierika and Nwoye follow the rules that have been set up by their ancestors, but they begin to question why certain actions must be followed through.
       After Okonkwo flees Umuofia because he accidentally kills a boy, Obierika is one of the men who burns and destroys Okonkwo's home in order to cleanse the land. When the deed is done and Obierika is all alone, he begins to ponder over the situation and over his friend's misfortune.  He wonders, "Why should a man suffer so grievously for an offense he [has] committed inadvertently?"(Achebe 125)Obierika does not understand why Oknonkwo should be punished and forced to leave his home, when his action was merely an accident. Furthermore, he goes on to remember how he threw away his twin children even though they hadn't done anything to deserve this faith. Obierika is filled with conflicted emotions and questions why such unfair situations must occur to innocent people. 
        Just like Obierika, Nwoye does not agree with some of the clans orders. In his childhood, Nwoye was scarred by the death of Ikemefuna who was like a brother to him. His death was ordered by the Oracle and the orders were driven out by Nwoye's own father. It was no surprise when Nwoye felt attracted towards the white men and their new religion. It offered a different perspective in which Nwoye hoped to obtain explanations which he had not received from his own people.

"How to Spot a Liar"

        In this Ted Talk, Pamela Meyer talks about different ways that you can tell if a person is lying. It is amazing to think that all persons are liars. Even though we say we are against lying, because from a young age we are taught that it is wrong, our words are discredited by the lies we constantly make. 

Meyer says that 1 year olds lie by using concealment, 2 year olds bluff, 5 year olds lie and manipulate by using flattery, 9 year olds use cover ups, and by the time you are a teenager, you lie to your parents in 1 out of 5 interactions. It is incredible how from a young age we begin to lie to our parents in order to stay out of trouble and rid ourselves of consequences due to our bad behavior. We don't realize that by lying instead of admitting our wrongdoings we are making it even worse. According to Meyer, everyday you are likely to be lied to from 10 to 200 times a day, so I suggest from now on you be on the lookout! 

There are many signs that you can look for to tell if a person is lying. Usually we believe that when a person is lying, they will fidget and they won't make eye contact, but when people lie they keep their upper body straight and they make sure to look you straight in the eye. People who lie usually shift their blinking rate, point their feet towards an exit, lower their vocal tone, and put objects between them and the people they are lying to. Also, people who lie will use way too much detail and use formal rather than informal language, for example they will say "did not" instead of "didn't". I learned that women lie more to protect other people, men lie more about themselves, and extroverts lie more than introverts. People lie for many different reasons it might be to get out of trouble, to blame another, or to protect someone else. 

I found it interesting how Meyer explained that lying is a cooperative act. Usually we think of the person being lied to as the victim, but Meyer is trying to say that the person who is being lied to is unconsciously taking part in the lie. The only way that we can abstain from participating in a lie is to learn to identify the signs of a person who is lying. When people learn to identify these signs, lying will become more looked down on. Only then will honesty become more valued in our every day lives.