- I believe that the problems that Reverend Smith caused between the church and the clan, are meant to depict the issues with the European colonization. The scene in the novel that I felt showed this was when the egwugwu assembled to destroy the church in response to Enoch killing an ancestral spirit. During these events, Okwonko wished to respond to the church in an even more violent fashion. Rather than simply destroying the church, Okwonko wanted his clan to kill the Christians. Even though Okwonko wanted to kill the Christians, it was not mainly due to the disrespect that they showed to his culture. The main reason was to gain greater respect by the village. After his exile, Okwonko was looking for some way to redeem himself. I think that similarities can be drawn between Okwonko and European colonization. Both had ulterior motives for their actions. The reason for European colonization was not to simply spread Christianity. Some of the primary reasons for the colonization were economic and political. Just like Okwonko, the colonist justified their actions as something for the greater good even though their motives were most beneficial to themselves.
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