Author Okey Ndibe Talks to AP Literature Students at Simsbury High

Submitted release 

On Dec. 6, 2013, novelist, political columnist, and essayist Okey Ndibe was greeted by Simsbury High School (SHS) seniors in Linda Miron’s Advanced Placement Composition & Literature class and then gave a talk in the high school amphitheater for nearly 100 students in Miron’s, John Mudano’s and Jed Flaherty’s AP English classes.

From the start, Ndibe’s witty and intellectually stimulating style engaged the students, who had prepared for his visit by reading Joseph Conrad’s Heart of Darkness and Nigerian writer Chinua Achebe’s Things Fall Apart as well as Achebe’s article, “An Image of Africa: Racism in Conrad’s Heart of Darkness.” Ndibe’s main topic was the novel Things Fall Apart, originally published in 1958. Ndibe had worked in Nigeria as a journalist and magazine editor, and came to the United States in 1988 at Achebe’s invitation. The novel depicts the life of Okonkwo, a leader and local wrestling champion in a fictional Nigerian village, inhabited by the “Ibo” people. The book portrays the villagers’ society and customs as well as the influence of British colonialism and Christian missionaries on the community during the late nineteenth century.

Ndibe gave his own insights and analysis of the novel, offering up a wealth of philosophical nuggets for the students. On the notion of historical perspective, Ndibe commented, “A contemporary act acquires meaning only because of an event in antiquity.” And in describing how the main character in Things Fall Apart was perpetually quick to act rather than think first, he concluded, “Action should always be wedded to thinking.”

Ndibe also discussed persistent themes of gender bias and racism, both blatant and hidden, relating his personal experiences to drive home his points. He talked about how he came to the United States 25 years ago and was once asked how he traveled “because there are no African airports.” In his typical irreverent manner, Ndibe explained how he reacted to the ignorant comment: “I rode here on the back of a crocodile.”

Ndibe invited the students to ask questions, and they rose to the challenge. One student asked, “What is the importance of telling stories?” Ndibe chuckled and responded, “I would tell you if we had all day to answer.”

The class period flew by too quickly, and several students approached the author after his talk to thank him for coming. Never missing an opportunity to promote good literature, his parting advice to them was, “Read Gilgamesh.”

Ndibe is a highly sought after speaker on African and African American literature and politics. He has taught at Connecticut College in New London and Trinity College in Hartford, as well as served as a Visiting Assistant Professor of Africana Studies at Brown University. He is the founding editor of African Commentary, a magazine published by Achebe. He also has served on the editorial board of The Hartford Courant where his article, “Eyes to the Ground: The Perils of the Black Student,” won the 2001 Association of Opinion Page Editors award for best opinion essay in an American newspaper.

Ndibe lives in West Hartford. He just finished his second novel, foreign gods, inc., which debuts on January 14, 2014, and is working on a memoir of his life in the United States.