SuperBarracuda2761
1.Why is the historical and cultural context of “Civil Peace”…
1.Why is the historical and cultural context of “Civil Peace” important to understanding and appreciating the story?
2.Read the selection below from “Civil Peace” by Chinua Achebe and answer the question that follows.
“Awright! We know say you no get plenty money. But we sef no get even anini. So derefore make you open dis window and give us one hundred pound and we go commot. Orderwise we de come for inside now to show you guitar-boy like dis . . .”
A volley of automatic fire rang through the sky. Maria and the children began to weep aloud again.
Hint: Anini is a Nigerian coin of very little value.
Which of the following is the best translation for the tief-man’s dialogue?
a.”Okay! We understand that you claim you don’t have a lot of money. But we don’t even have an anini. If you open this window and give us a hundred pounds, we’ll leave. Otherwise, we’ll go inside and show you our weapons.”
b.”You are lying about how much money you have. We know that you have an anini. Open up your window and give us one hundred anini. If you don’t, we’re going to leave without showing you our weapons.”
c.”We believe you do not have a lot of money. I don’t think you even have an anini. Still, I want you to open this window and pretend to give me a hundred pounds. Then we’ll go.”
d.”If you don’t have money, then maybe we got the wrong house. Are you sure you don’t even have an anini? How about you open this window and I check to see if you have a hundred pounds lying around. Then, we’ll go.”
3.Chinua Achebe believes that “[l]iterature, whether handed down by word of mouth or in print, gives us a second handle on reality.” Using the story “Civil Peace” as evidence, defend or refute (argue against) Achebe’s opinion.
4.Read the selection below from “Civil Peace” by Chinua Achebe and answer the question that follows.
As soon as the pound notes were placed in his palm Jonathan simply closed it tight over them and buried fist and money inside his trouser pocket. He had to be extra careful because he had seen a man a couple of days earlier collapse into near madness in an instant before that oceanic crowd because no sooner had he got his twenty pounds than some heartless ruffian picked it off him. Though it was not right that a man in such an extremity of agony should be blamed yet many in the queues that day were able to remark quietly at the victim’s carelessness, especially after he pulled out the innards of his pocket and revealed a hole in it big enough to pass a thief’s head. But of course he had insisted that the money had been in the other pocket, pulling it out too to show its comparative wholeness. So one had to be careful.
What do you think motivates the “many in the queues” to blame the man for being robbed? Mention both implied and explicit details and defend both using evidence from the story.
5.Read the selections below from “Civil Peace” by Chinua Achebe and answer the question that follows.
1. “My friends,” began Jonathan hoarsely. “I hear what you say and I thank you. If I had one hundred pounds . . .”
2. “Lookia my frien, no be play we come play for your house. If we make mistake and step for inside you no go like am-o.”
Which of the following is the best translation of line 2?
a-“Look here my friend, we are here to play around. We won’t make a mistake and go inside with ammo.”
b-“Look at my friend not wanting to play with us. Maybe it’s a mistake for us to talk. We should go inside and show him the ammo.”
c-“Look here my friend, it’s not an accident that we came to your house. If we come inside and find that we are mistaken, we won’t shoot you.”
d-“Look at my friend. He thinks we’re just playing around. Maybe it was a mistake standing out here without ammo.”
6.Read the selection below from “Civil Peace” by Chinua Achebe and answer the question that follows.
“Awrighto. Now make we talk business. We no be bad tief. We no like for make trouble. Trouble done finish. War done finish and all the katakata wey de for inside. No Civil War again. This time na Civil Peace. No be so?”
What is ironic about the lines above?
a-They are being said by a violent thief threating others with automatic rifles.
b-The violence is actually worse now that the war is over.
c-During the war, the violence was committed by people. Now, it is commited by nature.
d-Violence is encouraged in Nigerian culture, so it would exist both in war and during peace.
7.Describe Jonathan’s outlook on life and defend your analysis with evidence from the story.
8.What does Jonathan’s family do the morning after the robbery?
a-They decide to move to a safer neighborhood.
b-They begin the next day’s work.
c-They complain about the robbery.
d-They yell at the neighbors for not coming to their aid.
9.What does the phrase “nothing puzzles God” mean in the context of the story “Civil Peace” by Chinua Achebe? Why do you think Jonathan uses it?
10.Read the selection below from “Civil Peace” by Chinua Achebe and answer the question that follows.
“My frien,” said he at long last, “we don try our best for call dem but I tink say dem all done sleep-o . . . So wetin we go do now? Sometaim you wan call soja? Or you wan make we call dem for you? Soja better pass police. No be so?”
Which of the following is the best translation of the tief-man’s words?
a-“We tried our best to call for the soldiers, but they are all asleep. What can you do about that? Do you want to try calling for the soldiers? You can’t make us try again. Soldiers are better than police, right?”
b-“Don’t bother calling for help, we’ve put everyone to sleep. What do you want to do now? Don’t call for the soldiers because soldiers are not better than the police.”
c-“Everyone is asleep, so I wouldn’t bother trying to call for help. What would happen if you did? Well, perhaps the soldiers would show up instead of the police. You wouldn’t want that to happen would you?”
d-“We’ve tried to help you call for help, but it seems everyone is asleep. What do you want to do now? Would you like to call for soldiers? Want us to call them for you? Soldiers are better than police, right?”
