Book Report: No Longer at Ease

Book Report: No Longer at Ease

The story No Longer at Ease by Chinua Achebe is a classic tragedy about a young man from Nigeria named Obi Okonkwo. A classic tragedy is a piece of literary work in which the main character is brought to ruin or suffers extreme sorrow, especially as a consequence of a tragic flaw, moral weakness, or inability to cope with unfavorable circumstances. The main character is Obi Okonkwo, he leaves his village to go to Europe and receive an education, although he eventually returns back to Nigeria. The book mainly takes place in Nigeria, specifically in Lagos, with a few brief trips to Obi's birthplace, Umuofi, the story is set during the 1950s, before Nigeria achieved independence from Great Britain.

The story begins with the trial of Obi Okonkwo on the charge of accepting a bribe. It then jumps back in time to a point before his departure for England and works its way forward to describe how Obi ended up on trial. The Umuofia Progressive Union (U.P.U) gave Obi a scholarship to pursue a law degree in England, a scholarship that Obi must pay back upon his completion of the degree and return back to Nigeria. While in England, two major things happen that change the direction of Obi’s future. First, he changes his course of study to English and abandons law. Secondly, he meets a young women named Clara at a dance in London, the girl is Nigerian also, and on Obi's boat ride back home, after nearly four years in England, he meets Clara once again. From that point on a relationship quickly develops.

After four years of studies in England, Obi returns to Lagos and lives with his friend Joseph. Looking for work, Obi takes a job with the Scholarship Board and is almost immediately offered a bribe by a man who is trying to acquire a scholarship for his sister. When Obi indignantly rejects the offer, he is visited by the girl herself, who implies that she will bribe him with sexual favors for the scholarship, Obi stays strong, does the right...