Or not.  Stupid snow.  Hopefully it gave you guys a chance to spend some time with Okonkwo and crew.  If not, go outside today and finish up the novel.  We'll be discussing the end in class tomorrow, and I don't want to ruin the ending for you.  Here's the plan:

The Plan

Until now, we've focused on the effects of Okonkwo's father's legacy on the man, and Okonkwo's choices in interacting with those around him.  The final section places him in an environment that he cannot control, and forces him to realize that he does not have complete power over those around him.  This is a sobering realization for our strong protagonist, and he makes some difficult choices (or are his (re)actions purely a result of his environment?  We'll see).

On Tuesday and Wednesday (if we finish our discussion of Okonkwo's life on Monday) I will present a brief overview of Existentialist ideas.  If you want to get a head start, I suggest The Stanford Encyclopedia of Psychology's page on "Existentialism" or *sigh* the Wikipedia's entry.  We may also read Jean-Paul Sartre's "Existentialism is a Humanism" to gain a better understanding of our author's ideas (you can find a copy here).

By Thursday we will discuss Part One of The Stranger.  Thirty pages per night may be more than you're used to reading, but Sartre's prose is not too dense.  Do plan to set aside some time to read the book in chunks, though.

On Friday we will discuss your tentative (hypo)thesis statements in class.  I will also ask you to write a brief paragraph contrasting the philosophies of Things Fall Apart and The Stranger. (Hint: it goes beyond TFA=fate and TS=choice.)  More on this later.