Tortoise Story

        The story about a greedy tortoise is meant to tell why the tortoise's shell is not smooth. The story is about a hungry tortoise who hasn't eaten for a long time. He hears about an upcoming feast  and asks the birds to give him wings. The birds deny him at first until he then lies about his personality. He manipulates the birds by changing his name to "all of you". Knowing that the birds will say "this food is for all of you". The birds then take away his feathers. He tells his wife to put all the soft things on the roof so that he can jump and land on cushion. The birds trick him and put all the hard things on the roof, that's why the turtles have a cracked shell.
         The purpose of the folktale is to foreshadow Okonkwo's actions. It's inserted in this part of the story because now that Ezinma is dying, it's not all about Okonkwo. This is bringing out Okonkwo's "soft side".