Thing Fall Apart: Part 11

In this chapter, Ekwefi tells Ezinma about a story about a tortoise, and how he tricks all of the birds at the feast while subsequently eating the best parts of the meal. The birds retaliate by taking away his feathers and making is so he could not fly home. The tortoise persuades the parrot to rely this message to his wife: cover the compound with their soft things so that he may jump from the sky without danger. With a malicious intent, Parrot tells his wife to cover the ground with hard things, and when he jumps, his shell breaks this explains why tortoise's shell is not smooth.

Later in the story Chielo informs Ekwefi that Agbala, the oracle of the Hills and Caves wishes to see Enzinma. At first, Okonkwo wanted Ezinma to wait until morning, and tried to convince to Chielo to wait. Angrily, Chielo reminds Okonkwo that he must not define the God's will. Overcoming the fear of divine punishment, Ekwefi follows them to the caves. When she arrives, she is started to see Okonkwo at the caves with a machete. Okonkwo calms are worried Ekwefi, which makes her think of the time she ran away from her first husband to be with Okonkwo.

1) What was the main point for telling the story about the tortoise and the birds?

2) Why kind of relationship do Ezinma and Ekwefi have?