Journal 4

The tortoise was not invited to the dinner with the birds.  He did not like this so he told them he was a changed man eventually they believed him and invited the tortoise to the feast.  The Tortoise gave a speech at the dinner with the birds and then proceeded to eat all the food.  The birds did not like that he ate all food.  The Tortoise thought that he could fly like the birds so he went into the clouds and leaped. When he landed his shell was broken and then a medicine man put his shell back together but it was no longer smooth.   The purpose of the tortoise folk tale is to explain why the tortoise does not have a smooth shell which they could not explain.  I think that the tortoise was inserted into the story because in the story the tortoise had much hubris like Okonkwo so Achebe is trying to say that something bad ill happen to Okonkwo.