The Voter
Q-1). Sketch the character of Rufus
Okeke.
Ans) Rufus
Okeke, alias Roof is the protagonist in the short story “The Voter”. He is a
complex a character.
Roof’s strengths -- Unlike other young men of Umuofia, he is the one who comes back to his village only to guide his people. People love and respect him. He is very active and a good speaker. He becomes a trusted man to Marcus Ibe who is a minister in PAP government. He is shrewd and intelligent. He knows the mood and temper of voters at any given time. He is well-versed in electioneering at all levels. He is a good manipulator. He uses different strategies to win vote for his master.
Roof uses the goodwill for manipulating. He is a changed
man now. He has become selfish. He misuses the trust of his master as well as
his people for his selfish gains. He becomes a moral bankrupt when he is
offered five pounds for his vote. Though he consoles himself giving reasons to
his act of omission and commission, he is still a guilty conscious man. He has
no control over his drinking habit.
Q-2)
Roof as an intelligent manipulator. Justify this statement with respect to the
story ‘The Voter’.
Ans ) Rufus Okeke,
alias Roof is a protagonist in the short story “The Voter”. He is a complex character. He is an important part of politics is in itself a
testimony that he is a manipulator. He has gained the love and trust of his
people and his master, Marcus Ibe. He uses, or rather misuses, to win vote for his master.
Roof uses three pronged strategy during his campaign trails. ( 1) He woos the
voter by offering shillings and pipe borne water. (2) He praises them of being lucky to have a son of
Umuofia as a minister. (3) He threatens the
voters by saying that even if they vote to Maduka, PAP will form the next
government for sure. He warns them that
their votes will simply go waste
if they do not vote for Marcus Ibe. He is the head of the whispering campaign.
He bargains as much as possible but makes sure that people vote for PAP. First
he offers two shillings to each voter. When they say it is shameful, he puts
one more. When they don’t pick up, he puts one more and resolutely says it was
the maximum he can offer. People are of the opinion that Roof has made a lot of
money during the campaign. These all
show that he is a good
manipulator.
Q-3)
Trace the change in the attitude of the voters of Umuofia before the second
election.
Ans)
As there was
no formidable opposition in Umuofia, people voted for PAP without expecting
anything from Marcus Ibe in the previous election and Marcus won a landslide
victory. Now, they are still with PAP but, they are expecting some
money for their vote. They say that they have come to know that their votes
have some value. They
are of the opinion that Marcus has made a lot of money during the last five
years and hence they are demanding a little of it to be given to the voters.
They say that they did not ask yesterday and will not ask tomorrow, today is their day and they are
firm in their resolution to get something for their vote this time.
Everyone is opportunistic, everyone is
ethically bankrupt in this corruption ridden system and society. It is very
akin to our own system in India.
Q-4)
Describe the meeting of POP campaign head with Roof. What was the outcome of
the meeting?
Ans) The night
before the election day, there is a surprise and a secret meeting of the two
stalwarts of POP and PAP. POP campaign head, accompanied by few men, meets Roof at the latter’s residence. Though
both are friends, the meeting is cold and business like. The man offers Roof
five pounds for Roof’s single vote. Roof is taken aback but the notes kept in
front of him jitter him. He can’t resist the temptation. His conscience puts him in dilemma. He knows well that
succumbing to the temptation means betrayal of trust that his master has on
him. He asks The POP men if the deal
would be kept a secret. The leader of POP says that they are after votes not gossips. But, greed over powers his
conscience and finally Roof falls in to the trap of POP. Roof is made to swear
by ‘iyi’ before they depart from there to make sure that he votes to
Maduka.
That day, ethics and moral values were on sale. Vice won over nobility.
6 Marks Question
Q-5) To every man comes a time for reckoning. How
does Roof’s dilemma on the day of election reflect this?
Ans) The short story ‘The
Voter’ by Chinua Achebe, lays bare the electoral malpractices that make the
mockery of a sacred institution called ‘Democracy’. It also exposes how corruption and greed
destroy the human character. It also makes one sad to see that the cherished
ethics and values like morality and trust surrender to the power of money.
Roof is
a trustworthy man to Marcus Ibe. He is very active in campaigning. He does all
that fetches votes for his master. Roof has been a faithful man so far. But on
the eve of election day, Roof falls prey to the bribe offer from the rival camp.
Greed overpowers conscience and he accepts five pounds as bribe to vote for
Maduka. He even swears on Iyi that he would vote for Maduka.
On the day of
election, Guilty conscious Roof tries hard to conceal his guilt that is showing on his face now and
then. When his turn comes, he acts as if he is joyful and gets in to the booth.
He takes a lot of time inside the booth. This is the proof that he is in
dilemma and contemplating.
The
time for reckoning comes now to Roof. He has to decide on his action. Suddenly
a thought flashes in his mind. He folds the ballot paper and tears it in to two and drops each half in
to two boxes, verbally confirming that he votes for Maduka.
Roof seems to be relived of the guilt as he thinks that he has done a right thing. But it is a temporary relief. It is merely an act of escapism for not doing justice to anyone. The guilt will remain forever.
(To understand the story well, watch this video. It is explained in kannada.)
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