Language and literary devices

Style of writing

The language in Chinua Achebe’s short story “Dead Men’s Path” is neutral. For the dialogue, the author uses contractions at times, but when it comes to narration the language is highly descriptive and elegant so it makes the writing style more formal. 

The way the characters talk is important. For example, Obi sometimes uses excessively formal language such as “eradicate” or “thoroughfare”, which shows his need to portray himself as an educated man and his perceived superiority over others. 

Literary devices

There are several times when the characters use specific expressions. For example, Nancy Obi uses the idiom “ ‘a penny for your thoughts’ ” implying that she wants to know what her husband is thinking about. The use of this idiom highligh...