Akata Witch

by

Nnedi Okorafor

Teachers and parents! Our Teacher Edition on Akata Witch makes teaching easy.

Chichi Character Analysis

Chichi is first Orlu’s friend and neighbor, but she soon becomes Sunny and Sasha’s friends as well. She’s brash, quick, and confident, and she’s never clear about her age—she could be older or younger than Sunny’s 12 years. Sunny initially finds Chichi grating and confusing, as Chichi insults Sunny for her albinism and shares that she doesn’t attend normal (Lamb) school. But Chichi loves to take risks, so once she and Sunny know each other better, Chichi is the one to convince Orlu that they should get Sunny inducted into Leopard society. Anatov explains that Chichi remembers everything she sees, and that many adults would see Chichi as rude and too confident. She’d never make it in the Lamb world, where she’d likely be identified with learning disabilities and marked as a future criminal. But in the Leopard world, she’s a valuable asset because of her memory and her willingness to try complex and advanced juju charms, such as the one she works to call a masquerade at the student social at the Zuma Festival. Chichi is also very sexually mature compared to Sunny: she enjoys getting older men to look at her and then scolding them for sexualizing a child, and she and Sasha begin a romantic relationship midway through the novel. Though Sunny continues to find Chichi a bit hard to deal with, even as they become friends, Chichi takes helping Sunny feel comfortable very seriously. She coaches Sunny through calling forth her spirit face and helps her understand several other aspects of Leopard culture. In the final fight with Black Hat Otokoto, Chichi works an advanced juju charm—a gift from Ozoemena and Chichi’s mother—that brings Black Hat Otokoto’s past sins to life and causes them to torment him.

Chichi Quotes in Akata Witch

The Akata Witch quotes below are all either spoken by Chichi or refer to Chichi. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
Identity and Belonging Theme Icon
).
Chapter 2 Quotes

“But I can tell there’s more to you. I just know it.”

“What do you mean, more?”

Chichi smiled mysteriously. “People say stuff about people like you. That you’re all ghost, or a half and half, one foot in this world and one foot in another.” She paused. “That you can…see things.”

Sunny rolled her eyes. Not this again, she thought. So cliché. Everyone thinks the old lady, the hunchback, the crazy man, and the albino have magical evil powers. “Whatever,” she grumbled. She didn’t want to think about the candle.

Chichi laughed. “You’re right, those are silly stereotypes about albinos. But in your case, I think there’s something to it.”

Related Characters: Sunny Nwazue (speaker), Chichi (speaker)
Related Symbols: Sunny’s Albinism
Page Number: 23
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 3 Quotes

“If not for Sunny, we wouldn’t have come today.”

“Things have a way of working themselves out,” Anatov said. “It’s as I taught you: the world is bigger and more important than you.”

Related Characters: Chichi (speaker), Anatov (speaker), Sunny Nwazue, Orlu, Sasha, Black Hat Otokoto
Page Number: 54
Explanation and Analysis:

“Troublemaking black American,” Orlu spat. “Akata criminal.”

“Hey!” Sunny said.

“As if I don’t know what that means,” Sasha said, looking mildly annoyed.

[…]

“So you know,” [Sunny] continued, “I was born in the States, too. I came back with my parents when I was nine. That’s only three years ago.” She paused and looked meaningfully at Orlu. “I may not talk about it much, but most days I feel very much like an…akata.”

Related Characters: Sunny Nwazue (speaker), Orlu (speaker), Sasha (speaker), Chichi
Page Number: 58
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 4 Quotes

“But I’ve always known of my Leopard inheritance and I’ve always been able to do small things like make mosquitoes stay away, warm my bathwater, things like that. Initiation meant something different to me than to you. It’s more a mark of beginning my life’s journey. Yours was, too—but it was also the actual beginning of your Self.”

Related Characters: Chichi (speaker), Sunny Nwazue
Page Number: 64
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 6 Quotes

“Knowledge does not always evolve into wisdom.”

Related Characters: Anatov (speaker), Sunny Nwazue, Orlu, Chichi, Sasha, Isong Abong Effiong Isong
Page Number: 113
Explanation and Analysis:

“So because I’m a Leopard albino, I can—”

“Yes. Certain attributes tend to yield certain talents. […] Abilities are things people are able to do without the use of a juju knife, powders, or other ingredients like the head of an ebett. They just come naturally.”

Related Characters: Sunny Nwazue (speaker), Anatov (speaker), Orlu, Chichi, Sasha
Related Symbols: Sunny’s Albinism
Page Number: 117
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 7 Quotes

“If you’d have all perished, we’d have found you and your bodies would have been returned to your parents with…explanation,” Kehinde said.

Sunny’s mouth fell open. What kind of barbaric coldhearted man was this?

“Come now,” Kehinde said, pulling out a newspaper. He shook it at them. “Have you seen the news lately? If you haven’t noticed, a person’s life, especially a young person’s, isn’t worth much these days. The world is bigger than all of you. Chances have to be taken. But thankfully, here you are.”

Related Characters: Kehinde (speaker), Sunny Nwazue, Orlu, Chichi, Sasha, Black Hat Otokoto
Page Number: 132
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 9 Quotes

“Teamwork is the only reason you four lived to see Kehinde,” Anatov said. “There are seriously unsafe places in Leopard Knocks. Places where people try to steal chittim instead of earning it. Where they have forgotten why they receive chittim in the first place. Knowledge is more valuable than the chittim it earns.”

Related Characters: Anatov (speaker), Sunny Nwazue, Orlu, Chichi, Sasha, Black Hat Otokoto, Kehinde
Page Number: 148-149
Explanation and Analysis:

“The second and third are the university, for true scholars. Third levelers, Ndibus, who want to keep evolving.”

“My mother goes there,” Chichi said proudly. “She’s one of the younger students, though.”

“Younger?” Chichi’s mother was about her mother’s age.

“It’s not like with Lambs,” Orlu said. “Age is one of the requirements to even start at the Obi University of Pre-Scholars. You have to be over forty-two.”

Related Characters: Sunny Nwazue (speaker), Orlu (speaker), Chichi (speaker), Sasha, Sunny’s Mother, Chichi’s Mother
Page Number: 159
Explanation and Analysis:

“You expect us to capture this Black Hat, who is like you, one of these people who has passed the highest of the highest level of juju ability? That’s—I mean no disrespect—” She paused, the irritation that had been brewing in her for weeks suddenly flaring bright. She felt used. “That’s insane! And—and I’m beginning to know how you people think! You’ll just find some other kids to do it if we’re all murdered! And why am I included in this?! I don’t know anything!”

“This is bigger than you,” Taiwo said, turning very serious. “But you’re part of it, too. It would be unfair for me to expect you to understand this just yet, but you will.”

Related Characters: Sunny Nwazue (speaker), Taiwo (speaker), Orlu, Chichi, Sasha, Black Hat Otokoto
Page Number: 170
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 13 Quotes

“Why didn’t they stop it?”

“Because life doesn’t work that way,” Anatov said. “When things get bad, they don’t stop until you stop the badness—or die.” He paused. “That’s an important lesson for all of you. This is why I brought you here. This is why you’re staying in that hotel. Look around, listen, and learn. This is not a holiday. In a month, you will all be facing something as ugly as what these two men faced this afternoon.”

Related Characters: Sasha (speaker), Anatov (speaker), Sunny Nwazue, Orlu, Chichi, Black Hat Otokoto, Miknikstic/The Man, Sayé
Page Number: 242
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 15 Quotes

“How many chittim fell when it was over?”

“Seven coppers,” Orlu mumbled. “We could have gotten people killed and we got paid for it.”

“As a group you made a mistake and you learned you could also right it,” Anatov said.

Related Characters: Orlu (speaker), Anatov (speaker), Sunny Nwazue, Chichi, Sasha
Page Number: 283
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 16 Quotes

“No one is willing to push the envelope. So what if she called up a damn Mmuo Aku and it went wild! She still did it! She still performed the most sophisticated juju any of them had ever seen.”

“True, but you’re wrong,” Orlu said. “We can’t live in chaos. The ages are set for each level for a reason. You can be able to do something and not be mature enough to deal with the consequences.”

Related Characters: Orlu (speaker), Sasha (speaker), Sunny Nwazue, Chichi, Anatov
Page Number: 286
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 18 Quotes

Sunny frowned. “You mean you’ve sent other groups like ours? And—”

“We have and will continue to until Black Hat is taken down,” Yaboko said. “More is at stake than your lives.”

“Black Hat is a shrewd sorcerer,” Abok said. “He has protection, but we have watched for loopholes. The children that returned maimed but alive were all rescued by Oha covens.”

“Did the rescuers escape, too?” she asked.

None of the scholars replied. That was answer enough.

Related Characters: Sunny Nwazue (speaker), Abok (speaker), Orlu, Chichi, Sasha, Black Hat Otokoto
Page Number: 310
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 19 Quotes

“You come any closer and you’ll ruin what’s already in motion. Then I’ll have to slaughter you two instead of just these children. Get outside,” Black Hat said. Then he seemed to be speaking to someone else. “You all may leave, too. These kids are harmless. Go watch for real threats,” he said. All the commotion and squawking behind Sunny instantly stopped as the bush souls obeyed.

Related Characters: Black Hat Otokoto (speaker), Sunny Nwazue, Orlu, Chichi, Sasha
Page Number: 319
Explanation and Analysis:
Get the entire Akata Witch LitChart as a printable PDF.
Akata Witch PDF

Chichi Quotes in Akata Witch

The Akata Witch quotes below are all either spoken by Chichi or refer to Chichi. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
Identity and Belonging Theme Icon
).
Chapter 2 Quotes

“But I can tell there’s more to you. I just know it.”

“What do you mean, more?”

Chichi smiled mysteriously. “People say stuff about people like you. That you’re all ghost, or a half and half, one foot in this world and one foot in another.” She paused. “That you can…see things.”

Sunny rolled her eyes. Not this again, she thought. So cliché. Everyone thinks the old lady, the hunchback, the crazy man, and the albino have magical evil powers. “Whatever,” she grumbled. She didn’t want to think about the candle.

Chichi laughed. “You’re right, those are silly stereotypes about albinos. But in your case, I think there’s something to it.”

Related Characters: Sunny Nwazue (speaker), Chichi (speaker)
Related Symbols: Sunny’s Albinism
Page Number: 23
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 3 Quotes

“If not for Sunny, we wouldn’t have come today.”

“Things have a way of working themselves out,” Anatov said. “It’s as I taught you: the world is bigger and more important than you.”

Related Characters: Chichi (speaker), Anatov (speaker), Sunny Nwazue, Orlu, Sasha, Black Hat Otokoto
Page Number: 54
Explanation and Analysis:

“Troublemaking black American,” Orlu spat. “Akata criminal.”

“Hey!” Sunny said.

“As if I don’t know what that means,” Sasha said, looking mildly annoyed.

[…]

“So you know,” [Sunny] continued, “I was born in the States, too. I came back with my parents when I was nine. That’s only three years ago.” She paused and looked meaningfully at Orlu. “I may not talk about it much, but most days I feel very much like an…akata.”

Related Characters: Sunny Nwazue (speaker), Orlu (speaker), Sasha (speaker), Chichi
Page Number: 58
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 4 Quotes

“But I’ve always known of my Leopard inheritance and I’ve always been able to do small things like make mosquitoes stay away, warm my bathwater, things like that. Initiation meant something different to me than to you. It’s more a mark of beginning my life’s journey. Yours was, too—but it was also the actual beginning of your Self.”

Related Characters: Chichi (speaker), Sunny Nwazue
Page Number: 64
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 6 Quotes

“Knowledge does not always evolve into wisdom.”

Related Characters: Anatov (speaker), Sunny Nwazue, Orlu, Chichi, Sasha, Isong Abong Effiong Isong
Page Number: 113
Explanation and Analysis:

“So because I’m a Leopard albino, I can—”

“Yes. Certain attributes tend to yield certain talents. […] Abilities are things people are able to do without the use of a juju knife, powders, or other ingredients like the head of an ebett. They just come naturally.”

Related Characters: Sunny Nwazue (speaker), Anatov (speaker), Orlu, Chichi, Sasha
Related Symbols: Sunny’s Albinism
Page Number: 117
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 7 Quotes

“If you’d have all perished, we’d have found you and your bodies would have been returned to your parents with…explanation,” Kehinde said.

Sunny’s mouth fell open. What kind of barbaric coldhearted man was this?

“Come now,” Kehinde said, pulling out a newspaper. He shook it at them. “Have you seen the news lately? If you haven’t noticed, a person’s life, especially a young person’s, isn’t worth much these days. The world is bigger than all of you. Chances have to be taken. But thankfully, here you are.”

Related Characters: Kehinde (speaker), Sunny Nwazue, Orlu, Chichi, Sasha, Black Hat Otokoto
Page Number: 132
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 9 Quotes

“Teamwork is the only reason you four lived to see Kehinde,” Anatov said. “There are seriously unsafe places in Leopard Knocks. Places where people try to steal chittim instead of earning it. Where they have forgotten why they receive chittim in the first place. Knowledge is more valuable than the chittim it earns.”

Related Characters: Anatov (speaker), Sunny Nwazue, Orlu, Chichi, Sasha, Black Hat Otokoto, Kehinde
Page Number: 148-149
Explanation and Analysis:

“The second and third are the university, for true scholars. Third levelers, Ndibus, who want to keep evolving.”

“My mother goes there,” Chichi said proudly. “She’s one of the younger students, though.”

“Younger?” Chichi’s mother was about her mother’s age.

“It’s not like with Lambs,” Orlu said. “Age is one of the requirements to even start at the Obi University of Pre-Scholars. You have to be over forty-two.”

Related Characters: Sunny Nwazue (speaker), Orlu (speaker), Chichi (speaker), Sasha, Sunny’s Mother, Chichi’s Mother
Page Number: 159
Explanation and Analysis:

“You expect us to capture this Black Hat, who is like you, one of these people who has passed the highest of the highest level of juju ability? That’s—I mean no disrespect—” She paused, the irritation that had been brewing in her for weeks suddenly flaring bright. She felt used. “That’s insane! And—and I’m beginning to know how you people think! You’ll just find some other kids to do it if we’re all murdered! And why am I included in this?! I don’t know anything!”

“This is bigger than you,” Taiwo said, turning very serious. “But you’re part of it, too. It would be unfair for me to expect you to understand this just yet, but you will.”

Related Characters: Sunny Nwazue (speaker), Taiwo (speaker), Orlu, Chichi, Sasha, Black Hat Otokoto
Page Number: 170
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 13 Quotes

“Why didn’t they stop it?”

“Because life doesn’t work that way,” Anatov said. “When things get bad, they don’t stop until you stop the badness—or die.” He paused. “That’s an important lesson for all of you. This is why I brought you here. This is why you’re staying in that hotel. Look around, listen, and learn. This is not a holiday. In a month, you will all be facing something as ugly as what these two men faced this afternoon.”

Related Characters: Sasha (speaker), Anatov (speaker), Sunny Nwazue, Orlu, Chichi, Black Hat Otokoto, Miknikstic/The Man, Sayé
Page Number: 242
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 15 Quotes

“How many chittim fell when it was over?”

“Seven coppers,” Orlu mumbled. “We could have gotten people killed and we got paid for it.”

“As a group you made a mistake and you learned you could also right it,” Anatov said.

Related Characters: Orlu (speaker), Anatov (speaker), Sunny Nwazue, Chichi, Sasha
Page Number: 283
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 16 Quotes

“No one is willing to push the envelope. So what if she called up a damn Mmuo Aku and it went wild! She still did it! She still performed the most sophisticated juju any of them had ever seen.”

“True, but you’re wrong,” Orlu said. “We can’t live in chaos. The ages are set for each level for a reason. You can be able to do something and not be mature enough to deal with the consequences.”

Related Characters: Orlu (speaker), Sasha (speaker), Sunny Nwazue, Chichi, Anatov
Page Number: 286
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 18 Quotes

Sunny frowned. “You mean you’ve sent other groups like ours? And—”

“We have and will continue to until Black Hat is taken down,” Yaboko said. “More is at stake than your lives.”

“Black Hat is a shrewd sorcerer,” Abok said. “He has protection, but we have watched for loopholes. The children that returned maimed but alive were all rescued by Oha covens.”

“Did the rescuers escape, too?” she asked.

None of the scholars replied. That was answer enough.

Related Characters: Sunny Nwazue (speaker), Abok (speaker), Orlu, Chichi, Sasha, Black Hat Otokoto
Page Number: 310
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 19 Quotes

“You come any closer and you’ll ruin what’s already in motion. Then I’ll have to slaughter you two instead of just these children. Get outside,” Black Hat said. Then he seemed to be speaking to someone else. “You all may leave, too. These kids are harmless. Go watch for real threats,” he said. All the commotion and squawking behind Sunny instantly stopped as the bush souls obeyed.

Related Characters: Black Hat Otokoto (speaker), Sunny Nwazue, Orlu, Chichi, Sasha
Page Number: 319
Explanation and Analysis: