Cultural Differences In Chinua Achebe's Things Fall Apart

In “Things Fall Apart”, the Author Chinua Achebe wrote the book to show the real perspectives of the Igbo people.The difference from “Things Fall Apart” to other books about the Igbo people is that they are told by outsiders. Achebe book is a fiction about a main character name Okonkwo, who is an influential clan leader in Umuofia who experienced from british influence.

Change is a reoccurring theme throughout history. It destroys and creates. It displaces and introduces. It can cause death and life. The movement of imperialism in Africa brought great change to the native tribal life. Forcing the indigenous people to turn away from their century-old traditions caused violent rifts between the European settlers and the tribes, as well as internal problems between once amiable members of the Ibo culture. With the introduction of the foreign Western Society in Chinua Achebe’s Things Fall Apart, the tribe’s life and ideals are drastically altered as the new ethics and principles collide with the old traditions and laws, causing the members of the society to either adapt or be crushed underneath the foot of colonialism. Achebe’s character, Okonkwo, was impacted immensely by the cultural collision, as his previous way of life was pulverized before his eyes, and he found no reason to live any longer.

In Things Fall Apart there are many cultural collisions created by the introduction of Western ideas into Ibo culture. Through careful examination about the character Okonkwo in the novel “Things Fall Apart”, by Chinua Achebe, we come to realize Okonkwo was in fact un-accepting of the cultural collision. Okonkwo was sadly unable to adapt to the new society that was set forth to him.

The novel, Things Fall Apart, by Chinua Achebe centers around a man named Okonkwo, and it explores Igbo culture through two tribes that Okonkwo is a part of, the Umuofia and the Mbanta. The novel demonstrates a number of core aspects of the Igbo culture which include religion, tradition, discipline, and unity. After exploring these aspects of Igbo culture, the novel shows how they are affected and changed by European colonialism. Achebe specifically uses interactions between Okonkwo, his tribes, and European missionaries to portray what happened to Igbo culture once European colonialism was introduced.

Firstly, Okonkwo’s fear of being akin to his father plays a major role in characterising Okonkwo. This fear, in particular, is one of the earliest, in-depth portrayals of what motivates Okonkwo’s hard working nature and determination. Okonkwo’s distaste for his father, or men akin to his father, is first revealed in the characterisation of his father, Unoka. The quote: “He had no patience for unsuccessful men. He had no patience for his father” (ch1, pg3) shows the comparison of Okonkwo’s father to an unsuccessful man. This comparison allows the reader to infer that the Unoka held traits, such as inertia, and idleness, which made him unproductive. This is built upon further with the quote: “Perhaps down in his heart Okonkwo was not a cruel man. But his whole life was dominated by fear, the fear of failure and of weakness... It was the fear of himself, lest he should be found to resemble his father… And so Okonkwo was ruled by one passion – to hate everything that his father Unoka had loved. One of those things was gentleness and another was idleness.” (Ch2, pg 12). This use of direct characterisation to portray Okonkwo’s father reveals what Okonkwo is afraid of becoming by describing the attitudes displayed by Unoka that Okonkwo, therefore, avidly tries to avoid. This allows the reader to infer a reason for

Violence is a key factor due to the way it contributes to the shaping of Chinua Achebe’s novel, Things Fall Apart. Okonkwo “[is] a man of action, a man of war.” (69). He is a man of bravery, loyalty, little emotion, and a war-like mindset. The novel focuses the changes of the Ibo clan in Nigeria during the 1890s; with colonization of white settlers and the new religion, Christianity.

Sometimes readers may feel sympathetic for Okonkwo because of his inability control himself but most of the time, he deserves his faults. In Chinua Achebe’s Things Fall Apart, the author thought there was a lack of Nigerian colonization and wanted to show an accurate portrayal of the clash between the African culture and western ideas. His book showed two issues, one between Igbo society and another with an unknown culture to them, the British. Okonkwo’s flaw of anger and fear of weakness makes him corrupt because of his dad, Unoka. Therefore, it caused Okonkwo to start from poverty and then work to become the most well-known and wealthy person but slowly falls down. Chinua Achebe uses Okonkwo to portray the true nature of what happens when two cultures clash through misunderstandings and conflicts.

In the novel, Things Fall Apart, Chinua Achebe demonstrates how the integration of two different cultures can result in the destruction of one entirely. The story is centered around Umuofia, one of the 9 Ibo villages in Nigeria, Africa. It is a confined, well-structured society that is commonly viewed as a Utopia, or an imagined place or state of things in which everything is perfect. It is a tight-knit community with little to no conflict. All inhabitants share the same cultural beliefs, the village has a well-developed justice system to keep things in order, and they even have traditions that bring them all closer together. However, it doesn't take too long for things to completely fall apart. Sooner rather than later, the village

Chinua Achebe’s Things Fall Apart depicts the Nigerian tribe Umuofia and their struggle to keep their identity and tradition from European missionaries. In particular, the novel follows the life of Okonkwo, a man who is revered in his village but is also known for his explosive anger and brutal judgment. Okonkwo strives very hard to provide for his three wives and eight children and to also become a successful title holder among his clansmen. Okonkwo’s father, Unoka, was very lazy and did not hold a title.

Are men always supposed to be represented as superior and tough? The novel, “Things Fall Apart” is about the tragic fall of the Ibo culture and main character Okonkwo. Reason why things fall apart is due to the men within the Ibo culture converting to a new religion. Chinua Achebe shows that men in the Ibo culture are expected to be superior, successful, and strong. Okonkwo is one man who embodies all the traits of a successful man. Achebe also shows how unsuccessful men of the Ibo culture led to things falling apart.The novel shows this with multiple events that happened in the the book for example when Okonkwo the main character becomes successful by beating Amalinze the Cat in a wrestling match and much more. In the novel men are represented

The purpose of this text was to show the stubbornness and arrogance that Okonkwo, from Chinua Achebe’s novel of Things Fall Apart (TFA), has as a flaw in his character. Ultimately this flaw is his hamartia which is outlined in the concluding sentences of the task, stating that “people tell me that I must learn to adapt, that it’s my greatest weakness. I think differently, I think resilience is the key to survival. If the wave of change is to come, then so be it, I shall stand my ground and tackle it.” In TFA, Achebe shows how Okonkwo continuously shows the inability to adapt to cultural diffusion with the British colonization of modern day Nigeria.

Change. Our world is all about change now in days. One phone to the next, one hairstyle to another, or new style of clothes. All we do now is change and go with the flow. But do we have to change. Things Fall Apart is a story all about change. It’s written by Chinua Achebe. I don’t believe that we do and neither did Okonkwo. Okonkwo did what I believe what was right which was stood up for his beliefs.

In the novel Things Fall Apart, strength and pride are key aspects of the protagonist, Okonkwo. However, these traits may sound exceptional, but because of the way he was constructed, Okonkwo possesses many of his emotions under an outer shell of violence in fear of being perceived as weak. Achebe uses Okonkwo’s internal conflicts between himself and Ikemefuna to present the idea of how fear can control the actions an individual takes.

Chinua Achebe’s novel “Things Fall Apart” chronicles the life of Okonkwo, a strong man whose existence is dominated by fear and anger, and the Ibo tribe, a people deeply rooted in cultural belief and tradition. As events unfold, Okonkwo’s carefully constructed world and the Ibo way of life collapses. The story of Okonkwo’s fall from a respected and feared leader of the Ibo tribe to an outcast who dies in disgrace dramatizes his inability to evolve beyond his personal beliefs, affecting the entire Ibo tribe beyond measure. The “things” that fall apart in Achebe’s novel are Okonkwo’s life – his ambition, dreams, family unity and material wealth – and the Ibo way of life – their beliefs, culture and values.

The description given early in the novel clearly establishes his character as being a strong and wealthy man who is well respected among the rest of the tribe due to his superior fighting abilities and his influential personality. Having achieved such elite status within the Umuofia clan, Okonkwo appears to be old-fashioned as it is seen in his approach in raising his family and tribal people. However, Okonkwo’s character changes incrementally with the emergence of a boy, Ikemefuna, from a neighboring village, who was brought to him because of his brutal attack against his wife Ojiugo during the ‘week of peace’. Amongst the Umuofia clan, the ‘week of peace’ is a tribal ritual whose conditions are not to complete any evil sins in a certain week span. After having accepted Ikemefuna into the family, Okonkwo experiences a shift in his mental state. Shortly hereafter, he questions this change, which demonstrates his lack of willingness to change which is clearly demonstrated in the book in several different ways like in chapter Eight, Okonkwo proclaims to himself, “When did you become a shivering old woman, you, who are known in all nine villages for your valour in war” (Achebe 56). This represents that his character has become a weaker, less influential individual amongst the nine tribes where he is well known. Symbolically, this depicts a fragile reputation in Okonkwo’s status within the community to which he belongs.