Things Fall Apart By Chinua Achebe

The novel Things Fall Apart was written in 1958 by a late Nigerian author, Chinua Achebe. Things Fall Apart alludes to the effects of European Imperialism on Igbo culture. This novel begins in a fictional town called “Umuofia”, on the boundary of modern day Nigeria. European missionaries arrive in Umuofia, uninvited and especially unwelcomed. Upon the missionaries arrival, Umuofia’s cultural tradition is shaken to its core and tampered with by the Europeans. The effects of the Europeans on the Igbo culture in Umuofia alter the village’s religion, political structure, and the Igbo peoples way of life.

In the novel, “Things Fall Apart” by Chinua Achebe the Igbo tradition revolves around structured gender role. Everything essential of Igbo life is based on their gender, which throughout the novel it shows the role of women and the position they hold, from their role in the family household, also planting women crops, to bearing children. Although the women were claimed to be weaker and seemed to be treated as objects, in the Igbo culture the women still provided qualities that make them worthy.

Before the arrival of the white missionaries in the land, the people uses to get along fine. Then the British set the clan in fire, with some people wants to follow the tradition beliefs and other converting to Christianity. Surprisingly, the colonialist life creates the constant fear in one mind that he is existed in two distinct society. Each one of them is pulling the opposite direction, and that person will be forced to choose one or the other (Patrick 27. Print). That is the conflicting circumstance that Okonkwo faces in the novel Thing Fall Apart, he could not let his clan or his forefathers land to be subjected to stranger and rule by a distant person that he will never see in present his lifetime. Even though, some people in the tribes want to be part of the British empire, they still want, “their white rulers to rule from the expectation of their traditional villages”

In Chinua Achebe’s novel Things Fall Apart, Ezinma battles an internal conflict of wanting to act like the opposite gender, but is looked down upon because of her sex. Ezinma ultimately resolves this conflict by following the expectations of society; however, this choice also illustrates her true character as both rebellious and ladylike. Ezinma’s decision to follow the gender roles also reveals the universal theme that social orders may determine how an individual acts according to stereotypes and gender roles.

Imagine living in a world of perfect paradise, where no one disturbs you or takes away your freedom of thought. You’re living in pure harmony and feel as if your life is going to be peaceful forever. But what if one day someone comes along and changes your world, taking away your custom beliefs and changing your culture. What would you do? In the novel Things Fall Apart, by Chinua Achebe, the character Okonkwo, an indigenous member of the Ibo tribe, comes in conflict with the European settlers as they try to convert his tribe to Christianity. Even though many people choose to convert to this new system, Okonkwo, along with a few friends, respond adversely to this foreign settlement as they attempt to restore order in their native village. As the Europeans bring their religion, messengers, and government into the tribe, the outcome of Okonkwo 's response, causes him to bring his identity into query when he realizes that things that were formerly common, will always collapse in the end.

Chinua Achebe, author of Things Fall Apart, once said: “A man who makes trouble for others is also making troubles for himself”. This concept can be seen in the development of Okonkwo as a character throughout the book. Creating plenty of trouble for others, but ultimately creating the most trouble for himself is possibly the plot for the entire book. Generally, the creation of trouble is not a value that is appreciated in any culture, especially in Umuofia. Okonkwo breaks many of the boundaries and social norms within his culture; his tendency to be immature and unaccountable combined with being very self-concerned and the defiance of elders creates an interesting mix adjacent to the cultural standards.

Social rank and relative wealth play great roles in determining a person’s life in Umuofia society. Sometimes a man with sheer force of will cannot change his future through hard work. One of the main conflicts in Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe is the clash between Okonkwo’s determination to succeed, his free will, and fate – which seems to have less appealing things in mind. Okonkwo’s will plays a major factor in determining his future; he chooses to kill Ikemefuna with his own hands, he chooses to kill a government official, and in the end, he chooses to take his own life. However, the pre-destined conditions of his life, his father’s failures, and a series of unfortunate circumstances ultimately lead to Okonkwo’s downfall.

Change is a natural process that triggers the evolution of human societies; it is the continuous eradication of traditions that are replaced by the new. Chinua Achebe’s ‘Things Fall Apart’ (TFA), a novel written in 1958, explores the gradual transformation of the Ibo culture as a result of colonialism and also the attitudes the people of Umoufia developed when exposed to foreign ideologies; the change was either accepted or resisted. Peter Skrzynecki’s ‘Crossing The Red Sea’ (CRS) and ‘Feliks Skrzynecki’ (FS) from the Immigrant Chronicle, a poetry collection published in 1975 depicts the evolution of the Australian society due to factors including migration, assimilation and different perceptions. These forces of change contributed to the

In Chinua Achebe’s Things Fall Apart, Christianity is introduced to a tribal clan through missionaries. The clan, however, has their own religion, which comprises of a clear social structure. While the mission is beneficial to many members of the clan, others are not content with the new influence. The Agbala—men with no title—are grateful for the new religion: the mission provides them with a new opportunity to become a respected member of society. The powerful men are wary of this change, as it decreases their power and status in the society, and allows for more social freedom and movement. As many in the tribe take to the new religion, the culture is slowly forgotten, causing conflict. When the missionaries enter Umuofia and attempt

This world can appear to be a very large place when looking at the perspective of the earth on a globe. We notice the many continents and the vast country places, which exist within in it. The blueness of the seas that stretches from one end to the other is overwhelming within itself. It’s an elementary fact that life is prevalent on the dry places on the earth. However, another fact is true. Every society wants to establish its importance along with its reason for living and existing. The people of Umuofia were a people who had a strong belief in their power for oneness. Okonkwo’s people were a society of people who exercised strength and agility. The power of their strength came partly from their cultural beliefs. The clan of

Solomon Northup executed his very gruesome and serious tone throughout his memoir by providing dialogue said by real life people and using diction to give nauseating details to events going on around him throughout his twelve years in bondage. For example, Solomon Northup explains in chapter five how a fellow free slave named Arthur was abused for trying to protest the unfair kidnapping. Solomon states,” He fought until his strength failed him. Overpowered at last, he was gagged and bound with ropes, and beaten, until he became insensible.” (39). The slave masters were not compassionate and defiantly enforced the depressing tone of the memoir. Solomon Northup explains how Eliza, a slave mother, is being separated from her son and the cruel,

Change, especially unexpected change, can be a major ordeal for anyone. This challenge is true for especially Okonkwo, who was ruler of a stable, thriving clan in the novel, “Things Fall Apart” by Chinua Achebe, until he returned to reality after seven years of exile. Upon his return, he found that his clan had adopted a new religion, welcomed foreign missionaries, and reversed many of the traditional aspects of the clan. While Okonkwo was in exile, several events that occurred that led to this new way of life. His exile, Ikemefuna's death, and Nwoye’s conversion contributed to the clan’s adoption of new religions and lifestyles. Okonkwo was unable to comprehend change, much less the unplanned, unapproved change in his own clan, one he used

As a story about a culture on the verge of change, Things Fall Apart deals with how the prospect and reality of change affect various characters. To some extent, Okonkwo’s resistance of cultural change is also due to his fear of losing societal status. Long scorned, these outcasts find in the Christian value system a refuge from the Igbo cultural values that place them below everyone else. The tension about whether change should be privileged over tradition often involves questions of personal status. Okonkwo, for example, resists the new political and religious orders because he feels that they are not manly and that he himself will not be manly if he consents to join or even tolerate them.

Things fall apart, this phrase being used in both the novel title Things Fall Apart and the poem written by Yeats, “The Second Coming” keeps us wondering how both are related. Achebe uses Yeats’ poem as an epigraph to foreshadow how the events in the novel later on might occur. Reading the epigraph, we come to understand that Yeats is referring to an image of disaster and to a society that is losing control. In Things Fall Apart, the community faces some changes that affect the lives of certain main characters and leads to a very severe disaster. Achebe uses a lot of imagery and dualism in his novel to portray certain messages to the readers and to clarify his point. Also, Achebe wanted to answer back any writer who criticized the Africans and insulted them. He wanted the voice of the Africans to be heard and to take a stand when the Christians came in and tried to change a lot in the traditions that were present. Both, the poem and the novel are related in a way that shows how the downfall of the main character, Okonkwo, happened and what lead to it. Both writers have many things in common in their writings that can be compared in a social and religious way. Achebe uses double meaning in order to pass on his messages to the readers.

The definition of sexism is discrimination on the basis of sex. In many cultures sexism was and still is a controversial topic. In fact, women in America couldn’t even vote until the 1920’s. The abundant masculinity in this novel is not sexism but just how the culture functions. Chinua Achebe’s novel Things Fall Apart is not sexist towards women; in fact, it shows that women are essential to the Ibo society and posses a great amount of strength.