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Things Fall Apart Culture Analysis

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Chinua Achebe wrote an entire novel explaining his extraordinary culture. Things Fall Apart is a story about the Igbo lifestyle. The Igbo culture is considered to be the customs, practices, and traditions of the African people of southeastern Nigeria. Throughout the tale, Achebe presents the many aspects that make up the structure of this African culture. His story directly relates to actuality of the Nigerian people. The various villages in Things Fall Apart had their own unique religion. The traditional religion of the Igbo is based on the belief that there is one creator, God, also called Chineke or Chukwu. The creator can be approached through numerous other deities and spirits in the form of natural objects, most commonly through the god of thunder (Amadioha). There is also the belief that ancestors protect their living descendants and are responsible for rain, harvest, health, and children. Achebe mentions several times that the characters reach to an oracle for “answers.” Achebe describes the purpose of an oracle as “people came from far and near to consult it. They came when misfortune dogged their steps or when they had a dispute with their neighbors. They came to discover what the future held for them or to consult the spirits of their departed fathers” (Achebe, 16 ). Shrines of Africa are made in honour of the earth spirit and contain tableaux of painted earth. Other shrines keep wooden figures representing ancestors and patrons. The evidence of these shrines,

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