Attractive plagiarism check option: ensure your papers are authentic! He built his home and reputation as a hardworking farmer and wrestler. It is a tragic story where the protagonist is Okonkwo. He is a well-respected man in his thirties who is a leader of his community in Africa during the s. Essay examples. Furthermore, Chinua applies literary devices such as irony, symbolism, and imagery to give more light on the colonization of Nigeria by the British, essay on things fall apart by chinua achebe. The males are decision makers and leaders while the position of a woman is home making.
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It talks of the social and cultural aspects of pre-colonial Africa and the effects of western civilizations Ogbaa xv. The author criticizes imperialism and British colonization. It is a tragic story where the protagonist is Okonkwo. It talks of a man named Okonkwo, who was a wrestler and an influential leader in an African village called Umofia, inhabited by the Igbo ethnic group. He initially amasses fame, and honor in Umofia through victorious wrestling but finally comes to a tragic downfall. Okonkwo was polygamous with three wives and several children. The novel emphasize on the encounters of the pre-colonial Africa and the effect of Essay on things fall apart by chinua achebe colonialism during the 19 th century Bloom The author emphasize on cultural and social aspects on the brink of change thorough different characters, creating tension on if to embrace change or to remain for status quo.
Okonkwo disregard the new system religiously and politically, may be because he would lose his social status. The Igbo however, have been oppressed by these traditions and therefore find refuge in the new system, where once outcasts, are now be recognized. There exists a dilemma on the new dawn that scares them since it could interfere with their social life such as farming and trade. Okonkwo is a rich and respectable African warrior in Umofia. However his late father, Unoka was a lazy man, a coward, disreputable and died with several debts essay on things fall apart by chinua achebe he concentrated on taking palm-wine, leaving his family to go hungry.
This parent-child relationship affects him to become violent, over-ambitious and disrespectful, associating masculinity with aggression and acts irrationally Bloom This indicates that the villagers believed in passing inheritable aspects to future generations. He has to live with the boy until further instructions are given to elders from the oracle. The two becomes so close to each other, as the boy regard Okonkwo as a father and Nwoye essay on things fall apart by chinua achebe friends with the boy. Ikemefuna coexist happily with the family for three years, becoming part of them. He seeks refuge in his motherland as Uchendu states that. It is true that a child belongs to his father. A man belongs to his fatherland when things are good and life is sweet.
But when there is sorrow and bitterness, he finds refuge in his motherland. Your mother is there to protect you. She is buried there. And that is why we say that mother is supreme Achebe The quote not only emphasizes the position of women in the village but also the importance of having good family relationships. He is built his huts and given yam seed to plant in his motherland although he is still depressed, blaming chief his spirit for disappointing his greatness in the village. After exile, he had gone back to Umofia after organizing a farewell ceremony to thank his kinsmen for the stay. This emphasizes on the significance of maintaining close family bonds to the Igbo Bloom Wife beating and carrying out sacrifices are other practices in the village.
Okonkwo proves volatile and easily provoked as he beats his youngest wife called Ojiugo during an important period referred to as Week of Peaceaccusing her of neglect of the family. This interrupts with the peace meant to prevail the whole week but Okonkwo has to sacrifice to pay up for his sins and to show repentance. From this practice, the reader is enlightened of the significance of ceremonies and farming in Umofia. It is clear that the Igbo practice farming and trade as depicted where Okonkwo receives cowries from selling yams from Oberika who promise to sell them until he would go back to Umofia. The nine clansmen also referred to as Egwugwu, signify the nine Umofian clans. Okonkwo is separated from the rest of the clansmen to settle a domestic case where Mgbafo, a woman has suffered assaults from his husband, taken back to her motherland, but the husband needed her to go back, essay on things fall apart by chinua achebe.
The Egwugwu, advices the man to offer palm wine to his in-laws to appease the wife to return home. This case is too trivial to be presented to the Egwugwu as some elders perceive it Heiser The villagers believe in unnatural phenomenon, which have to be prevented through human sacrifice to appease the gods. He is warned of killing Ikemefuna as it would despise the earth goddess who could show his vengeance to the village. Okonkwo kills Ikemefuna irrespective of being warned by a village elder, Ogbuefu Ezeudu. Following this event, he lie to the boy that he is to be returned to his home village as the entire family mourns his departure. Consequently, things start to fall apart. This emphasize on the need to adhere to elders and more so, the religious directives.
He is however consoled and is able to find sleep. Bad omens follow consequently, essay on things fall apart by chinua achebe, as his daughter becomes ill. As a result, the use of herbal medicine among the Igbo is manifested as Okonkwo prepares some for his daughter, and she recovers after taking the medicine. The Igbo are religious as seen through various rituals. Besides, there are priestess e. Chielo, who advice the second wife of Okonkwo, Ekwefi that Agbala required the sight of Ezinma, which makes Okonkwo to argue, essay on things fall apart by chinua achebe. Chielo present Ezinma to the nine clans and moves inside the cave of the Oracle. Ekwefi has been following in secret despite being warned by Chielo and stands beside the entrance to be surprised by appearance of Okonkwo as they wait together.
The following morning Ekwefi is offered Ezinma by Chielo and they sleeps together. Moreover, the Igbo conduct funeral ceremonies where clansmen take the lead. When the elder, Ogbuefu Ezeudu dies his death is announced using ekwe. Since causing death of a village elder is a despicable act for the earth goddess, he is taken hostage in exile for a period of 7 years for atonement. Moreover, his properties are burnt in order to cleanse. Additionally, Enoch, a Christian convert reveals Egwugwu on an occasion meant to adore earth god. The upset of these traditions and cultural practices begins as missionaries and colonialists arrive in the village as tension and dilemma prevails.
Okonkwo is informed by Oberika, who visit him in his second year that Abame, which is a neighboring village, was put to destruction by a white man who arrived with a bicycle. After conferring from the oracle, they became aware that the foreigner and his fellows would put into devastation, the clans, which led him to be killed but the villagers. In vengeance, the villagers were killed in mass by the white men. Okonkwo see the villagers as having acted foolishly to murder a stranger. Later, six missionaries arrive in Mbanta led by Kiaga, the interpreter of Mr. Brown who addresses the villagers on Christianity, and whom Okonkwo sees as being cynical. Conversely, Nwoye is converted to become a Christian. Brown points out that the villagers serve a false god and having several gods for worship is idolatry, advocating for Holy Trinity as the supreme deity.
The missionaries are offered a land to build the church by the elders whose intention is to kill them all since the land lies within the Evil forest, a cursed land. Unexpectedly, they do not die and villagers maintain that the missionaries have unusual power or magic. This depicts their conservativeness and permittivity in essay on things fall apart by chinua achebe, being led by traditions rather than rational thinking or reason. However, the social outcasts such as women and some men are given a privilege in the new system, essay on things fall apart by chinua achebe. The first convert is Efulefu, a useless villager, followed by women. However, the system has no place for conservatives such as Okonkwo, whose term in exile has ended.
He is surprised how things have changed in the village with many Christian converts. In Umofia, the missionaries start a school in which Nwoye attends, leaving his family behind. There is even a prison built by the whites having a governmental legal court, used for trying the law breakers, where native Umofians have been employed. He wonders why the villagers have not reacted back to chase away Christianity and oppressive government. The villagers have been assimilated in the new political system, essay on things fall apart by chinua achebe.
As a way to show cultural assimilation, Mr. Brown shows regard for the traditions of the natives and aspires to learn of their culture and even befriends the clansmen. However, Okonkwo is not pleased with the changes. Brown only hopes to convert the villagers to Christianity Ogbaa xix. His health deteriorates and he is forced to go back home and Reverend James Smith takes over. He is stricter and does not tolerate the traditions of the clans, though he amasses several converts e. Enoch an extremely zealous convert. They are arrested an imprisoned and fined cowries bags where the villagers gather them and the six are released. On their freeing, a gathering is held by clansmen but is dispersed by a court order.
Okonkwo resists courageously and portray his bravely expecting support from clansmen as he murders the messenger leader using a machete. The crowd releases other messengers, which makes Okonkwo to realize he is alone in the fight and the village has surrendered since the social values and cohesion has been compromised in his absence realizing that, things have fallen apart. Oberika, his friend claims that suicide is inauspicious thus the tradition prevents the clansmen to touch him Achebe The novel handles the experiences during the s in Umofia, a small village along the Niger River in the African nation, Nigeria. After the British colonialists arrived in the village, there were missionaries already and people sought solace in the churches.
Western civilizations interfered with cultural, economic and social values of the village. Villagers inhabited Umofia in patriarchal political system where decisions came from council, essay on things fall apart by chinua achebe, made up of nine clansmen who sometimes, got directives from religious leaders. British arrival however, upset this socio-political system and began to interfere with social disputes, even establishing courts and prisons. Igbo people are depicted by the author as having powerful social institutions such as wrestling, practice of human sacrifice, religious rituals, ceremonies, and family. They rely heavily on traditions regarding justice as the people are led by the council made of elders, in this democratic village. The males are decision makers and leaders while the position of a woman is home making.
Gender disparity is clear in this village and the crimes are identified with gender where the accidental killings by Okonkwo are referred to as female.
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Chinua Achebe uses Okonkwo when giving a detailed account of the Igbo society. Okonkwo was a focused man who wanted to avoid the mistakes of his father. Unlike his father who spent all his life accumulating debts, Okonkwo was a focused man who aimed at improving his life. The book narrates the importance of associating with the Igbo culture. Therefore, a reader can connect with the society through the use of language and imagery. For instance, the back of the book contains a glossary of Ibo words which are used throughout the story to emphasize cultural and traditional values. Furthermore, Chinua applies literary devices such as irony, symbolism, and imagery to give more light on the colonization of Nigeria by the British. Achebe addresses various issues including colonialism, ambition, social integration, belief and fear of the Igbo society.
His superb use of commanding language is evident in the book. Achebe uses vivid description, proverbs, and other stylistic devices to transmit the message of the book to the readers. Also, the book gives an overview of the economic and social benefits of colonialism on the Igbo society. The paper discusses the importance of language in the daily lives of the Ibo people and also analyzes the linguistic and literary dimension of the culture. Language is a vital element in the daily lives of Igbo society. In spite of the existing stereotypes by the Europeans that Africans were silent, Achebe depicts that oral tradition still exists in the Ibo culture.
Occasionally, the author used Ibo words to emphasize the proverbs. When colonists arrive in the Ibo society, they find it difficult to interact with the society members due to the language barriers. Moreover, the translators do not succeed in solving the problem. At one particular situation, the translator confuses between the words my buttocks and myself Chinua This situation can symbolize mockery to the British invaders who thought they could easily take advantage of the Africans because of their illiteracy. The Europeans held the perception that Africans could not communicate effectively.
Nevertheless, when they entered Nigeria, they became language victims since they could not effectively connect with the people who spoke Ibo. Achebe succeeds in depicting that the Ibo society had a language and an oral tradition like that of the Europeans. Thus, a European should be ready to experience trouble when understanding a foreign language just like the Africans do. Things changed when he has to kill his adoptive son as to what his tribe has decided. Okonkwo showed no emotion as he wants to be seen as the image of masculinity although inside, he was guilty, hurt, and regretful. During his stay in Manta, news came to him that the White Missionaries has arrived in his tribe.
These White Missionaries bring Christianity with them and has convinced a lot of Igbo people to be converted to Christianity. Just when Okonkwo was allowed to go back home, his son converted to Christianity which made him disown his own son. The Igbo people tried to make peace with the missionaries but the latter captured the leaders of the Igbo people and was only freed when the Igbo people had enough ransom money with them. They wanted revenge, thus they held a war council. It dawned to Okonkwo that they can never go against the white, and as proud as himself, he hung himself to death.
Things Fall Apart is a story of a culture on the verge of change. It talks about how the different characters have responded to the call of change. More often than not, the strain of whether the change is more important than tradition entails personal status questions. For example, Okonkwo is against the new religious and political order. This is because he believed that accepting the new religious and political order means that they are not man enough. In addition, this is also due to his fear that he might lose his social status once he accepts and joins them. For him, his self-worth depends on the traditional standards of society. But these traditional standards of self-evaluation has caused a lot of outcasts to embrace Christianity where they enjoyed a higher status.
Generally speaking, the villagers are in between choosing or resisting change. They are wrapped with fear as to what these changes will bring them and how will they adapt to such changes in as much as they are also excited with the new opportunities and techniques that come with it. However, the White Missionaries wanted to eliminate the need to master the traditional ways of cooking, farming, harvesting, and building which were crucial for survival to the Igbo people. In the entire novel, Achebe showed how these traditions are slowly being changed and forgotten. The novel does not have a direct antagonist, but the entire world seems to be against Okonkwo.
In addition to the internal antagonists found inside their village, the presence of the Europeans is also considered as an external antagonist. The novel is also symbolic. The two symbols that were used in the story is fire and locusts. On the other hand, the locusts symbolize the white colonials whom the Igbos thought are good but actually have a different intention. This is because Achebe wanted the people of the West to read and understand it. He wanted to critique and amend what other writers of the colonial period have painted about the image of Africa. In order to achieve his goal, the need to use the language of these colonials is necessary. Geography plays a pivotal role in the novel as time does. The novel dates back in the s, the time when the British colonials have reached Igboland.
The story happened just when British imperialism started in the region, which started not with guns but with Bibles. Don't know where to start? Give me your paper requirements and I connect you to an academic expert. Plagiarism checker Do the check. Writing Help Ask for help. Paraphrasing Tool Paraphrase my essay. Essay examples. Essay topics. Comparative Study on Heart of Darkness and Things Fall Apart Things Fall Apart and Heart of Darkness illustrate the various ways of representing Africa in the form of literature. Religion and Ideology in Things Fall Apart Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe begins by introducing the main character of this story, Okonkwo.
Colonialism Depicted in Things Fall Apart Postcolonialism is the scholarly investigation of the social heritage of expansionism and dominion, concentrating on the human outcomes of the control and abuse of colonized individuals and their territories. Things Fall Apart Tragic Hero A classical tragedy is meant to evoke emotions on the reader and make them sympathize for the tragic hero and recognize their humanity. Complex Culture in Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe In Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe the author teaches us how the Ibo and the British are both uncivilized in their own ways. Novels Kanthapura and Things Fall Apart Raja Rao and Chinua Achebe through the depiction of the respective philosophies in their novels Kanthapura and Things Fall Apart brings out the perception of social, cultural and traditional aspects of Nigerian village Umuofia and Indian village of Kanthapura.
Things Fall Apart Masculinity Masculinity has a huge impact on the lives of the Ibo tribe. About Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe Introduction The book Things Fall Apart was written by Chinua Achebe with the aim of depicting a lower tribe in Nigeria. Lastly, the reference about the church in the poem compared to the ones in the book. In the poem, there is a certain part where the narrator includes something about a church. Many churches were established by Mr. Brown, one of the first messengers sent to Umuofia, to spread their Christianity in the book. However, since one of the major negative changes was religion, it was portrayed negatively. Spreading Christianity was not a horrifying act itself, but the way the messengers were forcing the Igbo people to change their beliefs since they were polytheistic was unrealistic.
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