Things Fall Apart Essay - 2440 Words

Things Fall Apart: A Critical Analysis Things Fall Apart (1958) is a fictional novel by Chinua Achebe that examines the life the Igbo tribe living in a rural village called Umuofia in Nigeria during the early 19th century. The central values of the novel revolve around status, virtues, power, and traditions that often determine the futures and present of the characters in the Achebe story. The novel shows the life of the protagonist Okonkwo and his family, village, and Igbo culture and the affects of colonisation of Umuofia on him and the people of his village by Christian missionaries. In this essay, I plan to look at colonialism in the novel before and after and the impact on Okonkwo and the village Umuofia and examine how†¦show more content†¦Ashamed, Okonkwo ends up in the novel committing suicide, thus dying a shameful and dishonourable death like his father. The strengths of Achebe’s novel and Issacman’s reading are how they illustrated how colonialism tears culture and tradition apart. In Achebe novel, it is has many historical contexts that occurred British colonialism that brought over their government and religion and their indirect ruling at the beginning of the 19th century in Africa. When the Christian missionaries came over and basically said that the traditions were wrong, Okonkwo would not stand for it. However, one of the weakness of the novel is Okonkwo overbearing expectations of his family and himself and the extremes he took to restoring his village to the way it was before which is too much as well the conflict of colonialism did not come until halfway through the book. However the strength of the novel is how Achebe illustrated the Igbo culture before the arrival of colonialist and missionaries. This helped us actually understand why Okonkwo and Africans felt at that time in colonialism in West Africa. From Achebe perspective, he shows the characters in the novel and in history how Africans view Europeans as odd and possibly threatening invaders. We experience colonialism, therefore, from the perspective of a colonized people. As Okonkwo friend, Obierika metaphorically explains how colonialism tore apart the Igbo cultureShow MoreRelatedThings Fall Apart Essay867 Words   |  4 PagesKandace Barzey Wake Forest Advanced World Literature Things Fall Apart Essay December 19, 2012 Believe, Achieve, Succeed What is the definition of a man to you? Chinua Achebe s Things Fall Apart takes place in a Nigerian village known as Umuofia. The main character, Okonkwo, is part of the Igbo clan in Umuofia. Okonkwo s success is driven by his desire not to be a failure like his father Unoka; he is so determined not to be like his father to the point where he is willing to kill and isRead More Things Fall Apart Essay714 Words   |  3 PagesThings Fall Apart Opposites do not Attract In Things Fall Apart, by Chinua Achebe, Mr. Brown, the first missionary in Umuofia, was a kind and respectful man. Not to say that Reverend James Smith was not, but his degree of kindness and respect were present in a whole different level. They both wanted to convert the lost, all those in Umuofia that were not in the church. Mr. Brown made friends with the clan and â€Å"trod softly on his faith,† (pg.178) while Mr. Smith told them how thingsRead More Things Fall Apart Essay763 Words   |  4 PagesChinua Achebes Things Fall Apart shows an odd similarity between the cultures of Ancient Greece and the Lower Niger. 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