Patriarchy In Things Fall Apart By China Achebe

Patriarchy is very popular in cultures where manhood and masculinity is praised upon. A man is usually the head of the household and has control of everything that goes on in the family. Furthermore, women would have no value in society. Although this is true for most cultures, China Achebe shows his readers how women play an important role in a patriarch society. In his novel, “Things Fall Apart,” Achebe reveals how customs and traditions play a part in defining the significance of women in their society. Women show their relevance through their housework duties, serving as backbones to their families and taking part in traditional ceremonies. Women demonstrate their value in household chores. The wives in the Umuofia tribe prepare food

Okonkwo sent Ikemefuna to live with Nwoye’s mother. Instead of treating Ikemefuna with an unwanted vibe, “Nwoye’s mother was very kind to him and treated him as one of her own children” (Achebe 20). A woman is allowed to show emotions and cater to someone’s needs while a man is seen weak if he shows any sympathetic emotions. Without Nwoye’s mother, Ikemefuna will be treated poorly if he was under Okonkwo’s care. Nwoye served as a backbone to Ikemefuna by giving him hope while he was gone from his own family. Another example of a woman serving as a backbone is Ekwefi. While her daughter, Ezinma, was sick, “She [was] determined to nurse her child to health, and she put all her being into it” (Achebe 60). Ekwefi is Ezinma’s backbone by the way she nurses her child. She puts “all her being into it” which shows readers how reliable Ezinma is on her mother. When Okonkwo was punished, he was sent to his mother’s land. Uchendu explains to Okonkwo why he had to go to his mother’s land. He said, “When there is sorrow and bitterness he finds refuge in his motherland…Your mother is there to protect you…and that is why we say that your mother is supreme” (Achebe 100). This means a mother has to be strong and protect her kids through any situation. A mother protecting her child will help the child build his or her self-esteem and function properly. Without her homeland serving as a refuge, comfort

Okonkwo and some of the tribal men were about to drink wine before handling business. They all took a drink but before getting started, their wives were called in to drink the wine. When Nwakibie’s wife walked in, “She wore the anklet of her husband’s titles, which the first wife alone could wear. She walked up to her husband and accepted the horn from him…” (Achebe 15). If the women were of no value, then the men could have started the ceremony without the wives coming in. Instead, the women were called in which shows value in them drinking wine before their business started. Nwakibie’s wife wearing her husband’s titles shows how important she is to her husband and her high value. Women are also relevant in the Umuofia tribe when it comes to marriage. When Obrierika’s daughter had her Uri, “Everyone had been invited…but it was really a woman’s ceremony and the central figures were the bride and her mother” (Achebe 84). The bride and her mother were the “central figures” in the ceremony because the bride is cherished and valued by everyone. Without her, a man can’t have children nor a wife to cater to household duties. Another example of a woman’s relevance in traditional ceremonies is when Uzowulu mistreated his wife. His wife’s brothers took her away from Uzowulu as punishment for almost beating her up to death. The Evil Forest responded to Uzowulu and