Title Analysis of Chinua Achebe's Things Fall Apart
I believe that the title Things Fall Apart refers to the fact that
without proper balance, things do fall apart. The notion of balance in
the novel is an important theme throughout the book. Beginning with
the excerpt from Yeats' poem, The Second Coming, the concept of
balance is stressed as important; for without balance, order is lost.
In the novel, there is a system of balance, which the Ibo culture
seems to depend upon. It is when this system is upset that "things
fall apart." Okonkwo, the Ibo religion, and ultimately, the Ibos'
autonomy were brought to their demise by an extreme imbalance between
their male and female aspects. These male and female aspects can be
generally described as the external, physical strength of the male,
and the internal, passive and nurturing strength of the female. It was
an imbalance toward the male side that led to the destruction of the
people and their culture.
Okonkwo, the main character in the book, was the son of Unoka, who was
a loafer. Unoka was too lazy to go out and plant crops on new, fertile
land, preferring to stay at home playing his flute, drinking palm
wine, and making merry with the neighbors. He had to borrow money in
order to maintain this lifestyle, and was never able to pay it back.
Okonkwo perceived this trait as an imbalance toward the female side in
his father's character; staying at home and not using one's strength
to provide for the family is what a woman does. In reaction, Okonkwo
completely rejected his father, and also his own feminine side. It was
this deep-rooted antipathy toward anything considered weak or femini...
... middle of paper ...
...In the evening, they return home to the
comfort of their wives' cooking and their beds. In contrast, it is at
night that the priestess of Agbala is most active. The men fear the
night and all of the unknown things that dwell there, but in the night
the priestess fearlessly walks the woods, practicing her profession.
This book is aptly named, as I cannot think of a more appropriate
title for it than Things Fall Apart. The author definitely suggests
that there is a balance to all things, and that when that balance is
lost, the system is reduced to chaos. The balance in the case of the
Ibo society was one between masculine and feminine forces, with an
imbalance on the masculine side eventually turning order to entropy.
For Okonkwo, things literally fell apart: his hopes and dreams, his
family, his culture, and his life.
Do people really change based on their past? We should believe they do. Chinua Achebe, wrote the novel, Things Fall Apart. This novel takes place in an African tribe with a village called Umuofia.The main character, Okonkwo, has a hard childhood. Later in his life he becomes very wealthy and has a big family. Okonkwo makes some big mistakes, but we can believe he learned from them. In the end of the book, Okonkwo kills himself after he kills a Christian missionary. Okonkwo killed the Christian missionary because he was trying to convert the people in his clan, to Christians. Okonkwo was so furious he had to get justice for his clan, so, he decided to kill the Christian missionary. On one hand, we can say Okonkwo was not learning from his mistakes. On the other hand, one can say Okonkwo was learning from his mistakes. We can think Okonkwo did learn from his mistakes because now he cares
Aristotle once said, "A tragedy is that moment where the hero comes face to face with his true identity." Characters are identified as tragic heroes when they have a downfall that is self-inflicted and tragic, but makes the reader feel something or learn a lesson. In his 1899 book, Heart of Darkness, Joseph Conrad takes the reader on a journey through Africa in the eyes of a European man named Marlow. Marlow is on a journey to find a man named Kurtz whom he's heard many things about. Chinua Achebe's book, Things Fall Apart gives you a look into African culture and life of an African man, Okonkwo. Kurtz and Okonkwo are different characters with different downfalls but they both cause emotion and learning for the reader. Conrad and Achebe wrote
Outsiders are the ones who do not belong to certain groups. They have a propensity for being isolated by the society they live in. Outsiders in literature, however, are likely to affect their communities. In The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian, Junior redefines what it means to be an Indian by transferring to a mostly white high school; being a gypsy and a foster child, Heathcliff, as illustrated in Wuthering Heights, eventually becomes a possessor of a considerable fortune; the evangelists in Things Fall Apart gain converts when they challenge the Ibo religion by displaying the absurdity of prophecies they make. According to the examples above, outsiders usually have significant impacts on the community because they challenge
The Revolt of “Mother” by Mary E. Wilkens Freeman was published in Harper’s New Monthly Magazine in September 1890. The story describes gender roles that women, men and children were given. Women were to stay home to cook, clean, and to sew. Men on the other hand were sent out to work; they had all the power and decision-making. Children who were boys went to school, while children that were girls stayed home and sewed awaiting their marriage day. In the story, readers can tell men were more acknowledged and dominant because the author states mothers name as Sarah Penn only after talking about men being immovable, even though she herself was described like that in the beginning. If women went against a man or their husband in the 19th century, they were considered “insane, lawless, and rebellious” (Wilkins Freeman 207).
In Both Jonathan Haidt in his TED talk and Chinua Achebe in Things Fall Apart develop the theme that people naturally dehumanize and stereotype others in order to feel more secure. Jonathan Haidt’s interview discusses mankind’s natural tendency to dehumanize those different from us,. Chinua Achebe also examines people's tendency to separate themselves from different cultures in order to feel more secure.
The novel "Things Fall Apart" examines African culture before the colonial infiltration. Achebe's novel forces us to examine the customs and traditions that make up an informal culture. At times we may find some their practices appalling, but Achebe makes us realize that the traditions and customs are what essentially hold the Ibo together. Achebe wrote 'Things Fall Apart" with the intention of changing the common view of African culture. He wrote the novel from an insider's perspective, revealing that African culture was not solely based on barbaric and mindless rituals. Achebe reveals the affects of the colonial infiltration on African societies. Through his novel he examines how colonization disturbed the unity and balance of a once strong cultural society.
Conflict and Tradition in Things Fall Apart & nbsp;   ; The book Things Fall Apart successfully expressed how Chinua Achebe had succeeded in writing a different story. It pointed out the conflict of oneself, the traditional beliefs, and the religious matters of the Africans. Throughout the novel, Chinua Achebe used simple but dignified words and unlike other books, he also included some flashbacks and folktales to make the novel more interesting and comprehensible. Things Fall Apart was about a man named Okonkwo, who was always struggling with his inner fear although he was known for being a strong, powerful, and fearless warrior.
Unoka’s most visible characteristic was, perhaps, his lack of motivation when it came to labor. He was known throughout his village as a man of little work. For instance, towards the beginning of Chapter Three, Achebe writes, “You, Unoka, are known in all of the clan for the weakness of your machete and hoe. … They cross seven rivers to make their farms; you stay at home and offer sacrifices to a reluctant soil (Achebe 20).” This quote comes from a priestess who, upon Unoka’s consultation visit about his farm, tells him that his laziness not only keeps him from success, but how his fellow farmers are much more capable than he is. Unfortunately, even a declaration from one the gods was unable to motivate him. As an indolent, titleless man, he was dependent on his family and his village for simple staples, such as food. Being so, over the course of his life he developed a sizable debt that he had naught but dreams of repaying. Neither the gods, the degenerating welfare of his family, nor his increasing debt were able to instill a sense of urgency or n...
Both Beloved by Toni Morrison and Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe are popular works of literature in African and African American culture. Both books are diverse and provide an inside look into the African and African American cultures. Beloved involves a group of characters that have dealt with slavery, losing family members, and being free and trying to learn how to live in society. Slavery induced negative effects on everyone who went through it and destroyed families. The main character Sethe deals with the past decisions see made, one major decision involves killing her baby and seeing her ghost years later. Past and present memories are explained in the book showing what the main characters went through. Things Fall Apart involves the people of Umuofia experiencing changes and challenges when Christian missionaries come into their land. The main character Okonkwo represents a fearless, tough leader with integrity for his tribe. He experiences death and mistakes and is banished from his tribe, but upon his return he finds his tribe has been invaded. His tribe experiences colonization by the missionaries and ends up falling in the end. Both novels involve black individuals having to overcome obstacles and finding ways to live in their own societies. Both novels deal with the issue of Parent-child relationships. In Beloved, Sethe with her children, Beloved and Denver. In Things Fall Apart Okonkwo deals with is son Nwoye. They also deal with inter-racial relations. Lastly, they both deal with gender relations. Both Beloved and Things Fall Apart demonstrate the circumstances individuals went through regarding, parent-child relations, inter-racial relations, and gender relations in there own manner.
For an abundance of authors, the driving force that aids them in creation of a novel is the theme or number of themes implemented throughout the novel. Often times the author doesn’t consciously identify the theme they’re trying to present. Usually a theme is a concept, principle or belief that is significant to an author. Not only does the theme create the backbone of the story, but it also guides the author by controlling the events that happen in a story, what emotions are dispersed, what are the actions of characters, and what emotions are presented within each environment to engage the readers in many
In the novel “Things Fall Apart” by Chinua Achebe, Nwoye is Okonkwo’s eldest son who is a feminine in the eyes of his father while being a lackadaisical boy just like Unoka was during his lifetime. As a child, Nwoye was often criticized by his father for not being a manly person. Eventually, Ikemefuna comes to fill the void of a manly person and afterwards, Nwoye decided to emulate Ikemefuna as a way to show to his father that he is not a feminine but instead he is transitioning into a manly person. On the other hand after the murder of Ikemefuna, Nwoye decides to distance himself from his father and seems to lose the respect he once had towards his father. Without Ikemefuna’s influence, Nwoye decides to convert back to his gentle nature which basically leads to Okonkwo to view his son as a disappointment and feminine person. Later on in the novel, Nwoye decides to not forgive his father for his betrayal in killing Ikemefuna which ultimately leads to Nwoye to convert into Christianity as a way to show his father that he did a scandalous thing that would never be forgiven.
Chinua Achebe's Things Fall Apart shows an odd similarity between the cultures of Ancient Greece and the Lower Niger. Despite the fact that two societies can exist during different periods of time and have conflicting cultural values, their stories and behavior can have surprising overlaps. Things Fall Apart is structured like a Greek Tragedy in its use of a chorus and in the presence of a tragic hero whose actions ultimately lead to his downfall.
Q1. Describe Okonkwo, the protagonist of Things Fall Apart. Consider him as an Igbo hero character: How does he achieve greatness and defined by his culture? How does he differ from Western heroes you are familiar with? What are Okwonko’s strengths and weaknesses?
In his work Things Fall Apart, Chinua Achebe tells a story describing the decay and destruction of ancient African tradition caused by the invasion of white culture. His tone in the book seems to side and sympathize with the Africans and their religion. Interestingly enough, though, he uses biblical allusion, as well as onomatopoeia and symbolism to bring the book to life and captivate the reader. The following will describe how he uses these.
Things Fall Apart, a novel by Nigerian author Chinua Achebe is a story about an Igbo village in Nigeria and a man that once was a powerful influence in the tribe, but begins to lose his influence as Nigeria is colonized and Christian missionaries come to evangelize. A deeper look at the novel, with a feminist critics point of view, tells a lot about the Igbo people as well as the author’s thoughts about women in the novel. Feminist critics look at female authors, and female characters and their treatment as well as women’s issues in society. Since Achebe is a male, the main focus of feminist literary criticism for Things Fall Apart is the women in the novel and their issues as well as the Igbo view of gender identity. Many issues that women