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The novelist essay Chinua achebe
A moral dilemma occurs when
Conclusion of Analysis of Ethical Dilemma
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The novel Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe and the novel Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad are very different from one another. While they each tell a very different story, we know that both take place in Africa and that they do have similarities. One of the similarities that each novel has is the main character struggling in both. Marlow is morally fighting a conflict. On the other hand, Okonkwo is physically trying to fight conflict. Both result in the main character losing his battle with the conflict at the end of each novel.
We learned very early on that Okonkwo is well-known for his physical capabilities. Achebe shared his history, “As a young man of eighteen he had brought honor to his village by throwing Amatinze the Cat,” (3; ch.1). This not only brought him fame but also respect in his village, Umuofia. His physical traits were a great asset when Umuofia was in a war with a neighboring village. Where Okonkwo ran into his troubles, was when he could not use his fists that he so greatly depended on. Others in the village could talk problems out and find solutions, while his solution was always war and killing. We learned that his lack of speaking skills was one of the main reasons for his attitude towards resolving issues through discussion; instead, “…Okonkwo thundered and stammered,” (14; ch.2). What he lacked in words because of his stammering and stuttering, he made up for with his fists and violent actions. The only problem was that as a result, compromise seemed to be a foreign principle for Okonkwo. When the five messengers came to the marketplace at the end of the book, the head messenger barely got a short message out before Okonkwo acted violently on him. Achebe described his actions:
In a flash Okonkwo dre...
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...and beliefs. Neither wanted change, but could not prevent it. Change doesn’t have to be a bad thing, but for both it turned out to be. Okonkwo could have listened to what the colonists had to say about their religion and compromised to solve both groups’ problems. Marlow could have spread the news on what he found was taking place in Africa. Both chose not to do so and were unsuccessful as a result. Achebe and Conrad told largely different stories, but with some similarities. In both there was a lot of conflict, especially for the main characters. They were battling morally inside and physically on the outside, only to give up in the end of each novel.
Works Cited
Achebe, Chinua. Things Fall Apart. 1st ed. New York: Anchor Books, 1994. 3-209. Print.
Conrad, Joseph. Heart of Darkness and The Secret Sharer. 2nd ed. New York: Bantam Books, 1981. 3-
132. Print.
Okonkwo is a man of action, he would rather settle things with his strength rather than talk it out with the person he is mad at. This is very unsympathetic because not only is he going to use violence towards others, he is doing it just because he can not get his point across with using his words. This quote shows that he does not care towards others emotions because he would rather just fight them than talk it out. Another quote that shows Okonkwo’s unsympathetic behavior is,“He rules the household with a heavy hand” (Achebe 13). Okonkwo is shown to be someone who disciplines where he sees fit, if he does not like what is going on then there might be a high chance that the heavy hand is going to come down onto you. It shows how unsympathetic Okonkwo is because it shows how he might not care about his family’s feelings towards getting hit when they disobey him. His wives are more often beaten, especially Ekwefi, who has been beaten almost to death because Okonkwo was in a bad mood. It shows that he lets his emotions get the best of him and he does not control them very well, he would rather let it all out violently than talking it out with the people that he is mad at. Those quotes show how Okonkwo can be seen as a very unsympathetic person from his
Watts, Cedric. 'Heart of Darkness.' The Cambridge Companion to Joseph Conrad. Ed. J.H. Stape. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1996. 45-62.
Colonization and Views on Wealth in Joseph Conrad's Heart of Darkness and Chinua Achebe's Things Fall Apart
There are many contributors to the different attitudes and viewpoints projected by Paton and Conrad including the time period they were born in and their different backgrounds. Alan Paton and Joseph Conrad come from different time periods, which meant very different periods of colonialism. Joseph Conrad began writing Heart of Darkness in in 1890, during the beginning stages of colonialism, after he began his own journey through the heart of Africa. Alan Paton, on the other hand, began writing his novel in 1947 when he began to see the effects of colonialism affecting his own home. The difference in time between the books may have had an affect on the outlook of the...
Authors often write not only to tell a story, but to communicate personal ideas and opinions to the readers. Even more personal beliefs can be read through the bias that the author uses, often the product of society or race. In the novella Heart of Darkness, Joseph Conrad displays his opinions through the attitudes and actions of his main characters Marlow and Mr. Kurtz. Similarly, Chinua Achebe shows his personal beliefs through the character Okonkwo in Things Fall Apart. Both authors, whether intentionally or not, show their opinions on the relations between Native Africans and European colonists in the Victorian era, and the races themselves.
Joseph Conrad is the author of the novel, The Heart of Darkness, along with many other profound works. Compared on any scale, Conrad is nowhere near average. Joseph Conrad is a very interesting character who sees the world through wide eyes. By traveling the world and exploring the many walks of life he is able to discuss common global views and habits that include injustices which are explained in his renowned novel, The Heart of Darkness.
Conrad, Joseph. Heart of Darkness ; And, The Secret Sharer. New York: Signet Classic, 1997. Print.
First off, Achebe believes that Conrad dehumanizes the African people, making them into objects rather than thinking and living human beings. He pointed out that Conrad depicts the Africans as “savages,” for example when Conrad says, “...and going up this river.. Sand banks, marshes, forests, savages, - precious little to eat fit for a civilized man,” it might seem as though Conrad is suggesting that these “savages” are far inferior...
Conrad, Joseph. "Heart of Darkness." The Norton Anthology of English Literature. Ed. M.H. Abrams et al. 6th ed. vol. 2. New York: Norton, 1993. 1759-1817.
Acclaimed Nigerian author, Chinua Achebe’s 1958 novel, Things Fall Apart, is a story about Okonkwo, a man from the fictional village of Umuofia. Okonkwo’s attempt to form an idealized self-identity and the stress he experiences in living up to its image wears his life, and eventually destroys the very identity he so desperately sought. Okonkwo’s end is analogous to the end of his tribe and its culture—Achebe refers to the Igbo peoples’ culture as the Ibo culture in his book. Furthermore, Okonkwo’s end shows the pain experienced by the change in power balances as the rulers became the ruled, with the white man colonizing Africa. The Heart of Darkness hardly needs an introduction; Joseph Conrad, its writer, wrote the novella based on his experiences as a captain on the Congo. The protagonist is Charles Marlow, whose impression of the colonized Congo basins along with its tribal inhabitants and the raiding white men amidst the deep, dark, disease-infested forests of Congo form the basis of the story. Things Fall Apart and Heart of Darkness are both based around situations that instigate the awe-inspiring, and yet horrifying confluence of races and cultures. However, while the former tells the story from the colonized peoples’ perspective, the latter tells it from the colonizers’ perspective. This paper attempts to highlight the differences and similarities in these novels by exploring the underlying themes and unusual circumstances portrayed in them.
* Watts, Cedric. “‘A Bloody Racist’: About Achebe’s View of Conrad” in Joseph Conrad; Critical Assessments, Keith Carabine, ed., Volume II: ‘The Critical Response: Almayer’s Folly to The Mirror of the Sea’ (Mountfield: Helm Information Ltd., 1992)
Conrad, Joseph. Heart of Darkness 3rd Ed. Ed. Robert Kimbrough. New York: Norton Critical, 1988.
In Achebe's Things Fall Apart and Conrad Heart of Darkness, the role of Africa is intertwined. It is seen as extremely primitive and the African's belief system is belittled. The two heroes in the novels also are very similar, and most especially in one aspect. They both experience a downfall. This is a vital theme throughout both books. Aristotle would say it is the fall of two "tragic heroes". However, even though these two characters share these similar incidences, the readers are given several different perceptions of one event. The colonization of the Europeans paid a heavy toll on the Africans and their way of life. The Europeans are consistently portrayed at the outsiders. Okonkwo is also quite familiar with Africa, yet Marlow was not. In his eyes, the Africans are seen as the outsiders. Okonkwo's father, Unoka, was seen as a person who was very lazy and who made no contribution to their society. This made Okonkwo hate him and any trait of any kind that correlated with that of his father. One way that this is displayed is that "Okonkwo never showed emotion openly, unless it be the emotion of anger. To show emotion was a sign of weakness, the only thing worth demonstrating was strength" (Achebe 28). Okonkwo's greatest weakness was fear, yet this a contradiction in it's own terms. His fear of fear played such a big part of his adult life that it came back to haunt him. He never wanted to be considered a victim. Yet, ironically, he was only setting himself up to self-destruction and tragedy. Because of fear, it drives him pull his machete and strike a blow, first killing Ikemefuna and later the Court Messenger. Finally, this drives him to be physically abus...
Conrad, Joseph. Heart of Darkness and Other Tales. Ed. Cedric Watts. Oxford: Oxford UP, 2008. Print.
Conrad, Joseph. Heart of Darkness 3rd ed. Ed. Robert Kimbrough. New York: Norton Critical, 1988.