According to the online Webster dictionary to be civilized means marked by well- organized laws and rules about how people behave with each other. It also states that to be civilized means to be polite, responsible, and respectful. Based on a reading of the novel and related non-fiction articles, it is clear that in the 1880’s, the Ibo culture of Nigeria is civilized. The Ibo culture fits the definition of one who is civilized perfectly. They have rules for their government, they are respectful and grateful during festivals, and the women are responsible when taking care of their family.
The first way the Ibo culture of Nigeria is civilized is through the government. The government takes care of issues in a fair way. After both sides were done speaking at the Egwugwu Ceremony, the Evil Forest said, “Our duty is not to blame this man or praise that, but to settle the dispute” (Chapter 10 pg.93) The Evil Spirits main goal was not trying to blame the person who did wrong, but to solve the problem in a fair manner to get it over with. Another example of how the Ibo culture is civilized through government is it is organized with rules. The government leaders made white men go back to their own land so they wouldn’t change the Ibo culture. As it says in the article Political Colonization, “They said the land had changed and that they were dying. And they demand that all white men go back to their own country so that the land might return to the way it was before the british came.” The government made that rule because it would help the Ibo culture stay alive and not transfer over to another culture. The last way the Ibo culture is civilized through government is
The second way the Ibo culture of Nigeria is civilized is through the ...
... middle of paper ...
...ed to the ancestors...He then broke the kola nut and threw one of the lobes on the ground for the ancestors.” (pg. 165). The kola nut is one tradition. One breaks it and prays to the ancestors for help. It keeps the culture civil because they are getting help by their ancestors. The last way the Ibo culture is civilized through culture and customs is they have special objects that keep the people in line. As it says in the article Women as leaders, “She beat the gong in a special way as she announced the time and place of the meeting, to which everyone listened carefully. The message preceding the gong beat could be a matter of life and death so they listened.” In the Ibo culture when the gong is beat, the people listen. The gong is a good way to keep all the people connected and civil.
In conclusion, in the 1880’s, the Ibo culture of Nigeria is civilized.
What does ‘civilized’ mean? What qualities would a civilized person possess? If you were to ask a group of people what they believed civilized meant, you would get varying opinions. There is debate as to whether or not the two main characters from “The Most Dangerous Game” are civilized or not. General Zaroff and Sanger Rainsford both have civilized and uncivilized qualities. I’m going to present the reasoning behind my choices.
to bring out of a savage, uneducated, or rude state; make civil; elevate social and private life; enlighten; refine: Rome civilized the barbarians. Dictionary.com - "The 'Dictionary'" The Europeans had this common belief that Africa needed to be civilized. As I read through these books, I felt that the Europeans thought they were helping the Africans become civilized through Christianity. Ones definition of civilization depends on their point of view. Joseph Conrad shows how the white man viewed the natives in his word choice, he states in his book.
Growing up a Nigerian teenager can at times be a struggle. Differences between the Igbo and American culture can pose problems between Igbo parents and their children. It would be great for Igbo parents to embrace the difference between Igbo and American culture, as well as grant freedom and expression to the children that they raise.
Civilization in a Brave New World The dictionary defines civilized as "advanced in social customs, art, and culture." and science and the world. " The keyword here is social customs. A person's idea of what is civilized relative to his culture.
The question of civilization is central to the conflict between the Igbo and the British. The idea that the British were responsible for "civilizing" and converting the natives on other continents because they were “savages” (according to the colonizers). Since Igbo societies were structured and functioned differently from societies in Europe, they were deemed as uncivilized. The definition of the civilized is a place or a group of people that have social, cultural, and moral development in their society. By the definition of civilized, the Igbo people are civilized because they have evidence of social, cultural, and moral development in their specific society.
In modern day America most of the customs that the Ibo culture has would not be considered okay in today's society. In the book Ekwefi had had two children before Ezinma they were thought to be Ogbanje. They mutilated the second child after it dies to hopefully scare the spirit away, so it would never return. Eventually Ekwefi had Ezinma who carried the spirit inside of her, but they got rid of it with her Iyi-Uwa. I think that this is so unusual and cruel to think your child is something so evil when it hasn't even had a chance to grow up and become somebody. They based their information on the date of death of their child, which in my opinion doesn't determine if a child is evil or not. In modern America mutilating your child after death and then throwing it into a forest would not be considered okay. People who would do these things would be thought of as sick minded psychopath. Another custom that would be considered wrong in most American households and in job positions is that the men almost always hold the position of power. If a woman in the Ibo culture does one miniscule thing wrong, she gets beaten. It is not okay for anyone in America to beat another human being and even abusing animals. If they were to do this they would not just get away by making an offer to the gods, they would be doing their justice in jail or prison.
In the book Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe the kola nut is a very important part of the Igbo culture. The kola nut is used to welcome guests to one’s village or home (“Kola Nut”). When breaking the kola nut everyone must see it first, then the oldest man blesses it in Igbo language. If no man is present than the oldest woman would bless it (Ejiogu). The kola nut is extremely important in the Igbo culture, they believe that the kola nut is life and “the one who brings kola brings life”. Furthermore, the more parts the kola nut is broken into the more prosperity everyone will have (Halim). The kola nut shows good gestures, love, and happiness in their culture . The most significant part of the kola nut is unity. The kola nut is broken when people visit to bring people closer together (Ejiogu).
Religion and the Igbo People The Igbo are a profoundly religious people who believe in a benevolent creator, usually known as Chukwu, who created the visible universe (uwa). Opposing this force for good is agbara, meaning spirit or supernatural being. In some situations people are referred to as agbara in describing an almost impossible feat performed by them. In a common phrase the igbo people will say Bekee wu agbara.
The Ibo’s government is administered by the nine egwugwu who are ancestral spirits that represent each village of the clan. As large crowds of the Ibo tribe would gather on the village
The novel Things fall apart depicts the cultural battle between the Igbo and the British: one was trying to keep its tradition, and one wanted to change those traditions by replacing them with a new religion. Finally, the British won because of they could figure out the falsehood in the indigenous people’s degenerate customs and attack it. Nothing in this world is perfect, and it is hard for a culture to be perfect. However, if a culture wants to develop and thrive, it should respect the value of its entire people. That was the reason why the Igbo culture was destroyed, because of its conservativeness, gender differentiation and superstitiously killing of the innocent.
Again, due to the missionaries, a change has occurred within the tribe that was not foreseen. Finally, on page 191, Achebe writes “Mr. Smith stood his ground.” To give some context, the egwugwu, as revenge, want to burn the church. But Mr. Smith is standing his ground and not allowing them to without a fight. Achebe continues, “But he could not save his church. When the egwugwu went away the red-earth church which Mr. Brown built was a pile of earth and ashes. And for the moment the spirit of the clan was pacified,” (191). At last, the Ibo, more specifically the egwugwu invoke a change of their own. They destroy the church prove that the land the missionaries were on was the land of the Ibo. So in an act of defiance against the missionaries, the Ibo cause a change to fight back for their home and their land. The Ibo fight for their tradition as too many had been broken by the Westerners. Unfortunately, the missionaries continue to inflict their values upon the people. When the spirit of the egwugwu is unmasked, turmoil occurs within the tribe. The tradition of the Ibo is overlooked by the missionaries who do not respect the culture they threw themselves
The Igbo of Nigeria were a horticultural tribe located in West Africa; within their tribal configuration, tribes called the Afikpo Igbo are present in more than twenty villages and have inhabited Eastern Nigeria. Each of these villages spoke a common language nonetheless each village remained autonomous and there was no collaborative structures that connected the 5 million Igbo people. When it comes to political organization the Afikpo Igbo people have a “dual-sex system” where both men and women collectively make decisions, settle disputes, and enforce penalties; however each group is segregated by sex and each controls its own domain of activity. Omu, which is considered the “mother of the community”, represents the women and the men are represented by obi, who
As a country ages, many significant changes occur. Over the past two hundred years in particular, Nigeria’s history has changed exponentially. Many things have changed the Nigerians culture but the strength in their belief in tradition has kept their culture united and sound. In Chinua Achebe’s novel, Things Fall Apart, the reader is given a detailed explanation of the Nigerian’s life prior to the invasion of colonizing missionaries; consequently, Achebe describes the dehumanization of their culture and the effects it had on the people and how they lived their life.
What is culture? Culture refers to the cumulative deposit of knowledge, experience, beliefs, values, attitudes, meanings, hierarchies, religion, notions of time, roles, spatial relations, concepts of the universe, and material objects and possessions acquired by a group of people in the course of generations through individual and group striving
The frame of reference hypothesis is very true of the Nigerian situation. The country is a multiethnic and heterogeneous entity. It is made of people from diverse ethnic, cultural, linguistic and religious background (Alozieuwa, 2012). Furthermore, Alozieuwa opines that this diversity created groups that are distinctive and different from one another and also disinclined or opposed to one another. More so, the amalgamation of the different regions into one country in 1914 created a situation whereby the colonial masters introduced foreign rules with total disregard for “indigenous institutions.”(Aloziuwa, 2012, p. 1)