How Does Things Fall Apart Change

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Recommended: Identify and discuss the cultural elements in Things Fall Apart

People deal with drastic changes in different ways but the difference of those who become heroes or failures is determined by if they choose to overcome or succumb to the difficulty of adapting. In Chinua Achebe's novel Things Fall Apart, he emphasizes how much changes physically or mentally impact one's life as he tells the life of Okonkwo and his struggle to be successful in their cultural town of Umuofia as it gets invaded by white men. Although change starts as trivial or prideful thing it ultimately results in a negative effect throughout the novel with events such as Okonkwo pushing to become different from his father Unoka, his exile, and his son Nwoye's betrayal. Okonkwo strives to be opposite of Unoka who everyone perceived as a failure. …show more content…

At first Okonkwo packed up his things and left his town pridefully, he packed up his valuables and traveled to his mother's kinsmen Mbanta. He was welcomed by the tribe of Mbanta and was “given a plot of ground” to build his new home but Okonkwo was “greatly troubled” despite the generosity given to him(129). This shows the impact that culture has on Okonkwo as he leaves his home with no resistance. Okonkwo’s change in attitude from Umuofia to Mbanta shows the regret he has for his exile. As the year of his exile went on his regret and anger starts to show as Okonkwo discerns that his exile has affected his entire life. He knows that Umuofia has moved on and he has lost everything in his “seven wasted years” in exile. Despite leaving Umuofia pridefully Achebe's use of wasted signifies that Okonkwo deeply regretted his exile more than anything. This change has caused him to lose everything he has ever worked towards in life. Okonkwo's exile caused everything he strived for to be …show more content…

Nwoye could not apprehend the reasoning for the way the people of Umuofia listened to the Oracle without doubt or killed such innocent people. After his brother Ikemefuna's death Nwoye become troubled with “the twins crying in the bush” and the murder of innocent life just because a god said so(147). The use of the twins shows that Nwoye is starting to question his culture's way of life and why they obey their god with no resistance. Nwoye did not agree with the way he was expected to live and he found curiosity in this new religion the whites spoke of. Okonkwo was already displeased with Umuofia's choice to withhold war, despite him never being pleased with Nwoye this was the last straw . When Obierika Okonkwo's best friend went to visit Okonkwo “wished not to speak about Nwoye” for he was ashamed of having him ever be his son. Okonkwo was shocked of how much the once warlike town of Umuofia has changed.. It was so humiliating for him that not only Umuofia is now weak but his own blood betrayed him and choose to join enemy forces he disowned Nwoye. Nwoye was always perceived as a failure in Okonkwo's eyes and when he chose to convert to Christian Okonkwo wished to never had

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