Things Fall Apart Rhetorical Analysis

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Things Fall Apart Essay Prompt

In this article, Chinua Achebe explains his purpose of writing the book "Things Fall Apart". He argues that the Europeans were not the first who taught the African people about culture. Rather, they have only taken away their dignity. Throughout the novel, Achebe has brought up the various customs and beliefs of the Ibo people which prove that they were not as savage and uncivilized as they were thought to be. Considering the events that bear such pieces of evidence, I agree with Chinua Achebe's argument as these events show that the Ibo people lived in a society abiding a set of rules and wanted balance in their lifestyle.

A remarkable event of this novel is the arrival of the Europeans and imposing their system of justice. They felt that the Ibo were only savages and they needed a system of justice in their society. But in chapter 10 of the novel, we find that a justice system was already existent in the village …show more content…

Undoubtedly, their religion had some extreme rules and it needed to be stopped. But making the young generation to give up their ancestor's religion was truly a shock to the dignity of the Ibo. The Europeans considered the Ibo religion to be false and assumed that they only worshiped wood and rocks. It is true that they indeed worshiped wood and rocks but that does not draw a conclusion that their religion was meaningless.In a conversation between Mr. Brown and Akuna in chapter 21, Akuna describes what their religion truly stands for. He explained that their religion was not just wood and rocks but they had one chief God just like the Christians. He explained that the other Gods were only the expressions of different powers of the chief God. Hence, their religious dignity was precious to them but as more and more of their young generation were attracted to the grandiloquent preaching of the Europeans, their religious dignity was

Things Fall Apart: The Relationship Between Cultural Relativity and Superiority
1339 Words | 3 Pages
By utilizing an unbiased stance in his novel, Things Fall Apart, Chinua Achebe promotes cultural relativity without forcibly steering his audience to a particular mindset. He presents the flaws of the Ibo tribe the same way he presents the assets—without either condescension or pride; he presents the cruelties of the colonizers the same way he presents their open mindedness—without either resentment or sympathy. Because of this balance, readers are able to view the characters as multifaceted human beings instead of simply heroes and victims. Achebe writes with such subtle impartiality that American audiences do not feel guilty for the cruel actions of the colonizers or disgusted by the shocking traditions of the tribesmen. The readers stop differentiating the characters as either “tribesmen” or “colonizers”. They see them simply as people, much like themselves. With this mindset, the audience starts to reflect upon their own cultural weaknesses. Conversely, the colonizers forcefully declare their religion onto the tribesmen instead of neutrally presenting their beliefs. Achebe prevails over his anger to present his opinion without forcefulness and with open-minded consideration. Yes, the colonizers succeed in converting many tribesmen into Christians; however, their success is subjective because they destroy African culture in the process. Ultimately, Achebe is successful in delivering his political views, but he does so by encouraging open-mindedness and cultural relativity instead of forcing his individual ideals upon his readers.
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Things Fall Apart Rhetorical Analysis
625 Words | 2 Pages
The protagonists Okonkwo and Obierika from Things Fall Apart are very similar to Rodrigo and Father Gabriel from The Mission. Both groups have similar viewpoints on their respective situation. Okonkwo and Rodrigo are both very action orientated and don’t think rationally about their actions or the consequences these actions will have; whereas Obierika and Father Gabriel almost have the opposite standpoint, rather opting for no action.
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Paper
750 Words | 2 Pages
In the beginning of the book, the Ibo shows their traditions and harmless ways. This peaceful tribe has many traditions. One of the main traditions is their type of respect. The first type of respect we see is the use of Kola nuts when visiting someone’s Obi(hut). Okoye comes to see Unoka. Unoka is Okonkwo’s father. Okonkwo is very ashamed of his father because Unoka is always borrowing money, doesn’t have a job and is weak. So Okoye comes to see Unoka one day and brings a Kola nut. “‘I have Kola,’ he announced when he sat down, and passed the disc over to his guest.”(1.6) To show respect, one brings a Kola nut to a person’s hut. This shows peace and hospitality. Another example of respect is communication. “Among the Ibos the art of conversation is regarded very highly, and proverbs are the palm-oil with which words are eaten. Okoye was a great talker and he spoke for a long time, skirting round the subject and then hitting it finally.” (1.14) The last example of their peaceful traditions are the stories they tell on rainy days.“At such times, in each of the countless thatched huts of Umuofia, children sat around their mother’s cooking fire telling stories, or with their father in his obi warming themselves from a log fire, roasting and eating maize. It was a brief resting ...
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Communication Breakdown: Conflict in 'Things Fall Apart'
1199 Words | 3 Pages
Achebe illustrates the depth of the Ibo culture in Things Fall Apart to prove that hindered and unreliable communication causes conflict.
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The Power Struggle in Chinua Achebe’s Things Fall Apart
1198 Words | 3 Pages
Chinua Achebe's Things Fall Apart is a powerful novel about the social changes that occurred when the white man first arrived on the African continent. The novel is based on a conception of humans as self-reflexive beings and a definition of culture as a set of control mechanisms. Things Fall Apart is the story of Okonkwo, an elder, in the Igbo tribe. He is a fairly successful man who earned the respect of the tribal elders. The story of Okonkwo’s fall from a respected member of the tribe to an outcast who dies in disgrace graphically dramatizes the struggle between the altruistic values of Christianity and the lust for power that motivated European colonialism in Africa and undermined the indigenous culture of a nation.
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Masculinity vs. Femininity in Chinua Achebe's Things Fall Apart
1274 Words | 3 Pages
The saying of his elders was not true---that a man who said yea his Chi also affirmed. Here was a man whose Chi said nay despite his own affirmations. (p. 131) The Chi then is the most important aspect of Ibo society. The most compelling argument for conflict between the British colonists and the Ibo lies directly within the tribes Chi.
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A Single Story Of African Culture In Things Fall Apart By Chinua Achebe
1675 Words | 4 Pages
As wise John Berger once said,“Never again shall a single story be told as though it were the only one”. A “single story” is the story of a culture that we learn from stereotypes and conspiracies developed throughout time in our society. In “Things Fall Apart”, Chinua Achebe defies the single story of African culture while still tying their native language in to show the importance between a physical differentiation of culture, and the similarities with morals and values they have in common. Through gender roles and proverbs used in the language of this book, we have a cultural insight of Nigeria through a new set of eyes given to us by Achebe that detures us from the single stories that we were taught to by our society.
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Conflicts of Gender in Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe
459 Words | 1 Pages
There are constant struggles between gender, identity, commodification, and class. Among the men and women in many African tribes that still exist today, there are divergences, which will always remain intact because of the culture and the way in which they are taught to treat each other. Chinua Achebe wrote the novel, Things Fall Apart, which is a great piece of African literature that deals with the Igbo culture, history, and the taking over of African lands by British colonization. The ongoing gender conflict is a prominent theme in Things Fall Apart, presenting the clash between men and women of the African Igbo society. Throughout history, from the beginning of time to today, women have frequently been viewed as inferior, men’s possessions whose sole purpose was to satisfy the men’s needs.
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Essay on themes in Things Fall Apart and Second Coming
857 Words | 2 Pages
In many ways the changes that the missionaries brought upon the Ibo were unavoidable. The rituals and cyclic view the Ibo had of time held their culture together. The Ibo did not hold on to their ideas of interdepenence and community. Therefore, they were more suspetable to surcoming to the ways of the white man. The colonial infiltration caused the Ibo to not only loose their cultural identity, but their voice. The missionaries alterations brought silece among the native dialect of the Ibo. Achebe states at the end of the novel "even now they have not found the mouth with which to tell of their suffering." From this quote it is apparent that there is little left of the Ibo culture. The colonial infliltration caused the Ibo to fall apart, and break the vital cycle that once held their culture together.
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The Power Of Religion In Things Fall Apart By Chinua Achebe
765 Words | 2 Pages
Although establishing schools appears to be a good influence, Achebe shows how schools strip a society of its culture. Mr. Brown, the first white missionary in Umuofia, builds a school for the children. He convinces parents to send their children to school by arguing, “If Umuofia failed to send her children to the school, strangers would come from other places to rule them” (156). Mr. Brown’s ironic reasoning displays the negative result of religion. If the Christian missionaries did not intrude in the first place, there would be no need to protect Ibo people from more intruders trying to interfere with their culture. A similar type of irony is mentioned when Mr. Brown’s school start to become popular. The people begin to think, “Mr. Brown’s school produced quick results. A few months in it were enough to make one a court messenger or even a court clerk” (156). Prior to the missionaries’ arrival, Ibo society had no need for schools to give better jobs. When the missionaries bring their government to Umuofia, schools trick people into falling for the new system and forgetting about their old social structure and culture. Achebe uses these ironic occurrences to display how religion may seemingly positively influence a society, but in reality pillages the Ibo people’s original culture.
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Discuss The Impact Of Imperialism In Things Fall Apart
948 Words | 2 Pages
In Chinua Achebe 's classic novel "Things Fall Apart," the development of European colonization 's lead to extreme cultural changes, leaving a lasting impact on the Igbo village of Umofia in West Africa. In the novel, Achebe displays the impacts of European colonization in both critical and sympathetic terms to provide the reader with both positive and negative factors of Imperialism to develop an unbiased understanding of what the Igbo culture and society went through. While addressing the hardship 's of life by showing the deterioration of Okonkwo 's character, the cultural and traditional changes of society, and the positive and negative impacts of imperialism, Achebe keeps touch on the overall theme of the novel, once a dramatic event
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An Identity Crisis in 'Things Fall Apart'
1770 Words | 4 Pages
The Ibo people had a very different religious lifestyle and culture. They believed in many gods; they were a polytheistic tribe. The Ibo supreme god was Chukwu, and the people believe "he made all the world and the other gods" (Achebe 179). They believed that everything has a spirit and that ancestral spirits called the "egwugwu" kept the law. The Ibo...
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Change And Tradition In Chinua Achebe's Things Fall Apart
723 Words | 2 Pages
Throughout Chinua Achebe’s novel, Things Fall Apart, struggle between change and tradition is one of the most relevant issues. The Igbo villagers, Okonkwo, and his son Nwoye all experience this problem in many different ways. The villagers have their religion defied, Okonkwo reaches his breaking point and Nwoye finally finds what he believes in. People have struggled to identify and cope with change and tradition throughout history, and will continue to struggle with this issue in the
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Critical Analysis Of Things Fall Apart By Chinua Achebe
930 Words | 2 Pages
According to David Whittaker, Achebe’s work “proved to be an immensely influential work for African writers, becoming the progenitor of a whole movement of fiction, drama, and poetry, which focused on the revaluation of Africa’s history and cultures, and on representations of the culture conflicts that has their genesis in the colonial era.” This novel became a pivotal point of realization not only for Africa, but also for the world. All at once the world, afraid of what change may bring, pushed the same question to the back their mind: “What if we have it all wrong?” Suddenly, the culture of Africa was influencing the culture of America, Asia, Europe, Australia, etc. Achebe’s novel was a catalyst in the process of nationalist renewal and decolonization of African culture as a whole (Whittaker). A principle in this novel’s thematic course is the inter-generation conflict faced by not only the village as a whole, but also, on a microscopic level, in Okonkwo’s household. As the culture in Umuofia begins to shift, the predecessors of the current generation heavily rely on the cultural norms initiated by their father’s fathers. While tradition should be honored in a society, it should also be modified; this concept is not fully grasped by the older generations of
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Things Fall Apart: Eurocentrism
1099 Words | 3 Pages
Achebe writes Things Fall Apart to revise the history that has been misplaced. He writes to the European and Western culture. This fact is evident because the book is written in English and it shows us the side of the African culture we wouldn’t normally see. Achebe is constantly ...
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Things Fall Apart Rhetorical Analysis

Things Fall Apart: The Relationship Between Cultural Relativity and Superiority