The main setting of “Things Fall Apart” is a series of Igbo villages in what is now Nigeria, just before, and at the start of, British efforts to colonise and Christianize the tribes. The setting is crucial because of that historical context and because of the way the tribal values have shaped the protagonist Okonkwo….
Okonkwo represents a certain way of life amongst the Ibo of Umuofia, and the rise and fall of his fortunes throughout the novel corresponds to the fitness of this way of life in varying situations. Okonkwo’s values are ultraconservative: he adheres strictly to tradition and abhors deviation from it. He is also hyper-masculine: Okonkwo prioritises…
The title Things Fall Apart directly relates to the major themes in Chinua Achebe’s novel. The protagonist Okonkwo is first introduced in an environment in which he has truly succeeded. He has worked his way up from a childhood of shame and poverty, caused by his father’s inaction, into a role within his society that…
In the end, Okonkwo’s failure is likely more a result of pride and intransigence, but he certainly tends to ignore advice from people around him and it does not help his cause. One of the early incidents that demonstrates this well is the killing of Ikemefuna. The boy has come to be a welcome member…
Yes, I agree with this statement. Okonkwo’s obsession with being masculine negatively affects both his public and private life. Okonkwo is known and respected throughout his village for being the best wrestler and becomes one of the village leaders at a relatively young age. However, Okonkwo’s masculinity often times alienates him from the other villagers….
One could argue that Okonkwo’s father, Unoka, is responsible for his son’s callous, hostile, determined demeanor. Unoka was a lazy man and a debtor, who enjoyed playing his flute and drinking palm-wine all day. He was also not aggressive and always avoided physical confrontation. Unoka lived a happy-go-lucky life and died a titleless man, who…
Okonkwo’s suicide is an act driven by despair. This despair seems to come directly from Okonkwo’s sense that his village culture/ identity has disappeared. In ways that are quite real and deeply disturbing for Okonkwo, Umuofia has become a place (and home to a people) that Okonkwo no longer recognises. When his village loses coherence,…
In Chinua Achebe’s “Things Fall Apart”, the District Commissioner is the reigning symbol of Western imperialism, an ignorant, condescending administrator who is brought to the area to mete out justice and impose the more enlightened culture of the West upon these uncivilized tribes. His manners bespeak an individual accustomed to treating the subjects of the…
The District Commissioner is a perfect representation of how the Western invasion of ill-managed Christianization and Western authority systems has rent torn the fabric of Ibo life, and the title of his book illustrates this. After a Christian covert violates Ibo law, as well as Christian law, of love and unity by crashing into the…