Things Fall Apart, by Chinua Achebe Essay - 1017 Words

â€Å"Tragedy arouses not only pity but also fear†¦Ã¢â‚¬  Things Fall Apart doesn’t tell you what â€Å"has† happened it shows you what is going to happen. In Things Fall Apart Chinua Achebe is dramatizing what may happen and what was happening. The District commissioner suggested a book title at the end of the book. I think the book title’s main purpose was to suggest what may happen.†Ã¢â‚¬ ¦The Pacification of the Lower Niger Tribes.† A tragedy has a protagonist, the protagonist is someone who is renowned or prosperous, and has a change of fortune from good to bad or vice versa. The driving force or protagonist in Things Fall Apart is undoubtedly Okonkwo. Okonkwo was a prominent clansman of Umuofia. He had three wives and eight children. Okonkwo had many†¦show more content†¦This has nothing to do with factors outside of Things Fall Apart. The climax of Things Fall Apart, without a doubt is Okonkwo’s return from exile, and when he sees how much Umuofia has changed. The end and resolution is the death of Okonkwo which ended the struggle between the white man and the Ibo culture. Okonkwo fits the mold of a tragic hero, a character who experiences an inner struggle because of some character flaw. The struggle ends in the hero’s defeat. Okonkwos’ inner struggle was his complete fear of being unsuccessful or being like his father who was â€Å"agbala â€Å". Agbala was the name they called a man who was feminine. This was an extreme insult. He had an extreme fear of showing weakness or femininity. All of his actions were driven by this strong fear. This fear was present when he almost shot Ekwefi and beat her and when he aided in the death of Ikemefuna. Okonkwos’ flaw would have to be undeniably his complete blindness and his pride. Okonkwo refused to ever be told he is wrong or is anything less than perfect. Okonkwos struggle ended at the tree behind the bush in his compound. â€Å"†¦The tragic feeling is evoked in us when we are in the presence of a character who is ready to lay down his life if need be to secure one thing- his se nse of personal dignity†. - Arthur Miller Okonkwo’s tragic flaw or hamartia is this constant question that drives all of his actions. What makes a successful man? InShow MoreRelatedThings Fall Apart By Chinua Achebe1415 Words   |  6 Pagesbook Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe does just that. This book should be taught in schools because it shows the values and traditions of Achebe’s Igbo culture, persistently teaches life lessons throughout the book, and shows the darker reality of European colonialism in Africa. Chinua Achebe is known as one of the most influential and famous authors to ever write. Chinua Achebe originates from an Igbo background and he expresses that through his writings very well including Things Fall ApartRead MoreThings Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe1324 Words   |  6 Pages Chinua Achebe chose to write his novels in English to reveal a deep response of his people to colonisation and to make that response understood to people all over the world. Things Fall Apart was written in English to teach people worldwide of the struggles he faced and the people of Nigeria faced growing up. Many authors and critics have written about Achebe’s ‘Things fall apart’ adding their valued opinion on what he was trying to say and his decision to write in English. In the followingRead MoreThings Fall Apart By Chinua Achebe Essay1203 Words   |  5 Pages who took their land for monetary gain. This was a dark period of time for Africans that live there. The U.S. Civil War and The Great Depression both can be related, in this instance, to how down their people were because of what happened. Chinua Achebe said it best, â€Å"I would be quite satisfied if my novels...did no more than teach my readers of their past...was not a long night of savagery from which the first European acting on God’s behalf delivered them†(qtd. in â€Å"Morning Yet† 45). In theRead MoreThings Fall Apart By Chinua Achebe1452 Words   |  6 Pagesassume control over the Roman Empire. However, imperialism in Africa remained a recorded element from 1750 to 1945. This paper visits how control and changes were influences over the Africans during this time period as seen through Chinua Achebe’s novel Things Fall Apart. (UKEssays, 2015) Europe was experiencing a few financial and political changes that forced the major European forces to investigate abroad regions to add to their resources during the seventeenth century. In order for the EuropeanRead MoreThings Fall Apart By Chinua Achebe2361 Words   |  10 PagesThings Fall Apart Book Critique Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe is a historical fiction novel describing the life of Okonkwo in a Nigerian village succumbing to European ways, in order to portray Achebe’s view on imperialism. It was chosen for us to read by our teacher because it describes imperialism and its effects in an Ibo village of Nigeria. It also shows the treatment of natives by the Europeans and how the natives reacted. Things Fall Apart is useful to our course of studies because itRead MoreThings Fall Apart By Chinua Achebe1265 Words   |  6 PagesThings Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe is markedly relevant to our current course of studies in World History, as it tells a story based on European Imperialism in Africa. Coming off the heels of our Imperialism unit, this post-colonial novel provides very helpful context on different civilizations’ perspectives throughout the Age of Imperialism; aside from analyzing death tolls, descriptions of conflicts, and names of countries, it was previousl y hard to envision what life was actually like during thatRead MoreThings Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe 735 Words   |  3 PagesThings fall apart. Achebe. Ernest Gaines once said, â€Å"I write to try to find out who I am. One of my main themes is manliness. I think Im trying to figure out what manliness really is.† Indeed, every society or culture has its own understanding of an ideal man. Even though these characteristics are different in various parts of the world, the significance of masculinity can never be overestimated. â€Å"Things Fall Apart† by Chinua Achebe is considered as one of the best examples of a riseRead MoreThings Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe692 Words   |  3 Pagesthe way to go. Through commercial trading Islam spread into Igboland, and this led to more Igbo people leaving the Igbo way of life for another, whether it be Islam or Christianity which divide the country in two. In the novel Things Fall Apart written by Chinua Achebe British colonialism and the migration of Muslims to Nigeria led to the change in the faith, social and economic changes in the Igbo society. Traditional Igbo faith believes that there is only one creator or god known as ChinekeRead MoreThings Fall Apart By Chinua Achebe897 Words   |  4 PagesIn the novel, â€Å"Things Fall Apart† by Chinua Achebe the Igbo tradition revolves around structured gender role. Everything essential of Igbo life is based on their gender, which throughout the novel it shows the role of women and the position they hold, from their role in the family household, also planting women crops, to bearing children. Although the women were claimed to be weaker and seemed to be treated as objects, in the Igbo culture the women still provided qualities that make them worthyRead MoreThings Fall Apart By Chinua Achebe Essay1851 Words   |  8 Pageschoice and styles are critical not only to the reader’s understanding of the text but to his appreciation as well. How language is effectively manipulated in their writings enhances the reader’s valuing of the works. The selected novel Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe is a representation of Igbo culture and their language. It explores the life of an Igbo tribe at the time of when colonization hit Africa. It could be considered as a post-colonial text, as the protagonist of the story and the other