Chinua Achebe writes a fascinating novel, Things Fall Apart, in which he explores the struggle of a man, Okonkwo, and his conflict between the pride of his culture and the pride of his manhood. The novel was somewhat similar to what I had expected. From the obvious title, some type of community was going to fall apart but other than that, the other aspects of the novel such as Ikemefuma death, Okonkwo’s exile, and the white man’s church were completely unpredictable. One of the main things that I like about the novel is how Achebe incorporated the Ibo language into the dialogues. It helps the reader better connect with the Ibo culture. It is important to consider the fact that by writing the book in English, the book is making a counterargument
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Okonkwo has a powerful need for acceptance and admiration from the people in his clan, which shows that he values the opinions of the clan more than his own interests. Okonkwo’s mistake which created everything to fall apart was that he did not come to realize that as the clan was evolving, he also had to adapt together with his community. The author’s purpose for this event in Okonkwo’s life may have been to remember that although it is important to be part of a community, it is necessary to be able to adapt and shift ones values if needed, depending on the interests of the community.
The obvious cause for the falling apart of the Ibo culture is because the missionaries come and invade the clan. However, it is worth examining whether there may also have been certain internal forces that could have also brought the gradual destruction of the culture. The missionaries brought religion, commerce, government and law to Umofia. This is no doubt a disruption to the Ibo’s ordinary lifestyle but many Ibo people find something appealing in the missionaries and decide to follow their God instead ,as Nwoye had does. The fact that so many Ibo people joined the church shows that they might not have been happy following their own culture and the missionaries arriving was just a way for them to show
Okonkwo has a powerful need for acceptance and admiration from the people in his clan, which shows that he values the opinions of the clan more than his own interests. Okonkwo’s mistake which created everything to fall apart was that he did not come to realize that as the clan was evolving, he also had to adapt together with his community. The author’s purpose for this event in Okonkwo’s life may have been to remember that although it is important to be part of a community, it is necessary to be able to adapt and shift ones values if needed, depending on the interests of the community.
The obvious cause for the falling apart of the Ibo culture is because the missionaries come and invade the clan. However, it is worth examining whether there may also have been certain internal forces that could have also brought the gradual destruction of the culture. The missionaries brought religion, commerce, government and law to Umofia. This is no doubt a disruption to the Ibo’s ordinary lifestyle but many Ibo people find something appealing in the missionaries and decide to follow their God instead ,as Nwoye had does. The fact that so many Ibo people joined the church shows that they might not have been happy following their own culture and the missionaries arriving was just a way for them to show