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Things Fall Apart Comparative Essay

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Question: Taking any two aspects, write a comparative analysis of 'Things Fall Apart' and 'My Son's Story' in the light of the essays (assigned or prescribed) that you have read.

A detailed study of Chinua Achebe's 'Things Fall Apart' and Nadine Gordimer's 'My Son's Story' throws sufficient light on a few significant aspects namely the treatment and depiction of women and the narrative techniques used in both these texts. These aspects form the basis for a comparative analysis of these books.

Achebe's novel 'Things Fall Apart' portrays women as unfortunate and inanimate beings who have been placed in the world for the sole purpose of giving birth to children and taking care of them and their fathers. Women in this novel are associated mainly with the responsibilities of the house and weakness. In the Igbo society,men who had no title were referred to as 'agbala' which also happens to mean 'woman'. This itself shows the mindset of the people of the Igbo society and their prejudice against women. Rhonda Cobham in her essay, 'Problems of Gender and History in Things Fall Apart' says, "On the personal and political levels, Achebe's presentation of women within Igbo society can be seen to follow a similar pattern. Although we are told of Okonkwo's several wives and children, the male-female relationships in Okonkwo's family which Achebe …show more content…
Quoting Nancy Topping Bazin from her essay titled 'Sex, politics and silent black women: Nadine Gordimer's Occasion for Loving, A Sport of Nature and My Son's Story', as she point out' "In My Son's Story Aila, the black, middle-class, dutiful wife of Sonny, knows about his long lasting affair with Hannah Plowman, a white blond. Nevertheless, like her son and daughter, she remains submissively silent about it. Her body offers atleast a nonverbal protest. She continues to make love with Sonny but, as he finally realizes, she fakes "her

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