Family is a very important part of society and how the society acts, and with this, culture and values can be reflected and observed by looking at the structure and relationships within a family. In the novel, Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe, for the Igbo culture, family structure is by far one of the most important parts of society. Some may say that the most important theme of the Igbo is religion and change, but it seems that without the sense of structure and society, that is bounded to family, religion and change would not have changed that same way it did in the novel.
In the Igbo culture, family is a hierarchical structure in which the people within it play a part of. Men tend to be the leaders of the house, this can be seen through …show more content…
Boys gain fame by becoming a warrior or a great wrestler, the father depends on them as he grows older, but girls are not as valued. Girls are grown up in the father’s household, but when it is time to get married, the girl becomes one with her husband’s family, and takes care of the parents of her husband. In general, Nwoye’s relation with his father has been of one of rebellion. When Okonkwo was the age of Nwoye, he already became self-sufficient, but in Nwoye’s case, he denounces his father after joining the missionaries, and never returns back to his father’s clan. This causes Okonkwo to realize that “living fire begets cold, impotent ash.” Ezinma on the other hand is favored by Okonkwo. Her relationship to the family is very interesting. Throughout the book, Okonkwo wishes that she was a boy. Also Ezinma also calls her mother by her name rather than “mother”. “‘Ekwefi,’ she said, ‘is it true that when people are grown up, fire does not burn them?’ Ezinma, unlike most children, called her mother by her name” (Achebe 40). This is a very small detail, but it is also a very important one. This is similar to the novel, To Kill a Mockingbird because of the other children call their parent by their first name. Instead of giving her mother a name of respect, as she does to her father, she calls her by her name which implicates equality between
In the Igbo culture, family is a hierarchical structure in which the people within it play a part of. Men tend to be the leaders of the house, this can be seen through …show more content…
Boys gain fame by becoming a warrior or a great wrestler, the father depends on them as he grows older, but girls are not as valued. Girls are grown up in the father’s household, but when it is time to get married, the girl becomes one with her husband’s family, and takes care of the parents of her husband. In general, Nwoye’s relation with his father has been of one of rebellion. When Okonkwo was the age of Nwoye, he already became self-sufficient, but in Nwoye’s case, he denounces his father after joining the missionaries, and never returns back to his father’s clan. This causes Okonkwo to realize that “living fire begets cold, impotent ash.” Ezinma on the other hand is favored by Okonkwo. Her relationship to the family is very interesting. Throughout the book, Okonkwo wishes that she was a boy. Also Ezinma also calls her mother by her name rather than “mother”. “‘Ekwefi,’ she said, ‘is it true that when people are grown up, fire does not burn them?’ Ezinma, unlike most children, called her mother by her name” (Achebe 40). This is a very small detail, but it is also a very important one. This is similar to the novel, To Kill a Mockingbird because of the other children call their parent by their first name. Instead of giving her mother a name of respect, as she does to her father, she calls her by her name which implicates equality between