Things Fall Apart
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Transcript of Things Fall Apart
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Things Fall Apart
Chinua Achebe
1958
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Last modified on 05/5/1998
Basic Ideas in Achebe’s Novels
Things Fall Apart- Published in 1958, Things Fall Apart is Chinua Achebe’s response to inaccurate portrayals of African civilization by British writers. The novel reiterates how colonization by
European missionaries changed Igbo society after Nigeria was claimed. Leslie Omoara wrote that in this novel we see "only the beginning of the subjection of a people to an alien will". Arrow of God- This novel picks up where Things Fall Apart leaves off, showing further impacts of imperialism. It also illustrates an important theme in Achebe’s novels, in that it reinstates the validity of life without white man’s interference. Achebe’s belief in the importance of dialogue is shown in this novel, as well as others. Almost all novels by Achebe contain proverbs in them. No Longer At Ease- Corruption is the underlying theme in this novel. The novel is a flashback answering one simple question: Why
does an educated man succumb to bribes? A Man of the People- This novel is a satire on political motivations in post-independence Nigeria.
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Characteristics of Ibo (Igbo)
3rd Most populous ethnic group in Nigeria
Lived in villages based on male lineage
All male heads of household were related on father’s side
Villages shared a market and meeting place
Also believed in similar ancestral spirits
Villages arranged in clans of approx. 5,000 people
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More characteristics
Staple crops: yams, cassava, taro, corn, pumpkins, beans
High value placed on individual achievements and eloquent speech
Palm trees for oil
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Diala: free adult malesosu: religious outcasts; priests to the godsIbo treated osu with contemptohu: slaves captured in war Chukwu: common god of allChi: each person’s protective ancestral spirit; each person, clan, and village had one
Terms
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Terms Continuedagbala: woman or man with no titlekotma: court messengerogbanje: child who repeatedly dies and returns to its mother’s wombiwi-uwa: a stone which connects a changeling to the spirit worldcowry shells: moneyefulefu: worthless manfoo foo: pounded yamobi: male living quartersiba: a feverochu: murdernso-ani: abhorred religious offenseagadi-nwayi: old womanekwe: a wooden drumkola: a a stimulant similar to coffee
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ThemesContinual and inevitable changeNo culture is static; refusal to change or to adjust will not stop the process.Balance of traditional masculine and feminine valuesOkonkwo represents a traditional view of masculine power: he is physically strong,courageous and hardworking but incapable of compassion and humilityThe dynamic between the individual and the societyIndividuals derive strength from the societies to which they belong; when that relationship fails Okonkwo, he commits suicide
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Main God Is ChukwuCreator of the worldand of lesser deities
The will of the deities is revealed through the oracles.
Ani: earth goddesswho regulates life
Ugwugwu: Represent the ancestral spiritsChielo: Priestess of Agbala
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Themes ContinuedIronyOkonkwo realizes that the hostage boy Ikemefuna is more manly than Nwoye, yet he feels he must kill him to appear manly.
Proud Okonkwo is banished to the clan of his mother.
Nwoye rejected Okonkwo just as Okonkwo rejected his own father
The novel’s conclusion reduces Okonkwo’s life to a paragraph.
Okonkwo’s death is shameful just as his father’s was.
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The author
Achebe is a social novelist who believed in the social potency of literature
Ibo childhood but university educated
Taught at several universities in Nigeria, Massachusetts, and Connecticut
Paralyzed from auto accident
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Significance of TFA
Shows rich, positive view of African culture
Gives Africans a vision of their past
Different from typical African novel told from European point of view
Precursor to pluralism Affirmation and
acceptance of diversity Title implies cultural
breakdown is not limited to Ibo society; it is universal
To refuse to accept change is to be destroyed by it
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Style and Point of ViewOmniscient narrator with deceptively simple style of an African storyteller
Use of the fable and proverb to convey symbolic meanings
“Proverbs are the palm oil with which words are eaten.”
Use of foreshadowing and flashback to reveal character and plot
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Nigerian Politics
1914 Nigeria is created as a political entity
1861: Official British control
1866: Nigeria becomes separate British colony
British traded in palm oil; missionaries converted
Colonialism was ending when TFA was published
Nigeria gained independence in 1960
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Modern Nigeria
A Nigerian farm, possibly similar to that of Okonkwo.
Yoruban (southwestern Nigerian) beaded crowns.
Dancing to tribal Christian rhythms.