...in their shoes. I pick the Yoruba Culture because I thought it was interesting and something like the culture we our reading about in “All Things Fall Apart”. I’m going to tell you some information on their history, religion, society, and marriage life. The Yoruba people have a population 42 million people, they are an ethnic group of Southwestern and North Central Nigeria. Half of the Yoruba people speak the Yoruba language. During the 7th century the African People whom lived in Yoruba were not initially known as the Yoruba although they both shared a common ethnic group and language. In the 8th century a powerful kingdom already became to exist. They say Yoruban are the among the most urbanized people in Africa for centuries before the arrival of the British Colonial. They...
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...produce their own historians, the story of the hunt will glorify only the hunter.” Chinua Achebe, Home and Exile Literature is the expression of life in words of truth and beauty.It encompasses all genres of literature-poetry,prose,fiction,drama,philosophy,history etc.Among them,fiction is any narrative,whether in prose or verse,which is invented instead of being an account of events that actually happened. The voice of Africa in the world of letters tries to emancipate Africa from its literary stereotype.Africa is no longer a gloomy phenomenon,a dark continent.Chinua Achebe, the major exponent of the modern African novel,is greatly concerned with the two realities of social man –his individual and group identity,the legacy of colonialism, and the shift in the system of values of life leading to rampant corruption- moral and monetary. He is also concerned with the use of English as the medium of expression of African experience defining the relevance of colonial and post-colonial experience to the present .Achebe’s novels are dialectic tranformation of experience, a new way of looking at tradition to create a different order of reality through universalizing imagination.Though he has followed the established tradition of novel writing in English, Achebe has put few things ‘African’ and has successfully employed certain narrative techniques of narration to give authenticity and African flavour to his novels in order to attract the native audience and overseas readers...
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...Africa European imperialism had a strong influence over African culture in many ways. Essentially all of Africa fell victim to the very influential and dominant European nations. The process of imperialism on these economically and militarily weak countries of Africa was obviously simple for the Europeans. In most of Africa, there were no countries, only clans and tribes, which made the imperialization much easier as well. These imperialist nations, such as Great Britain, France, Italy, and Germany, showed African nations many new ideals and tools that spread like a cultural virus. One very well-known story of this part of history is a book written by Chinua Achebe, titled Things Fall Apart. The book tells a fantastic story of a tribe in Nigeria which becomes a victim of the European imperialists. Achebe does a remarkable job of giving the reader the vivid change from the African tribe before and after the Europeans arrived. Things Fall Apart centers around a Nigerian tribe leader named Okonkwo. Known for his strength, courage, and most of all, pride, Okonkwo is looked up to by most the people in his tribe. Okonkwo doesn’t handle the European invasion as well as others due to his large sense of pride, which ultimately leads to his downfall and death. Christian missionaries were one of the main forms of imperialization used by Europeans. The two missionaries in Things Fall Apart were Mr. Brown and Mr. Smith. It is common in African communities that there are outcasts existing...
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...Given all the different outlets Okonkwo could have chosen, why did he commit suicide? Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe, narrates the struggles and changes due to the white colonials that Okonkwo faces in his village, Umuofia,. Okonkwo strives to be the opposite of his weak and selfish father. As Okonkwo’s values grow outdated due to the new generation of weak men who betray their ancestor’s, he battles to stop the change and return to the comfort of the old customs. The continual friction between Okonkwo and the new religion, people, and values adopted by his society contributes to his downward spiral. At the conclusion of the novel, Okonkwo hangs himself; the suicide of Okonkwo was the result of Okonkwo’s struggle with the changes taking place, the loss of his status in his culture, and the fears he possessed....
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...1.)Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe, Nervous Conditions by…and Mine Boyby Peter Abrahams are all novels by African writers whom illustrate various cultural issues and universal issues within the dynamic continent of Africa. However, there was a focus on three major themes that contributed to the relevancy of the novels which are tradition vs. progress, gender inequality, and the “white dream”. Traditions vs. progress or change was one of the most poignant themes throughout all three novels. There have been several universal biases against Africa implying that Africa is a resilient country that opposes change and as a result of their stubborn ways suffer, living an expired life struggling in poverty and disease. As a result, the authors of the novels write in a way that demonstrates how Westerners imposing their industrialization, religion, and cultural views upon the African people have in some ways handicapped the actual African society from revolutionizing themselves. For example in Things Fall Apart Okonkwu constantly resisted change and eventually let his resistance become his demise by committing the moral crime of suicide. However the majority of his Igbo society transitioned to Christianity, denying their own culture and joining the oppressors whom mocked their culture. Nonetheless, this proves that Africa is a society that can change because of the lasting legacy of colonization in Africa. What are the postcolonial themes and concerns of the novels we have...
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...Things Fall Apart Political Structure Okonkwo’s plight in Things Fall Apart underscores the value of his community; he goes to great lengths and eventually martyrs himself in an attempt to keep intact his society’s way of life. His ascension to be a leader in the community is marked by success in combat and physical prowess, which renders him “one of the greatest men of his time” (8). Although the Umuofian government is militant and unremitting, it has some semblance to the United States government in that it makes decisions to better protect and serve its people. The United States government strives to protect and endow its constituency with an emphasis on equality and liberty, completely unlike the patriarchal and aggressive values that Umuofia embraces. Umuofia and America are both sovereign states that attempt to provide a “good life” to its constituents, but do so very differently. Property owning family men are the essential considerations of the Umuofian government. For these men, “it [is] right to be masculine and to be violent” (53). At ritualistic gatherings, Okonkwo “tremble[s] with the desire to conquer and subdue” (42). The expectations for aggressive and masculine society are not in place in the United States. A “good” man in American society is one that treats his family well and values everyone around him as equal. Polygamy is nonexistent in America. The government recognizes everyone’s rights as equal and nobody is deemed inferior for their gender. Women...
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...thoughtfulness. I believe that Heidegger would have been appalled by the white man’s actions towards the Ibo people in the Chinua Achebe’s Things Fall Apart. Heidegger would have probably told the white men to let them be in their own rootedness. He may have not stood by all their views and traditions, but no man’s traditions should be neither superior nor inferior to another’s. As one of the characters in Achebe’s novel says, “What is good in one place is bad in another.”[2] The quote suggests that the Ibo people’s view was that of ethical relativism. This suggests that they know other cultures may view their beliefs as bad or unmoral, and they accepted this. This also suggest that the Ibo people accepted the cultural relativist view that good and bad differ from one cultural groups to another. Ethical relativism is the doctrine that there are no absolute truths in ethics and that what is morally right or wrong varies from person to person or from society to society. Ethical relativism means that there are no set ways of life. Every person has their own set of beliefs that differ from another person, even within the same society. I believe to fully believe in ethical relativism that there would have to be no judgment placed on people or societies. I do not believe that this could be accomplished, no matter how open-minded one thinks they are. We all judge others, even without realizing we do it, so I am not sure that there can be true relativist. Based on what some of the Ibo people...
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...this point on Donnie tells his story how things were until his sisters death. Donnie’s life is protected by Karen his sister. When ever their parents would get in a fight over the most simple things like not having ice cream to complex things such as dad not coming home often because of the job he holds. They do have a family trip that brings them all together on a vacation on a lake. They share many happy moments and also bring home lots of pictures to remind them of the fun and happy times. After the vacation things fall apart. Donnie’s dad finds a new job and a new apartment provided by his job and schedules for him to come home and see Karen and himself but Donnie’s dad doesn't make it his priority. The fights start to show up again and Karen finds a new friend Amanda that live next door. Karen would always take Donnie out side to the front porch during their parents fights no matter what the weather is and is seen as Donnie’s body guard, always being there. But when Karen finds Amanda, Donnie finds him self on the porch by him self waiting out his parents fights. Though Donnie does mostly hangs out with his sister and Amanda even though Donnie has friends that treat him like garbage. But just as soon as Karen and Donnie were getting used to Amanda, Amanda move to Chicago. Karen from this falls apart and soon will be taken over by anorexia. Donnie finds Karen’s diary of food thats not that very filled. Donnie is overwhelmed with all of the events happening in his life, especially...
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...Things Fall apart literary analysis For many decades, yams have been held to a sacred level in the Igbo culture. Those who are able to produce large quantities of yams are considered prosperous. Many aspects are represented in production of yams, such as success, leadership, and strength. In “Things Fall Apart”, Chinua Achebe exemplifies the importance of yams in order to signify the necessary custom of strength in the Igbo society. In the community like Umuofia, yams are characteristics of the higher powers and the positive traits. The cultivation of yams is known for bringing much success and the prosperity. Those who produce yams are perceived as strong individuals due to the “yams [being] a very exacting king” that demands constant care...
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...Chinua Achebe’s “Things Fall Apart” is a twentieth century work of art that serves the purpose of conveying the intricacies of African culture while at the same time giving voice to the underrepresented and exploited inhabitants of Nigeria. This work was written in response to Western writings on African culture, which treated Africa in a cultureless and subhuman light of view. “Things Fall Apart” portrays the conflict between the White colonial government and the indigenous Igbo people in Nigeria, illuminating the European and African perspectives on Colonial control, race, religion and culture. The Igbos believed that each man was responsible for his fate or destiny. They believed that a man has the ability to change his life and achieve status through economics and military accomplishments, the latter being through agriculture, and that all of this results solely from hard work. The Nigerian society, unlike European societies, was characterized by a Darwinian society in the way that people who achieved great feats were rewarded, rather than a caste-like system where there was no chance of improving one’s status. The ability to move up in rank in Nigerian culture is portrayed in the story of Onkonkwo. Born to an indebted and effeminate father, Okonkwo strives to rise through the social system and achieve everything his father could not. He is intolerant and biased towards women to the point where he describes weak men as women. Okonkwo views emotion as a weakness and thus...
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...his father was not really a failure but more down to earth type of person with problems just like many people in modern day society. Owing people is the same as having a credit card with debt. For Okonkwo to show his manly hood, he takes a very big leap of faith in becoming a well respected man within his tribe which comes with great deal of responsibility. Again, in this case responsibility for Okonkwo is to keep up and maintain his wives and children with food and living space, and responsibility within his tribe is maintain security for his tribe as he was a great wrestler and makes a respectable warrior. To prove my point I quote, “He was a wealthy farmer and had two barns full of yams, and had just married his third wife. To crown it all he had taken two titles and had shown incredible prowess in two inter-tribal wars. And so although Okonkwo was...
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...Latria Stridiron Dr. Hendricks HIST.350.020 September 27, 2012 Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe Chinua Achebe a Nigerian native wrote Things Fall Apart a groundbreaking novel as a response to European writings about Africa such as Joseph Conrad Heart of Darkness and Joyce Cary Mister Johnson. Indignant at the way Africans were portrayed in those novels, Achebe looked for a way to show the world the richness of African culture, and in so doing, give his people a voice in the global society. Achebe announced that one of his purposes was to present a complex, dynamic society to a Western audience who perceived African society as primitive, simple, and backward. It was also a response to the Western beliefs that the Africans were uncivilized and barbaric. Achebe got most of his view from his own culture through the writing of Europeans. At first he related to the European writings, but as time went on, he felt they were poor caricatures and stereotypes of the actual people, and he tried to show this through his writing. In Things Fall Apart, Achebe illustrates this vision by showing us what happened in the Igbo society of Nigeria at the time of its colonization by the British. Because of internal weaknesses within the native structure and the divided nature of Igbo society, the community of Umuofia in this novel is unable to withstand the tidal wave of foreign religion, commerce, technology, and government. Unless Africans could tell their side of their story, Achebe...
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...countries are becoming more equal in today’s society, there was still a time when men were extremely superior to women. Men held the power in many important roles in society. This was especially prevalent in government, and because men were making the rules, they wanted to keep the power to themselves. Things Fall Apart, by Chinua Achebe, is about an African tribe called the Igbo. The Igob tribe was all abut their own tribe, as most tribes in Africa were, but they were even more concerned with power within their own tribe. The struggle for power within the Igbo culture has lead to an extremely patriarch society that isn’t questioned by anyone and has lead to women having no power and no equality. This can be seen through the expectations of women, how they are treated, and their insignificant role in society. One way that the Igbo tribe show’s that women have no power or equality is through the expectation of women. In the Igbo tribe the women are in charge of the household chores. These chores include collecting firewood, cooking, cleaning, taking care of the children, and anything else their husband’s assign them to do. All of his wives are required to make their husband’s dinner and do all the chores around their home equally. Another expectation is educating their children. The wives are in charge of telling the children stories to educate them with their tribes history, and also teach their children about the responsibilities in life, social, and moral values. The mother’s are...
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...1. Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe, Published in 1958, Paper back. 2. After reading through Achebe’s novel, “Things Fall Apart,” and doing some extra research, one of Chinua’s main purposes in writing this novel (in my opinion) was in fact to prove to foreigners that Africa was different from what they would perceive it to be. Anybody who has read through “Things Fall Apart” would be able to notice that Chinua was trying to really unveil Africa’s culture. Chinua really projected the tribe’s cultural values, rituals, and common practices purposely to change the Westerners perception of Africa as a continent. Before this novel was written, most westerners would believe Africa was just a simple continent just as other ones. Chinua Ultimately wanted to change this view of Africa to something more realistic and conclusive. Chinua did this by writing his novel, “Things Fall Apart. “ 3. Chinua did an excellent job when attempting to achieve his purpose. Achebe wrote this novel with the intent to alter the perception of Africa to Westerners. “Unoka had gone to consult the Oracle of the Hills and the Caves to find out why he always had a miserable harvest.” ( Achebe, pgs. 16) This quote in the novel allows readers to assume most tribes in Africa believe in superstitions. Chinua made sure to put details into who the Oracle of the Hills and the Caves was, Chinua also gave detail on how and why people would seek into the dark hole and talk to this “spiritual” figure. This detail...
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...“He does not understand our customs”: Narrating orality and empire in Chinua Achebe’s Things Fall Apart Jarica Linn Watts To cite this article: Jarica Linn Watts (2010) “He does not understand our customs”: Narrating orality and empire in Chinua Achebe’s Things Fall Apart , Journal of Postcolonial Writing, 46:1, 65-75, DOI: 10.1080/17449850903478189 To link to this article: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/17449850903478189 Published online: 27 Jan 2010. Submit your article to this journal Article views: 501 View related articles Full Terms & Conditions of access and use can be found at http://www.tandfonline.com/action/journalInformation?journalCode=rjpw20 Download by: [Indiana University Libraries] Date: 24 February 2016, At: 16:43 Journal of Postcolonial Writing Vol. 46, No. 1, February 2010, 65–75 “He does not understand our customs”: Narrating orality and empire in Chinua Achebe’s Things Fall Apart Jarica Linn Watts* University of Utah, Salt Lake City, USA Downloaded by [Indiana University Libraries] at 16:43 24 February 2016 jarica.watts@utah.edu Jarica 0 100000February 46 2010 &Article OriginalofFrancis 1744-9855 (print)/1744-9863 JournalandPostcolonial 10.1080/17449850903478189(online) RJPW_A_448194.sgm TaylorLinnWatts 2010 Writing Francis This article delineates different strains of Achebe’s narrative technique in Things Fall Apart, arguing that earlier critics have failed to account fully for two fundamental principles...
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