An Introduction to Things Fall Apart Thanks to Highland Park Senior High, wherever you may be. You guys should really take credit for your work!

Chinua Achebe (Shin’wa Ach-ab-ba) Born 1930 in Nigeria Writes about the breakdown of traditional African Culture in the face of European Colonization in the 1800s. Sought to educate his fellow Nigerians about their culture and traditions.

Author’s Purpose His first novel, Things Fall Apart, depicts the confrontation between the Igbo people of Southeast Nigeria and the British who came to colonize them. “Achebe tells the story from an African point of view, showing that the Igbo were not "savages” needing to be civilized, as the European conquerors believed, but intelligent human beings with a stable, ordered society and rich tradition.”

Author’s Background Achebe was raised as a devout Christian. His father was a teacher in a missionary school. Achebe recalls that his family called themselves “the people of the church” and thought of non-Christians – including Achebe’s uncle, who still practiced traditional religion – as “heathen” or “the people of nothing.” Achebe later rejected this thought, along with his European name “Albert.”

Author’s Work Achebe left during the Nigerian Civil War of Independence (1967) to travel Europe and America to educate people about the cause. In 1990, a car accident in Nigeria leaves Achebe paralyzed. He accepts a position to teach college in New York state. He extends his stay in the U.S., due to the military coups in Nigeria in 1993 and recent corruption in the government.

Background on Nigeria History dates to Nok culture of 400 B.C. The Niger River divides country into three major regions. The country is as large as Texas, Louisiana and Mississippi combined.

Nigeria! Maps

Background on Nigeria There are over 100 million people in Nigeria today. The Igbo people are the third largest ethnic group. The Igbo people live in the eastern region – where Things Fall Apart is set – near town of Onitsha. The Yoruba live in the west and the Hausa-Fulani, an Islamic people, live in the north.

Background on Nigeria Nigeria was a center of the European slave trade for many years – a dangerous and lucrative business. It was colonized by Great Britain during the time of imperialism (18th and 19th centuries) and finally granted its independence by Great Britain in 1914.

Europe Colonizes Africa

The Igbo Third most populous ethnic group in Nigeria (16% of population) Live in southeastern part of country in tropical rain forests (deal with rainy season and dry winds) Subsistence farmers – raise their own crops: Yam, cassava, taro, corn, etc. Palm trees for oil and fiber Crafts and manual labor also provide income

Igbo Culture It is a patriarchal society. Decision making involves males only Men grow yams and women grow other crops Live in villages based on male lineage – male heads of household all related on father’s side (approximately 5,000 people per clan) Women go to live with husbands; prosperous men have 2 or 3 wives Each wife lives in her own hut in the family compound

Igbo Images Traditional Obi – hut or family compound under construction

Igbo Society No single leader, elders lead Social mobility: Titles earned (not inherited). High value placed on individual acheivement. Hospitality very important Some Igbos owned slaves captured in war or as payment for debt. Proximity to West African ports means many Igbo were taken in slave trade

Ibo Religion Chukwu – supreme god, creator of world The will of gods was revealed through oracles. Each clan, village, and household had protective ancestral spirits Chi – personal guardian spirit – affects one’s destiny, can be influenced through individual actions and rituals. Egwugwu – masked, ancestral spirits of the clan who appear during certain rituals.

Igbo Images Villager performing role of egwugwu

Igbo Images Traditional dibia, a medicine man or healer.

Achebe’s Style Achebe blends a formal European style of writing (the novel) with African story-telling He influenced other African writers and pioneered a new literary style using Traditional idioms Folk tales Proverbs Achebe is a “social novelist.” He believes in the power of literature to create social change.

Home: As you complete the conflict chart and are locating quotes to cite, do you best to focus on examples wherein words, language, and rituals are being used or being threatened. Achebe is a “social novelist.” He believes in the power of literature to create social change.

Achebe’s Novel: Key Facts FULL TITLE  ·  Things Fall Apart AUTHOR  · Chinua Achebe TYPE OF WORK  · Novel GENRE  · Postcolonial critique; tragedy LANGUAGE  · English TIME AND PLACE WRITTEN  · 1959, Nigeria DATE OF FIRST PUBLICATION  · 1959 PUBLISHER  · Heinemann Educational Books Achebe uses traditional African idiom in his work: See “Pronunciation of Igbo Names and Words” in Cliffsnotes

Achebe’s Novel: Key Facts NARRATOR  · The narrator is anonymous but shows sympathy for the various residents of Umuofia. POINT OF VIEW  · The narration is in the third person, by an omniscient figure who focuses on Okonkwo but switches from character to character to detail the thoughts and motives of various individuals. TONE  · Ironic, tragic, satirical, fablelike TENSE  · Past SETTING (TIME)  · 1890s SETTING (PLACE)  · Lower Nigerian villages, Iguedo and Mbanta in particular PROTAGONIST  · Okonkwo Achebe includes African folk tales in his work: See Chapter 11, the story of the cunning tortoise, which explains why tortoise’s shell is not smooth.

Achebe’s Novel: Key Facts MAJOR CONFLICT  · On one level, the conflict is between the traditional society of Umuofia and the new customs brought by the whites, which are in turn adopted by many of the villagers. Okonkwo also struggles to be as different from his deceased father as possible. He believes his father to have been weak, effeminate, lazy, ignominious, and poor. Consequently, Okonkwo strives to be strong, masculine, industrious, respected, and wealthy. RISING ACTION  · Enoch’s unmasking of an egwugwu, the egwugwu’s burning of the church, and the District Commissioner’s sneaky arrest of Umuofian leaders force the tension between Umuofia and the colonizers to a breaking point. CLIMAX  · Okonkwo’s murder, or uchu, of a court messenger Achebe uses African proverbs to capture the mind of his culture: A man who pays respect to the great paves the way for his own greatness.

Achebe’s Novel: Key Facts FALLING ACTION  · The villagers allow the white government’s messengers to escape, and Okonkwo, realizing the weakness of his clan, commits suicide. THEMES  · The struggle between tradition and change; varying interpre-tations of masculinity; language as a sign of cultural difference MOTIFS  ·  Chi, animal imagery

Achebe’s Novel: Key Facts SYMBOLS  · The novel is highly symbolic, and it asks to be read in symbolic terms. Two of the main symbols are the locusts and fire. The locusts symbolize the white colonists descending upon the Africans, seeming to augur good but actually portending troublesome encounters. Fire epitomizes Okonkwo’s nature—he is fierce and destructive. A third symbol, the drums, represents the physical connection of the community of clansmen in Umuofia, and acts as a metaphorical heartbeat that beats in unison, uniting all the village members. For example name symbols used by characters, read the Sparknotes Summary of Chapter 9 FORESHADOWING  · The author’s initial description of Ikemefuna as an “ill-fated boy,” which presages his eventual murder by Okonkwo; the arrival of the locusts, which symbolizes the eventual arrival of the colonizers; Obierika’s suggestion that Okonkwo kill himself, which foretells Okonkwo’s eventual suicide