Things Fall Apart Research Paper

For many decades, books present us with different characters that impact the course of history and literature. These personas all come with different and unique perspectives that add meat to a story in unexpected ways. Usually the characters with the biggest impacts are the major characters of a story; however, as seen Antigone by Sophocles and Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe, that concept may not always be the case. Both stories create a unique way of developing their plots: by utilizing their minor characters. The play and the book provide their minor characters, Obierika and Teiresias, impactful roles in the way they serve as the wise, reasonable, and sane personalities that hold the voice of reason in society.

Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe features the character Nwoye, the son of one of the strongest and most powerful men in the village, Okonkwo. Okonkwo is scared of failure because that is what his father became, so he is incredibly harsh on Nwoye. When the western men invade, Nwoye is torn between two worlds: converting to Christianity where he can start a new life, orstaying loyal to his family and village. Nwyoe ultimately makes the choice to go against his father. Due to the arrival of western culture, Nwoye leaves his family, converts to Christianity, and changes his name.

In the book “Things Fall Apart” by Chinua Achebe, we see the effect the white missionaries had on an African tribe and the antihero Okonkwo. The main character Okonkwo is a tragic hero. Achebe depicts Okonkwo as a Shakespearean hero with a tragic flaw, that tragic flaw is the fact that he will do anything in his power not to be a weak man like his father Unoka. Okonkwo did what he did because he hated his father and would do anything in his power to be the exact opposite of his father.

While there has been tangible progress made in race relations, inequalities still tarnish the country. In poor black communities across the nation, the lack of opportunity stifles potential and creates a cyclical chain of poverty and violence. Areas with high black populations struggling with violence and unequal policing, have prompted a modern civil right movement called “Black Lives Matter.” Critics of the movement often cite, the supposed inherent inequality in the idea. All lives matter, they argue, why should black lives matter specifically? The movement, however, does not argue that black lives matter more than lives of other races, the movement is saying that black lives matter just as much. Furthermore, it’s an exclamation, that calls for attention to be placed on communities ravaged by violence and poverty that are disproportion black. Similar to the movements of the 1960’s, the BLM movement is causing tension across the country. Like king argued, tension is the catalyst that inspires change and conversation. The nonviolent protests of BLM, seek to “dramatize the issue that it can no longer be ignored;” that is the “work of a nonviolent resister” (1310). Just as the march that was depicted in Selma, the BLM has sought to seek change without violence, but instead with protests and media campaigns. BLM methods parallel King’s use of non violent protest, in a

For all of his desire to be strong, Okonkwo is caught up by the constant fear of being perceived as weak. He is afraid of failure and afraid of being considered weak. This fear drives him to do whatever he can to not become a failure like his father which ironically contributes to his death. While Okonkwo was a strong and important figure in his tribe, he had to keep his reputation that way by making some hard decisions. One of them was when he had to kill Ikemefuna, a young boy from the neighboring tribe. Okonkwo started accepting the decision to kill Ikemefuna because he started to call Okonkwo father. He had to keep his own valor intact and kill the boy to prevent himself from showing any weakness, but deep down, Okonkwo was really upset because of what he did which was ironic, “’When did you become a shivering old woman,' Okonkwo asked himself, 'you, who are known in all the nine villages for your valor in war? How can a man who has killed five men in battle fall to pieces because he has added a boy to their number? Okonkwo, you have become a woman indeed.'" (Achebe 65). He continued to roll downhill when the white man comes to try and convert Okonkwo’s tribe. Okonkwo responds by killing one of the messengers that were sent. This cause Okonkwo's own tribe to question his actions. “"Okonkwo stood looking at the dead man. He knew that Umuofia would not go to war. He knew because they had let the other messengers escape.

The people of Ferguson were outraged at the racial injustice which transpired in their city. Too many young black men had had their lives taken too soon by the police. Michael Brown’s death was another added to the list surely not the last and the people knew this. Change was needed and that burning need for it is what started the riots. The citizens of Ferguson were fed up with how the people of the country were treated by law enforcement and decided to make a stand. Ferguson would be thrown in the spotlight for “what’s wrong with America”. The police and the people of the country had a broken bond. Those entrusted to protect the people were no longer trusted.

White supremacy is the real culprit in the Ferguson issue. To be in black America is to be the victim and then get blamed for it. Society has focused on the people’s resistance more than the police subduing the people and devaluing black life.

I am Obierika, and I am a part of the Ibo tribe of Umuofia which is in Nigeria. I have been through a lot with my tribe and sometimes I do not fully agree with the actions my tribe completes. I am writing this to defend the Ibo culture against what the District Commissioner wrote about us in The Pacification of the Primitive Tribes of the Lower Niger. The District Commissioner is an authority figure to the white government in Nigeria who thinks he completely grasps the culture of the Ibo.

In Things Fall Apart, by Chinua Achebe, Mr. Brown, the first missionary in Umuofia, was a kind and respectful man. Not to say that Reverend James Smith was not, but his degree of kindness and respect were present in a whole different level. They both wanted to convert the lost, all those in Umuofia that were not in the church. Mr. Brown made friends with the clan and “trod softly on his faith,” (pg.178) while Mr. Smith told them how things were in a harsh voice and tried to force his religion on the people of Umuofia. The impacts the two had on the people and the church were exact opposites.

In Things Fall Apart there are many cultural collisions created by the introduction of Western ideas into Ibo culture. One example of a cultural collision caused by the introduction of Western ideas into Ibo culture is when Okonkwo’s first son, Nwoye converts to Christianity. This causes a cultural collision between Okonkwo and Nwoye because Nwoye wants to become a Christian, but Okonkwo doesn’t like the white men or Christianity. This cultural collision is caused by the white men bringing in western ideas to Ibo culture. This collision is very important to the book because it leads to the destruction of Okonkwo and fuels his anger. This collision shapes the meaning of the novel as a whole by symbolizing many things

On social media there was a trending hashtag, #BlackLivesMatter, when the riots in Ferguson began in August 2014 over the killing of a young African American male by a white police officer. The African American community made it clear that black lives did matter. They were outraged and upset by the constant police brutality against them that they believed was caused by the underlying of racism. The fact that black

This is an example of the difference in personal beliefs among family. Some may say that the book is about the differences in beliefs between the Africans and the colonizers, but it is more than that. It is clear that it was Okonkwo's personal beliefs and not necessarily the views of the people of Umuofia which guided him in what he did. One of these is his reliance in the strength of anger. Although he felt strongly in the beliefs and customs of the Ibo people, there are several occasions in which Okonkwo made a decision to disobey the customs in order to live out his own personal beliefs. For example, in chapter four, Okonkwo is yelled at by Ezeani, the priest of the earth goddess, for beating his wife during the sacred week of peace. Okonkwo did not feel remorse for his actions and probably thought of it as a sign of strength and manhood. Okonkwo was always worried about being seen as weak. One good

Upon an initial reading of Chinua Achebe’s Things Fall Apart, it is easy to blame the demise of Okonkwo’s life and of the Umofia community on the imperialistic invasions of the white men. After all, Okonkwo seemed to be enjoying relative peace and happiness before then. He did have a few mishaps; one of them resulted in him being exiled for eight years. Nonetheless, he returned to his home town with high spirits and with prospects of increased success. However, everything has changed. The white men have brought with them a new religion and a new government. Okonkwo’s family falls apart. The men in his village lose their courage and valor; they do not offer any resistance to the white men. Consequently, Okonkwo kills

Achebe and Adichie teach us about the importance of notice other culture around us and that their is always more than one side of a story. As I listen to the Adichie and read Achebe, I began to notice how much I don't know. How important Things Fall Apart is not only to teach us about African culture, but to know there side of how colonization began. All in all Things Fall Apart teaching us different cultures in the world, people, and that we should know more about the world we live in.

Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe was wrote in 1958 as a response to European Literature viewing Africans as savages who were then enlightened and found peace and safety by the Europeans. Chinua describes the Igbo people and showed the culture and showing the way of life of the Igbo people. This book shows this powerful and eye opening look into the complex society of these tribes and villages and how law and order is run. The major theme that is I will focus is that traditional development of the Igbo tribe alone and with the influence of the Europeans.