Chinua Achebe s Things Fall Apart - 1813 Words

Achebe’s Things Fall Apart moved me in a way that had once been unreachable by non-Western literary works regarding the state of foundation in the pre-colonialization period of Africa, and of course the subsequent rule from European powers. It is clear that Achebe sought to paint a truer picture of the sophisticated culture and traditions embedded in tribes that had only been smeared by Europeans who were solely after conquest, commerce, and Christianity. Things Fall Apart starts off at a pinnacle moment of Okonkwo’s life, our protagonist. He is paired off with Amalinze, commonly referred to as the Cat as his back never touches the ground, in a wrestling match. Okonkwo, in all of his masculinity, defeats the Cat and gains the much†¦show more content†¦Along with the rest of his life, this treatment brought Okonkwo much shame and vowed to never be beleaguered by same attributes that plagued his father. On the surface it seemed that things really began to fal l apart when Okonkwo’s resting gun went off and killed Ezeudu’s sixteen year old son during Ezeudu’s funeral. Though it was an accidental killing, the death of a clansman from another is considered a great sin to the Earth God in Igbo culture. The price to pay for this crime is abolishment of Okonkwo and his family for seven years. This is to ensure stability and solidarity throughout the community of Umuofia and that the family of the deceased will be able to lose their resentment towards Okonkwo and Okonkwo’s anger will dissipate. To me it appeared that the catalyst of this spiraling chain of events at the funeral stretched back to one of Okonkwo’s gravest mistakes in the story, when he killed his imposed adopted son, Ikemefuna. With that swift thrust of his machete, Okonkwo had defied the oracles demands and committed a grave sin against the Earth God. This betrayal of tradition disturbed the peace of chi community wide. The expulsion of Okonkwo and his family from the village of Iguedo, where they had lived comfortably in great status, sent them back to his mother’s home village where they were much less graced by prestige,