things fall apart book review essay pdf

Academia.edu no longer supports Internet Explorer.

To browse Academia.edu and the wider internet faster and more securely, please take a few seconds to  upgrade your browser .

Enter the email address you signed up with and we'll email you a reset link.

• We're Hiring!
• Help Center

Book Review: Things Fall Apart

Related Papers

Johnson Cosmo

This article aims at exploring the causes of the fall of Okonkwo, the protagonist of the Nigerian Novel. Things Fall Apart by the renowned novelist, Chinua Achebe. Though the novel mainly deals with the fall of Igbo Culture where Okonkwo has played the sheet anchor role in the novel, Things Fall Apart at the hands of British establishment in Nigeria, the other vital reasons that make him vulnerable will also

East West Journal of Humanities, Vol. 4

Sonia Sharmin

This paper analyzes the resistance of Achebe’s two ‘heroes’ Okonkwo, the protagonist of Things Fall Apart, and Obi Okonkwo, the protagonist of No Longer at Ease. While Okonkwo takes up arms to preserve the culture and tradition in a “things fall apart society”, Obi Okonkwo’s honesty and his love for Clara, remain constant with him and he is “no longer at ease” in the flux of colonial Nigeria. In pre-colonial Nigeria, Okonkwo’s resistance to the white man’s religion, education and technology is defeated and Obi’s desire for a corrupt-free Nigeria fails during British colonial rule. In line with this development, we find Okonkwo’s son converting to Christianity. Eventually, Okonkwo commits suicide realizing that he is going to be defeated. However, the history of resistance does not end here and Okonkwo’s and Obi’s apparent defeat has far-reaching implications for Africa’s subsequent anti-colonial fight.

International Journal of Development and Management Review

Uchenna Uwakwe

Purwarno Purwarno

This essay is an attempt to a deconstructive interpretation of Okonkwo in Chinua Achebe's " Things Fall Apart ". It begins by reviewing literary comments on Chinua Achebe and later dovetails an explication of the meaning of deconstruction as a way of enabling to grapple with the realities of this post structuralist critical formulation. This essay observes that Okonkwo is not only a brutal cannibal but also a barbarian. This refers to the backdrop of his penchant for killing as shown in the novel. This opinion is buttressed by Okonkwo's ruthless habit of drinking from his first human head, which is a tilled smack of cannibalism. Based on the theory of deconstruction, it concludes that the scientific reading relies only on the text which functions as the real mirror of society which literature is all about.

Suhair Fuaad Hajo

A first reading of the novel reveals the fact that what fall apart in Things fall apart are Igbo’s cultures and traditions. Accordingly a lot of readings have been done on the novel with almost similar disclosures; considering it as a postcolonial novel and as Achebe’s response to the white racism embedded in European literature, which presented Africa as a primitive and socially retrograde nation. Hence, reading Things Fall Apart from a new and distinct perspective with the aid of trances from reader response criticism, this study aims to answer the question of; what really falls apart (in Things Fall Apart) and how? Through a close and transactional reading of the novel this study demonstrates that Igbo’s culture and religion didn’t fall apart but changed and in fact, what falls apart in Things Fall Apart is Okonkwo, the protagonist of the novel. By studying and comparing his conducts, before and after killing Ikemefona it reveals that his mortal sin parts him beyond the limits of his cultural conventions, in the process of gaining his individual purposes, which later leads to his downfall.

Sunay Rastogi

Achebe shows the outside influence of the Europeans whose ethnocentric views coupled with the ethnocentric views of the Ibo caused the collapse of the culture itself. Achebe primarily portrays Okonkwo as both the cause and a victim of the collapse of the Ibo culture. Okonkwo accelerates the downward spiral of the Ibo culture, but would not have been forced to do so if the outside influence of the Christian did not infiltrate his tribe.

Haleshappa V V

The novel tells the fable of the Turtle who reached the sky because the birds lent it their feathers. The fable forms a pattern for the whole novel: just as the Turtle reaches the sky with the help of the birds, so Okonkwo reaches one of the foremost positions in his clan with the support of the population. But just as the Turtle plunges to the ground and crushes his shield, so Okonkwo falls from power when he loses the support of the people and the gods. The plot takes place in the fictional Ibo village of Umuofia in Iboland in eastern Nigeria in the late 19th century, just before and after the first white people arrive in the area. The theme is a tradition as opposed to change, the dissolution of traditional African society as it cannot withstand the forces of white civilization. The first part of the novel depicts life in the traditional Ibo society, its social and religious structure, its rites, and customs. It is a society where the individual is to a large extent subordinate to the collective and it is through the collective that the individual reaches his goal and life gets its meaning (Whittaker and Msiska, 2007).

Md. M A H B U B U L Alam

Chinua Achebe's magnum opus Things Fall Apart reflects authentic presentation of the Igbo society. Various social, political, economic, religious, psychological and personal issues of the Igbo people have been put forward by the author in this ethnographic novel. Achebe has depicted these issues from the perspective of both an observer and a critic. The ethnographic depiction of the Igbo life indicates that Chinua Achebe has tried to maintain his objective stance in the novel. He is not biased at all. It is evident in his contrastive presentation of the culture and beliefs of the Igbo; in one hand, he presents the constructive and rational side of the Igbo, on the other hand, he highlights their follies and irrational beliefs too. Achebe as an original Igbo expectedly presents the riches and potentialities of the Igbo society. But at the same time he is not uncritical of the limitations of his society where he belongs to. The present study has dealt with Achebe's audacious attempt to present the limitations and follies of Igbo life in Things Fall Apart. Abstract-Chinua Achebe's magnum opus Things Fall Apart reflects authentic presentation of the Igbo society. Various social, political, economic, religious, psychological and personal issues of the Igbo people have been put forward by the author in this ethnographic novel. Achebe has depicted these issues from the perspective of both an observer and a critic. The ethnographic depiction of the Igbo life indicates that Chinua Achebe has tried to maintain his objective stance in the novel. He is not biased at all. It is evident in his contrastive presentation of the culture and beliefs of the Igbo; in one hand, he presents the constructive and rational side of the Igbo, on the other hand, he highlights their follies and irrational beliefs too. Achebe as an original Igbo expectedly presents the riches and potentialities of the Igbo society. But at the same time he is not uncritical of the limitations of his society where he belongs to. The present study has dealt with Achebe's audacious attempt to present the limitations and follies of Igbo life in Things Fall Apart.

GRam Poudel

Elisabeth Horan

In Chinua Achebe's masterpiece of the destructive forces of colonial conquest in Africa, "Things Fall Apart", Okonkwo is driven to control his family and achieve power through fear and violence; using his masculinity to destroy any signs of femininity in his sons. Ironically, in the end, Okonkwo is reduced to a feminine status by the British colonizers that overthrow his power with fear and violence as well, leaving him stripped of power and his masculinity - transformed into what he feared most: of becoming effeminate and powerless like a woman and like his father -who he resented and was ashamed of.

Loading Preview

Sorry, preview is currently unavailable. You can download the paper by clicking the button above.

RELATED PAPERS

Tanya Singh

Chimdi Madua

Harry Olufunwa

And the Centre Refuses to Hold: Homage to Things Fall Apart @ 60

Amechi Akwanya

Christopher Anyokwu

Journal of Literature, Languages and Linguistics(JLLL)

Jean Damascene Ngendahayo

subarna shirin

Farhana Bukhari

Sherezade Afanador Jiménez

International Journal of Linguistics, Literature and Translation (IJLLT)

D'Angelo Jovaughn Jenkins

Chijindu Daniel Mgemere

Riffaqat Bano

Sanjana S I N G H Rathore

IAEME PUBLICATION

IAEME Publication

Baba Jallow

Mary J. N. Okolie

Mary J . N . Okolie

African Studies Review

Benjamin Ofori-Yeboah

Idil Journal of Art and Language

Cigdem Pala

International Journal of English Literature and Social Sciences

Nadia Anjum

Revd John Arierhi Ottuh

Academia Letters

UNIVERSITY OF CHITRAL JOURNAL OF LINGUISTICS AND LITERATURE

University of Chitral Journal of Linguistics and Literature

International Journal on Studies in English Language and Literature

RELATED TOPICS

•   We're Hiring!
•   Help Center
• Find new research papers in:
• Health Sciences
• Earth Sciences
• Cognitive Science
• Mathematics
• Computer Science
• Academia ©2024

Chinua Achebe’s “Things Fall Apart” Critical Review Essay

• To find inspiration for your paper and overcome writer’s block
• As a source of information (ensure proper referencing)
• As a template for you assignment

Things Fall Apart is the first novel of the Nigerian author Chinua Achebe. Published in 1958, the novel describes the life of a Nigerian village – Iguedo, at the advent of the white colonization in Nigeria. The novel’s main protagonist is Okonkwo, a warrior, and a consistent traditionalist, who fell victim to circumstances. Okonkwo was entrusted with raising Ikemefuna, a child from a hostile village who was taken as a hostage. Feeling personally attached to Ikemefuna, Okonkwo never showed his true emotions, and fearing appearing weak in front of his village, he killed the boy. After another incident, in which he killed a clansman by accident, Okonkwo was exiled from the village with his family for seven years, after which he returned to find white people with missionary work in his village. Okonkwo refused to reconcile with the new order and eventually killed himself.

Although Iguedo is a fictional village, the novel took a realistic approach toward depicting the life of the Nigerian tribes. In that regard, Iguedo can be seen as an example of a traditional Nigerian tribe with a distinctive social structure. The relations with Umuofia, the clan to which Iguedo belonged, might be seen as a representation of a simple political system within the Nigerian tribes at the time, which included wars, peaceful settlements, and mediations through an authoritative party (the Oracle of the Hills and the Caves) (Achebe, 1996, p. 9). A form of democracy was also present in such an establishment, where the main political and social aspects were determined through clan meetings.

The culture of the tribe that was depicted in the novel was of the Igbo culture. This culture still exists and many of its elements were realistically depicted in the novel. One element can be seen in the absence of a ruler in the tribe, where “decisions [were] made by including almost everyone in the village” (Froiland, 2010), an aspect that was truthfully reflected in the novel (Achebe, 1996, p. 19). Additionally, the religion was represented by showing that the highest level of divine beings is the supreme god, or “Chukwu”, a loving father who should be feared when doing against his will (Achebe, 1996; Froiland, 2010).

The main conclusion that can be drawn from reading about the culture in the novel is that despite considering the culture as non-static and adaptive to changes, the example of Okonkwo shows the opposition of tradition to such changes. In that regard, the colonization in the novel can be considered as one of the main driving forces of change to which Okonkwo was so resistant.

Accordingly, the questions that might be raised are concerned with the overall idea of cultural change. Does the author’s view support holding on to the culture and the tradition despite some of its negative aspects? Examples of negative aspects can be seen in the sacrifice process, the role of women, and others.

Analyzing the novel on a larger scale, it can be stated that the ideas of cultural diversity, multiculturalism, and globalism do not seem to fit into the idea of tradition opposing changes. The latter can be seen in that one of the consequences of diversity, multiculturalism, and globalism is gradually erasing the distinctive features of each culture and mixing them into one large melting pot of various cultures.

Finally, the ideas that can be used in class are mainly related to showing examples of early social structures, groups, and social roles. In that regard, gender in the novel can be used to show the way social roles are shaped in such a society. Additionally, colonization as an agent of change can be analyzed and paralleled to other agents in the context of modern society.

Achebe, C. (1996). Things Fall Apart (1st Anchor Books ed.): Heinemann.

Froiland, A. (2010). IBO (IGBO). The Africa Guide. Web.

• Tragic Love and Social Issues in Giovanni Boccaccio’s Decameron
• Theme of Coming Through Slaughter by Michael Ondaatje
• Albert Chinua Achebe Profile
• Patriarchy and Masculinity in Achebe’s “Things Fall Apart”
• Chinua Achebe and His Works
• "Death in Venice," a Novella by Thomas Mann
• Children's Literature Evaluation: Fairy Tales
• Boys and Girls' by Alice Munro: Personal Connection
• Little Red Riding Hood: Breaking Gender Stereotypes
• “The Memory Palace of Matteo Ricci” by Jonathan D. Spence: Concept of Memory Palaces
• Chicago (A-D)
• Chicago (N-B)

IvyPanda. (2021, December 14). Chinua Achebe's "Things Fall Apart" Critical Review. https://ivypanda.com/essays/chinua-achebes-things-fall-apart-critical-review/

"Chinua Achebe's "Things Fall Apart" Critical Review." IvyPanda , 14 Dec. 2021, ivypanda.com/essays/chinua-achebes-things-fall-apart-critical-review/.

IvyPanda . (2021) 'Chinua Achebe's "Things Fall Apart" Critical Review'. 14 December.

IvyPanda . 2021. "Chinua Achebe's "Things Fall Apart" Critical Review." December 14, 2021. https://ivypanda.com/essays/chinua-achebes-things-fall-apart-critical-review/.

1. IvyPanda . "Chinua Achebe's "Things Fall Apart" Critical Review." December 14, 2021. https://ivypanda.com/essays/chinua-achebes-things-fall-apart-critical-review/.

Bibliography

IvyPanda . "Chinua Achebe's "Things Fall Apart" Critical Review." December 14, 2021. https://ivypanda.com/essays/chinua-achebes-things-fall-apart-critical-review/.

IvyPanda uses cookies and similar technologies to enhance your experience, enabling functionalities such as:

• Basic site functions
• Ensuring secure, safe transactions
• Secure account login
• Remembering account, browser, and regional preferences
• Remembering privacy and security settings
• Analyzing site traffic and usage
• Personalized search, content, and recommendations
• Displaying relevant, targeted ads on and off IvyPanda

Please refer to IvyPanda's Cookies Policy and Privacy Policy for detailed information.

Certain technologies we use are essential for critical functions such as security and site integrity, account authentication, security and privacy preferences, internal site usage and maintenance data, and ensuring the site operates correctly for browsing and transactions.

Cookies and similar technologies are used to enhance your experience by:

• Remembering general and regional preferences
• Personalizing content, search, recommendations, and offers

Some functions, such as personalized recommendations, account preferences, or localization, may not work correctly without these technologies. For more details, please refer to IvyPanda's Cookies Policy .

To enable personalized advertising (such as interest-based ads), we may share your data with our marketing and advertising partners using cookies and other technologies. These partners may have their own information collected about you. Turning off the personalized advertising setting won't stop you from seeing IvyPanda ads, but it may make the ads you see less relevant or more repetitive.

Personalized advertising may be considered a "sale" or "sharing" of the information under California and other state privacy laws, and you may have the right to opt out. Turning off personalized advertising allows you to exercise your right to opt out. Learn more in IvyPanda's Cookies Policy and Privacy Policy .

• Non-Fiction
• Author’s Corner
• Reader’s Corner
• Writing Guide
• Book Marketing Services
• Write for us

Book Review: Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe

Author: Chinua Achebe

Publisher: William Heinemann Ltd.

Genre: Historical Fiction, Classic, African Literature

First Publication: 1958

Major Characters: Okonkwo, Ikemefuna, Ezinma, Nwoye

Theme: Tradition vs. Change, Fate vs. Free Will, Masculinity, Religion

Setting: Pre-colonial Nigeria, 1890s

Narrator:  Third-person omniscient

Book Summary: Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe

Okonkwo is the greatest wrestler and warrior alive, and his fame spreads throughout West Africa like a bush-fire in the harmattan. But when he accidentally kills a clansman, things begin to fall apart. Then Okonkwo returns from exile to find missionaries and colonial governors have arrived in the village. With his world thrown radically off-balance he can only hurtle towards tragedy.

First published in 1958, Chinua Achebe’s stark, coolly ironic novel reshaped both African and world literature, and has sold over ten million copies in forty-five languages. This arresting parable of a proud but powerless man witnessing the ruin of his people begins Achebe’s landmark trilogy of works chronicling the fate of one African community, continued in Arrow of God and No Longer at Ease.

Things Fall Apart is the kind of book that makes reading so enjoyable. Not only did it have a captivating story to tell, it also had a great deal of meaning hidden within its text, giving me plenty of reasons to come back to this book long after finishing it. This is an insightful novel that makes you think about a variety of themes and morals while simultaneously entertaining and captivating readers with its characters and setting. Chinua Achebe’s Things Fall Apart is one of those books that I will constantly look back on and think about for years to come, for such was its level of quality on both a narrative scale as well as in terms of its rich subtext.

“The white man is very clever. He came quietly and peaceably with his religion. We were amused at his foolishness and allowed him to stay. Now he has won our brothers, and our clan can no longer act like one. He has put a knife on the things that held us together and we have fallen apart.”

Things Fall Apart tells two concurrent stories that overlap and counterbalance each other throughout the novel. One of the novel’s focuses centers around the protagonist Okonkwo, a fierce warrior who represents traditional African culture. The other focus is on Okonkwo’s tribe, Umuofia, as it undergoes a drastic change in all areas of life once European missionaries enter the fray. The stark divide in ideologies between Okonkwo and Umuofia becomes the focal point of the story and leads to some very contentious moments in the book.

What is one to do when their home has turned against them, when it has done away with your long-held beliefs and values? What is one to do when they are powerless to stop a seemingly unstoppable force from ravaging their essence? These are the conflicts present in Things Fall Apart as seen through Okonkwo’s battle against his ever-changing tribe in the midst of a European takeover. What follows is an entertaining yet poignant tale that will not soon be forgotten.

“Age was respected among his people, but achievement was revered. As the elders said, if a child washed his hands he could eat with kings.”

Okonkwo’s story was excellent. I felt firmly attached to this character the whole time reading, always anxious to see what happens next in his journey or where he would find himself at its conclusion. Granted, Okonkwo may not be the nicest character in literature, nor would you be necessarily wrong in assessing him as a bad person. He does some pretty rotten things in the novel, but context means everything, and though he may have done wrong by conventional standards, he did these things with good intentions, as deluded as they may have been.

In my view, Okonkwo is a tragic hero whose actions are taken in the best interests of his family and tribe, never out of any selfish or vain reasons that would usually lend themselves to an unlikable or evil character. He is tremendously flawed, but so are a lot of tragic figures in literature, which makes them all the more interesting to follow. More to that point, his flaws were completely relatable and forgivable since everything that happened to Okonkwo was the result of circumstances beyond his control. Okonkwo was one of the strongest, most well-developed, and fascinating literary characters I have come across.

“The world has no end, and what is good among one people is an abomination with others.”

The brilliance of Things Fall Apart is how objective it manages to be while at the same time establishing an intimate feel throughout the entirety of the novel. That is to say, Chinua Achebe was able to shine a light on the culture of the missionaries as well as the Africans and point out their strengths and weaknesses, all the while engaging the readers in a very personal tale of one tribesman’s struggle to come to terms with this newly imposed way of life.

Achebe never once painted Umuofia and its people as being the “good guys,” or the helpless and innocent victims of colonialism. Likewise, he never made the European missionaries out to be the heartless “bad guys” who sought only to inflict damage and pain unto the Africans. Instead, Achebe balanced these two sides out and demonstrated that nothing is ever merely black and white, and that complexity exists everywhere and cannot be stereotyped or callously assumed. That is the magic behind Things Fall Apart – that it is capable of being many things to many people while maintaining an objective ambiguity about it, thus leaving the interpreting up to the readers rather than having its meanings blatantly shoved down our throats. This diversity of perspective and opinion make books like Things Fall Apart all the more worthwhile a reading experience.

“Eneke the bird says that since men have learned to shoot without missing, he has learned to fly without perching.”

Another aspect of Things Fall Apart that made it great was its historical and cultural significance in the field of literature. Though the events of the novel were purely fictitious, they resembled the real-life events which occurred all throughout Africa during a time when the British were colonizing across the globe. This novel gave many readers, such as myself, an accessible means by which to learn about the infringement of these African cultures and the assimilation which took place thereafter by the British. Beforehand, I was not too knowledgeable on African affairs in the early 20th century, nor was I fully aware of the intentions of the Europeans as they colonized new lands.

However, after reading Things Fall Apart, I came away from it learning a lot about the history and culture of the African people and their plights, as well as about the motivations of the missionaries. Although I would not recommend this book as a substitute for a textbook on the subject, I can say that it conveys a good deal of historical context that would satisfy those hoping to get more involved in African literary studies.

This is a relatively short novel, and its chapters fly by so fast that you will be through with it in no time at all, which may be the only bad thing I can say about this book. Though as short a read as it may have been, its impact was anything but fleeting with a memorable story and a plethora of subtext in which to indulge for a long time to come.

More on this topic

Leave a reply cancel reply.

Sign me up for the newsletter!

Readers also enjoyed

Swan song by elin hilderbrand, the perfect couple by elin hilderbrand, the castaways by elin hilderbrand, a summer affair by elin hilderbrand, the velvet hammer by chief judge belvin perry, jr. and amy mitchell, popular stories, one day, life will change by saranya umakanthan, most famous fictional detectives from literature, the complete list of the booker prize winner books, book marketing and promotion services.

We provide genuine and custom-tailored book marketing services and promotion strategies. Our services include book reviews and social media promotion across all possible platforms, which will help you in showcasing the books, sample chapters, author interviews, posters, banners, and other promotional materials. In addition to book reviews and author interviews, we also provide social media campaigning in the form of contests, events, quizzes, and giveaways, as well as sharing graphics and book covers. Our book marketing services are very efficient, and we provide them at the most competitive price.

The Book Marketing and Promotion Plan that we provide covers a variety of different services. You have the option of either choosing the whole plan or customizing it by selecting and combining one or more of the services that we provide. The following is a list of the services that we provide for the marketing and promotion of books.

Book Reviews

Book Reviews have direct impact on readers while they are choosing their next book to read. When they are purchasing book, most readers prefer the books with good reviews. We’ll review your book and post reviews on Amazon, Flipkart, Goodreads and on our Blogs and social-media channels.

Author Interviews

We’ll interview the author and post those questions and answers on blogs and social medias so that readers get to know about author and his book. This will make author famous along with his book among the reading community.

Social Media Promotion

We have more than 170K followers on our social media channels who are interested in books and reading. We’ll create and publish different posts about book and author on our social media platforms.

Social Media Set up

Social Media is a significant tool to reaching out your readers and make them aware of your work. We’ll help you to setup and manage various social media profiles and fan pages for your book.

We’ll provide you our social media marketing guide, using which you may take advantage of these social media platforms to create and engage your fan base.

Website Creation

One of the most effective and long-term strategies to increase your book sales is to create your own website. Author website is must have tool for authors today and it doesn’t just help you to promote book but also helps you to engage with your potential readers. Our full featured author website, with blog, social media integration and other cool features, is the best marketing tool you can have. You can list each of your titles and link them to buy from various online stores.

Google / Facebook / Youtube Adverts

We can help you in creating ad on Google, Facebook and Youtube to reach your target audience using specific keywords and categories relevant to your book.

With our help you can narrow down your ads to the exact target audience for your book.

For more details mail us at [email protected]

The Bookish Elf is your single, trusted, daily source for all the news, ideas and richness of literary life. The Bookish Elf is a site you can rely on for book reviews, author interviews, book recommendations, and all things books. Contact us: [email protected]

Quick Links

• Privacy Policy

Recent Posts

Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe, a Book Review

Introduction: things fall apart by chinua achebe.

Other authors wrote about this topic, but they came at it from a different perspective. Joseph Conrad’s Heart of Darkness ( Review ) – which I found offensive because of the way he depicted black people – was one of those books.

With the demonstration going on around the world, I thought I'd add this book review that I wrote more than seven years ago.

What is Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe About?

Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe is a story about the clashing of cultures. The clash between the Ibo society of Umuofia, a group of nine villages in Nigeria, and European colonization and Christianity. And the falling from grace of both an individual and a society, and the reason for both. First published in 1958, the story covers the end of the 19 th century, and is through the eyes of the warrior, Okonkwo, from the village Iguedo.

While growing up in the village of Iguedo, Okonkwo was very ashamed of his father, Unoka. He considered his father to be very lazy. Iguedo vowed that he would lead a very different life, one where he would provide for his family. Many boys had a better start than Okonkwo because their fathers would have given them lands. But despite this, Okonkwo was able to rise and become known and respected. He was a man of action and a man of war.

The story depicts the ways of the Iguedo people who believed in gods and were very fearful of the wrath of these same gods. It was also a very patriarchal society where men ruled the household and women did their bidding. Although Okonkwo was very brave, I didn’t like his character as a person. He was quick to anger and abused his family whenever they slipped up.

And he knew exactly how to kill a man’s spirit. He ruled his household with a heavy hand. So they were perpetually fearful of him. I loved the spirit of his second wife Ekwefi, who had a mind of her own, although she would suffer for it.

To understand and appreciate Things Fall Apart , we cannot look at it with today’s lens. A lot of the things that the villagers did would be considered illegal today. And they were a highly superstitious people who offered sacrifices to gods. When a woman had twins the newborns were thrown into the Evil Forest. It was generally accepted that men could beat their wives and children.

Each year, they celebrate the Week of Peace in Umuofia. One year, Ekwefi went away to get her hair done, when she should have been preparing Okonkwo’s meal. His first wife tries to cover for her. But Okonkwo is not fooled. When she returns home he beats her mercilessly. And that is a no-no during the Week of Peace because it’s a time when they live peacefully with everyone, to honour the gods. As punishment for his deeds, Okonkwo has to

“bring to the shrine of Ani one she-goat, one hen, a length of cloth, and a hundred cowries.”

A man from another village kills the wife of Udo from Umuofia.

“…Okonkwo had  been chosen by the nine villages to carry a message of war to their enemies unless they agreed to give up a young man and a virgin to atone for the murder of Udo’s wife. And such was the deep fear that their enemies had for Umuofia that they treated Okonkwo like a king and brought him a virgin who was given to Udo as a wife, and the lad Ikemefuna.”

It’s important to have different perspectives on books. If you’re not a reader, you can find a synopsis of many books from Readitforme that you can listen to. Click the link to join. This is a great way to learn the latest thinking on many topics.

It was the intent of the leaders in Umuofia to kill Ikemefuna. Ikemefuna is placed in Okonkwo’s care and for three years the lad is treated like one of his children. At the end of the three years, the leaders decide it is the right time to kill the boy. One of the elders, Ogbuefi Ezeudu, visits Okonkwo and warns him not to participate in killing Ikemefuna. The warrior doesn’t heed the wise man’s warning and is actively involved. Shortly after, Ogbuefi Ezeudu dies and at his funeral, during a gun salute, Okonkwo accidentally shoots and kills the deceased man’s 16 year old son.

Since the shooting is accidental, Okonkwo is exiled from Umuofia for seven years. He takes his family and his prized possessions to the village of Mbanta where his mother was from. And he prospers there and waits to return to his community.

Things Fall Apart  by Chinua Achebe is divided into three parts. In the first two sections, the novel depicts the life of the Ibo people at the end of the 1800s, before colonization and the invasion of missionaries.

Missionaries from the West and colonial administrator arrive and disrupt the ways, beliefs and life of the villagers, who do not know how to adapt to change. The villagers are viewed as primitive. Yet as the story unfolds, Achebe skillfully demonstrates the weaknesses in both systems, that of the villages and those of the new arrivals. There is no true dialogue between both parties.

After the exile, Okwonko and his family return to Umuofia and find a very changed place. He has also lost his standing in society and is very determined to reclaim it. There is a clash between the villagers and the Christian missionaries and colonizers. Okwonko also doesn’t know how to adapt to change or even want to.

“He [Okwonko] sprang to his feet as soon as he saw who it was. He confronted the head messenger, trembling with hate, unable to utter a word. The man was fearless and stood his ground, his four men lined up behind him. In that brief moment the world seemed to stand still, waiting. There was utter silence….The spell was broken by the head messenger. ‘Let me pass!’ he ordered. ‘What do you want here?’ ‘The white man whose power you know too well has ordered this meeting to stop.’ In a flash Okonkwo drew his machete. The messenger crouched to avoid the blow. It was useless. Okonkwo’s machete descended twice and the man’s head lay beside his uniformed body…. Okonkwo stood looking at the dead man. He knew Umuofia would not go to war….He heard voices asking: ‘Why did he do it’…”

Final Thoughts: Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe

Before there is any repercussion for his actions, Okonkwo commits suicide. Societies disintegrate, and people disintegrate when they do not communicate and compromise with each other.

About the Author  Avil Beckford

Hello there! I am Avil Beckford, the founder of The Invisible Mentor. I am also a published author, writer, expert interviewer host of The One Problem Podcast and MoreReads Success Blueprint, a movement to help participants learn in-demand skills for future jobs. Sign-up for MoreReads: Blueprint to Change the World today! In the meantime, Please support me by buying my e-books Visit My Shop , and thank you for connecting with me on LinkedIn , Facebook , Twitter and Pinterest !

Enjoyed this article?

Find more great content here:

The Abundance Book by John Randolph Price, Summary

Feck perfuction by james victore and danielle laporte, summary, the self-managing company by dan sullivan, summary.

• Ask LitCharts AI
• Discussion Question Generator
• Essay Prompt Generator
• Quiz Question Generator

• Literature Guides
• Poetry Guides
• Shakespeare Translations
• Literary Terms

Things Fall Apart

Chinua achebe.

Ask LitCharts AI: The answer to your questions

Welcome to the LitCharts study guide on Chinua Achebe's Things Fall Apart . Created by the original team behind SparkNotes, LitCharts are the world's best literature guides.

Things Fall Apart: Introduction

Things fall apart: plot summary, things fall apart: detailed summary & analysis, things fall apart: themes, things fall apart: quotes, things fall apart: characters, things fall apart: symbols, things fall apart: literary devices, things fall apart: theme wheel, brief biography of chinua achebe.

Historical Context of Things Fall Apart

Other books related to things fall apart.

• Full Title: Things Fall Apart
• When Written: 1957
• Where Written: Nigeria
• When Published: 1958
• Literary Period: Post-colonialism
• Genre: Novel / Tragedy
• Setting: Pre-colonial Nigeria, 1890s
• Climax: Okonkwo's murder of a court messenger
• Antagonist: Missionaries and White Government Officials (Reverend Smith and the District Commissioner)
• Point of View: Third person omniscient

Extra Credit for Things Fall Apart

Joseph Conrad: “A Bloody Racist”. Chinua Achebe delivered a lecture and critique on Joseph Conrad's Heart of Darkness , calling Conrad “a bloody racist” and provoking controversy among critics and readers. However, Achebe's criticism of Conrad has become a mainstream perspective on Conrad's work and was even included in the 1988 Norton critical edition of Heart of Darkness .

Achebe as Politician. Achebe expressed his political views often in writing, but he also involved himself actively in Nigerian politics when he became the People's Redemption Party's deputy national vice-president in the early 1980's. However, he soon resigned himself in frustration with the corruption he witnessed during the elections.

• Quizzes, saving guides, requests, plus so much more.

Themes and Analysis

Things fall apart, by chinua achebe.

Chinua Achebe sought to rediscover pride and dignity among Africans by rehabilitating their image damaged by the humiliating effect of racist portrayals. In 'Things Fall Apart' he does this with grace and clarity.

Article written by Israel Njoku

Degree in M.C.M with focus on Literature from the University of Nigeria, Nsukka.

In ‘Things Fall Apart ,’ Achebe details Western colonialists’ impact on African societies. This impact is outlined in a very simple manner, but within this simplicity, there is a rich and inventive use of language. The plot might move irregularly for large sections of the book, but this pacing represents a deliberate attempt to conform to an essentially African literary tradition and style. ‘Things Fall Apart ‘ contains themes that reflect the richness and sophistication of African cultures as well as the debilitating impact of outsiders on this culture.

Themes in Things Fall Apart

The humanity of african societies.

Achebe was motivated to write ‘Things Fall Apart’ because he wanted to re-tell the story of the Africans who European imperialists and their enablers in the arts had depicted in unfair one-dimensional representations. Achebe creates a fairly sophisticated and self-sufficient society with organized institutions. His aim was not to create a perfect society, but one more true to the facts of the situation. In Umuofia, we see disputes settled between members fairly, as seen in the case between Mgbafo’s brothers and husband before the Egwugwu . The temperaments of people in the community are not uniformly animalistic or primitive as depicted in the works of Joseph Conrad. Rather, there is a wide range of personality types, ranging from the extremely chauvinistic and aggressive Okonkwo to the sentimental and gentle Unoka and Nwoye. In between them, we have the likes of Obiereka and Ogbuefi Ezeudo, who do not lose their sense of sentiment and passion while subscribing to the patriarchal tenets of their society. Within individuals, there is much complexity, as Okonkwo himself isn’t innately evil but rather forced into that way as a result of childhood trauma and pressure to meet the expectations of society. This complexity of the African individual and society marks them out as ordinary, rather than exciting or exotic.

Clash of Cultures

‘Things Fall Apart’ chronicles the great tragedy of the displacement of traditional African societies by encroaching Westerners with imperialist ambitions. The community of Umuofia had ruled itself and observed its customs, and preserved its institutions for years. The worldview every community member learned from birth, all systems and institutions they came to accept without question, were suddenly threatened by the arrival of the white man with his religion and political system. The British came with a fundamentally different value system, power structure, and religion. Disputes were no longer solved the old way, under the overarching goal of maintaining communal cohesion over everything else. The people of Umuofia, who had lived without rulers, now have to deal with colonialists exerting uncommon power and authority over them. With the coming of the Whiteman with his process and sense of justice that took no cognizance of the customs of the people, the people of Umuofia essentially faced the erosion of their traditions and values.

Umuofia’s society is highly patriarchal, and Okonkwo’s behaviors and motivations are, in part, informed by his society’s gender roles and expectations. Okonkwo measures his success according to the fulfillment of his society’s ideal of masculinity. He strove to be a valiant wrestler and a hard physical laborer on his farm because these activities represent peak male performance and demonstration of physical strength. Okonkwo’s desire for an unquestionably dominant status in his family often motivates his physical violence when he perceives some challenge to his authority from his wives. The patriarchal ordering and gender expectations in the community extend into farming, with Okonkwo focusing on cultivating the supposedly manly yam while leaving other less important crops like cocoyam to his wives to cultivate. Women also have some importance in society. For example, the goddess Ani is one of the most powerful and important deities within the Umuofia religious system. She has a huge influence in day-to-day life as the goddess of fertility and has an entire week devoted to honoring her, within which feminine attributes like peace and tolerance are encouraged. 

Class Struggle

‘Things Fall Apart’ sees the construction of Igbo society in a pristine and undisturbed form, including its class system. As is typical of the Igbos, the Umuofians valued and respected wealth, placing the wealthy firmly at the top of the social hierarchy even though theirs was essentially a democratic system without clear rulers. 

Titles, number of wives, number of yams, and size of one’s compound, as well as the number of huts inside, are some of the physical and symbolic evidence of wealth, and the absence of all these was clear evidence of an individual’s failure in life. The less fortunate are not exactly marginalized or excluded, they are still carried along, and we see evidence of this when public opinion swung against Okonkwo when he tried to shut a fellow villager up in a meeting by implying this individual’s opinions weren’t needed as he has not taken any title. Nevertheless, the people of Umuofia valued wealth and thought of the wealthy as better than the poor. Okonkwo’s father, Unoka, was derided in the village for his poverty, and the existence of the insult of ‘Agbaya’ and the popularity of its usage suggests the presence of societal consequences of poverty in this society. 

Wealth is also not the only marker of status. Within Umuofia’s religious system, there are two classes of people; the freeborn and the Osu . The Osu are descendants of people who have been dedicated to the lifetime service to the gods of the land. This permanently separates them in many ways from the freeborn, and they are thus seen as an inferior stock. With the coming of the Christian missionaries and British overlordship, these marginalized groups were accepted by the church and consequently gained a gradual ascendancy in society, upturning Umuofia’s normal hierarchy.

Within the inclusive tenet of Christianity, the Osu were judged to be equal to all other humans in Christ.  The “poor” and otherwise “worthless” gained a new sense of purpose and importance. The church’s propagation of supposedly “feminine” qualities like love, tolerance, and acceptance stands at variance with traditional patriarchal Umuofia values. Meanwhile, the stock of those who hold uncompromisingly to traditional Umuofia values continues to fall. Powerful villagers, including Okonkwo, were captured and humiliated by the British when they tried to challenge the growing boldness and authority of those elements of the community who had joined the church. The failure of the Umuofians to stamp authority on this group of people who would have been powerless before them before the arrival of the missionaries and colonialists signified a demolishment of traditional Umuofia systems and a transfer of power away from the usual power brokers. Those who still further resist this new state of affairs meet an ignominious end, like Okonkwo, who was forced into suicide. So, throughout the novel, we see the colonialists function as both oppressors and liberators of certain groups within Umuofia’s society. 

Analysis of Key events in Things Fall Apart

• Okonkwo throws Amalinze the Cat and establishes himself as a man of talent and strength.
• Okonkwo comes to care for Ikemefuna, the gesture marking his status as one of the leading men of the community.
• Okonkwo participates in the killing of Ikemefuna, demonstrating his fear of being seen as weak.
• Okonkwo is banished from Umuofia after accidentally killing the son of Ezeudo.
• Obierika visits Okonkwo in exile and informs him about the arrival of the White men.
• Nwoye leaves his father’s hut to join the Christians in Umuofia.
• Okonkwo returns from exile with his family to meet a much-changed Umuofia.
• Men of Umuofia destroy the church building in retaliation after Enoch commits a sacrilege.
• The District Commissioner arrests Okonkwo and other leaders of the clan as punishment for destroying the church and forces the community to pay a fine for their release.
• Okonkwo beheads the chief messenger and commits suicide afterward

Style, Tone, and Figurative Language of Things Fall Apart

‘Things Fall Apart’ is divided into three parts, with the first part being much longer and slower-paced than the remaining two parts. The first part employs a circumlocutory narrative technique that shifts between the present and the past. This represents the Igbo rhetorical technique of initially skirting around a subject before directly addressing it.

The progression of the plot is often halted to regale us with bits of Okonkwo’s backstory and information on Umuofia culture. This arrangement lacks the narrative linearity that is typical of classical European fiction.  The structure helps in portraying African culture as comparatively developed, sophisticated, and self-sufficient. The considerable treatment of crops, the festivals attached to them, marriage and funeral ceremonies as well as the convening of the Egwugwu judicial process are not necessarily central to the immediate plot but exist to paint a rich cultural texture around the story.  All these gradually build up a picture of the culture in which Okonkwo inhabits as well as illuminate Okonkwo’s character.

By the second part of the novel, when the White missionaries and colonizers had arrived in the picture, the novel picks up the pace and continues with the plot almost without interruptions.

‘ Things Fall Apart’ is written in a very accessible manner. The sentences are simple enough, and the words are uncomplicated, save for a couple of Igbo words that warrant translations. Achebe’s writing is very effective. The sprinkling of Igbo proverbs all around the work helps to enrich the narrative and dialogues as well as accord them a measure of authenticity. Although written in English, Achebe maintains a strong local cultural flavor in the language. When we read the dialogues or follow the narrative, the English language used does not interfere with the authenticity of the dialogues and narrative because Achebe’s writing transmits as accurately as possible the original Igbo contexts. 

Achebe can induce great emotions through seemingly innocuous actions. For example, before Ikemefuna was killed, as he walked in front of the Umuofians who had been tasked with this job, Achebe chose this time to write about Ikemefuna’s excitement and hope at seeing his mother again. Achebe sets up a powerful moment when Ikemefuna breaks into a childhood song and walks in sync with the rhythm, deciding that if the song ends on his right leg, it will mean his mother was still alive, but that if it ends on his left, his mother would be dead or ill. This mood of great optimism and innocence sets up a stark contrast with the horrific murder that follows. Ikemefuna’s death, just at the point when we are getting to know him far more and relate with his hopes and fears and even root for him, makes the entire scene all the more powerful and emotional. Ikemefuna’s superstitions are only part of a large corpus of myths or other religious injunctions or ancient wisdom preserved through songs, folklores, mythologies, legends, aphorisms, and proverbs, which constitutes an important part of Umuofia culture. Achebe utilizes all these to great effect through the interlaying of these cultural vestiges and artifacts within the narrative to provide a rich texture and foundation.

All these properly secure the novel’s ties to Igbo culture and leave no one in doubt as to its authenticity and status as a legitimate representation of Igbo sensibilities.  ‘Things Fall Apart’ utilizes the Third Person’s point of view, but this narrator’s perspective switches between a participating actor and an external observer, a “we” and a “them” at different points in the story. Sometimes the narrator seems to be intimately in the know and involved with the actions and the customs of the people, other times he seems like a detached observer.

Analysis of Key Symbols in Things Fall Apart

Yam is the primary crop in Umuofia society. Called the king of crops, it is associated with manliness and is an important status symbol. Okonkwo considers yams to be the only crop worth personally growing, leaving the other crops for his wives and children. The number of yams in a man’s barn is a definitive indicator of his level of success in life. Yams symbolize wealth and abundance.

Egwugwu Masks

The Egwugwu masks symbolize the villagers’ ties to the spirit realm, or rather to the land of their ancestors. The scary nature of the designs and carvings on the masks as well as the secrecy and anonymity with which its wearers operate, allows certain individuals to act on behalf of or with the unquestionable authority of the clan’s gods or ancestors.

What does Okonkwo’s death symbolize in ‘Things Fall Apart?’

Okonkwo’s death in ‘Things Fall Apart’ symbolizes the futility of the struggle against change as brought about by European colonizers. The moment the British came to their doorstep, the people of Umuofia were fated to lose their independence and way of life.

Why did Chinua Achebe write ‘Things Fall Apart’?

Achebe wrote ‘ Things Fall Apart’ mainly to challenge racist and uncomplimentary portrayals of African societies at the point of contact with colonizing Europeans.

Did Chinua Achebe present a perfect traditional African society in ‘Things Fall Apart?’

Although Chinua Achebe sought to challenge racist portrayals of traditional African society with ‘Things Fall Apart,’ he did not go the other extreme by presenting a perfect society. Instead, he presented an African society with all of its strengths and faults, asking not that people idolize or dismiss these societies, but instead view them as essentially human.

Is ‘Things Fall Apart’ popular internationally?

‘Things Fall Apart’ has sold over 20 million copies all over the world, making it one of the most popular African novels of all time. It is used widely in schools across the world.

Join Book Analysis for Free!

Exclusive to Members

Save Your Favorites

Free newsletter, comment with literary experts.

About Israel Njoku

Israel loves to delve into rigorous analysis of themes with broader implications. As a passionate book lover and reviewer, Israel aims to contribute meaningful insights into broader discussions.

About the Book

Discover the secrets to learning and enjoying literature.

Join Book Analysis