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Things Fall Apart

Things Fall Apart. Chinua Achebe. Achebe, about African Literature. “The reason African Literature came into existence because these things that were supposed to represent [Africans] were inaccurate. There was a vacuum, a gap to be filled” ~Chinua Achebe. Chinua Achebe brief biography.

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Things Fall Apart

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  1. Things Fall Apart Chinua Achebe

  2. Achebe, about African Literature “The reason African Literature came into existence because these things that were supposed to represent [Africans] were inaccurate. There was a vacuum, a gap to be filled” ~Chinua Achebe

  3. Chinua Achebebrief biography • Born 1930 in a Christian family in Ogidi in Eastern Nigeria • Went to college, taught at university • Received the Nigerian National merit Award in 1987 • By 1995 over 8 million copies of Things Fall Apart were sold

  4. Lack of centralized political structures Lived in autonomous villages & towns, ruled by their elders Organized in patrilineages Democracy was obtained through a council of elders, age groups, councils of chiefs, women’s associations, and secret societies Igbo Society Social & Political Structures

  5. Igbo SocietyMarriage Customs • Marriages were discussed in depth as they brought families & entire villages together • Most husbands practiced polygamy • Igbo women lived in separate houses, cooked for themselves, and raised their own children • Unhappy women could leave a marriage

  6. Igbo SocietyIgbo Religion (polytheistic) • Chukwu (the supreme being) is everywhere at the same time--therefore there are no shrines or altars for worship • Ekwensu=trickster god who caused problems • The ikenga = a wooden carving that symbolizes a man’s strength & success--a priest invokes a spirit into it & the men consult it for advice • Chi = a person’s personal god…follows you throughout life and can be either malevolent or benevolent…but chi does not control destiny

  7. Things Fall Apartbrief background • Story is set between 1860 & 1890--written between 1952 & 1958; a time when Nigeria was finally ending colonial rule • Central theme=what happens to the values that define Okonkwo’s cultural community & define his sense of moral order when everything collapses in the face of European colonialism • Colonial rule destabilizes traditional values & institutions • There is a crisis of authority & power, which leads to a crisis of culture

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