Things Fall Apart

1. Things Fall Apart World Literature: Mr. Lancto

2. Themes & Issues within TFA • Masculinity • Agbala= means “woman” and is used to describe a man with no titles • Yams  Man crop (Yams give life to Ibo without yams [men] Ibo do not survive) • Wrestling and physical dominance are highly regarded • But what truly makes up a man? (Okonkwo’s version or Obierka & Nwoye?) • Father/Son Relationships • Unoka’s laziness drives Okonkwo to hate him and dedicates his life to becoming a “man” • Nwoye grows to resent Okonkwo’s [Ibo] way of life • Christianity and the relationship within The Holy Trinity [Father, son, and the holy spirit]

3. Themes & Issues within TFA • Okonkwo as the Sophoclean Tragic Hero • Areté: Striving to be a man of title in Ibo tribe & be better than his Father • Hubris: Calling lesser men as women in meetings, beating wife during week of peace • Até: Killing Ikemefuna [Going against the will of the gods in order to look strong] • Nemesis: ??? {You will find out at the end } • He ends up no better than his father at the end! • Old World Vs. New World: Ibo tradition ripped apart by European influence • Religion (Christianity vs. Traditional Ibo) • Missionaries attracted outsiders, the curious, and the tortured • Christianity challenged the beliefs and actions of Ibo [Twins, Evil Forest, etc.] • Government • White court system went against the Ibo judicial process, causing conflict

4. Fear Okonkwo’s fear of being like his father drives him and dictates his actions/thoughts Nwoye’s fear of his father forces him to rebel and leave Igbo way of life Missionaries fear of the Igbo forces them to neglect & ignore a different way of life Martyrdom vs. Extremism Is Okonkwo a symbol & hero for the Igbo or is his way of life an extreme version of Igbo culture and/or his own interpreted version of Igbo life? Accountability/Responsibilty Okonkwo blames chi, father, and weakness of tribe for shortcomings British blame Igbo for not embracing their presence Role of Women in Igbo Culture Mother is Supreme…BUT women are not regarded in everyday society THEMES & ISSUES WITHIN TFA

5. Chapters 5-7 • Okonkwo rebels against tradition to preserve his “Manliness” • Beats Ewefi in order to satisfy his boredom of the New Yam Festival • Kills Ikemefuna despite OgbuefiEzeudu telling him not to “bear a hand in his death” • Sin to kill a kinsman [family member] in Ibo culture • Nwoye and his struggle to find acceptance • Tries to please his father by talking badly about women • “That showed that in time he would be able to control his women-folk” (45) • Enjoys his mother’s stories instead of Okonkwo’s about blood and war • Questions Ikemefuna’s death and practice of killing Twins • Mourns with his mother and cries in front of his father [Okonkwo beats him]

6. Okonkwo’s inner struggle with Ikemefuna’s death He questions his manliness for feeling remorse Obierika does not take place in Ikemefuna’s death, yet his manhood is not questioned Obierika tells Okonkwo, “It is the kind of action for which the goddess wipes out whole families.” (67) Does this explain events in Chap. 13? Obierika questions Ibo society Twins Ozo title Okonkwo’s banishment Chapters 8

7. Ewefi’s story Ogbanje = wicked child spirit that when they died entered mothers womb to be born again Iyi-uwa an object from Igbo mythology that binds the spirit of Ogbanje (many objects can serve) What does this explain about Ibo religion? Using objects to hold significance? Egwugwu Settled conflicts between people in the tribe “it is not bravery when a man fights with a women.” (93) What does this explain or not explain about Okonkwo? Chapter 9 & 10

8. Ceremonies Wedding Bride-price settled by men with a bundle of sticks Ch.12 explains the entire process Funeral Chapter 13 Conflict (court case) Egwugwu settled with compromise (their word is law) Storytelling Tortoise and the sky Represents the trickery/influence of the European colonization within the Ibo Points of interest throughout 8-13

9. Mother is Supreme Uchendu is trying to show Okonkwo that it is okay to show emotion Just as children seek comfort from their Mother, Okonkwo is seeking it in Mbanta Uchendu openly admits feeling pain for loss of wives and children Okonkwo is rejecting emotions & Ibo tradition by disrespecting his mother’s kinsman Story of Mother Kite “Never kill a man who says nothing.” (116) Okonkwo suggests they should have armed and fought Uchendu reflects the Ibo ideal of trying to solve a conflict peacefully before violence Points of interest throughout 14-19

10. Points of interest throughout 14-19 • Acceptance and Rejection of Christianity • Nwoye, pregnant women, and Osu [outcast clansmen] find purpose, comfort, & meaning • Okonkwo rejects because it would place blame and diminish his reputation • Killing Ikemefuna would be pointless • Nwoye and his relationship falling apart would be for nothing • His entire life would be useless • Christianity destroys Ibo culture & traditions • No negative consequences from evil forest, osu cutting hair, or caring for twins • Dissolves traditional kinship and replaces it with a “spiritual” kinship through God • Encourages the rejection of family “Blessed is he who forsakes his father…for my sake.” (127)

11. “We were amused at his [the white man] 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.” (145) These “things” that held them together were culture, tradition, and religion Missionaries caused them to question and reject these important aspects  Downfall Mr. Smith and D.C. represents the ignorance of the western world when it comes to Africa Saw things as “Black” and “White”… “black was evil” Could write only a chapter on Okonkwo…Achebe writes an entire book Pacification of the Primitive Tribes of the Lower Niger Who is to blame for Okonkwo’s death? His own selfishness [thought he would be great when he returned, having to be manly] Missionaries? [Caused conflict amongst Ibo clan which in turn weakened them] Chapters 20-25