The book opens with Obi’s trial, where he is charged with corruption; by accepting a bribe. Also, Achebe indicates that everyone was shocked at Obi’s current situation, including the judge, who is filled with disbelief as he says "I cannot understand how a young man of your education and brilliant promise could have done this,"
The plot then backtracks to the period when Obi appeared to be a man of steel in his resolve to remain pure and incorruptible. And after searching for the fatal flaw that causes his downfall, the most apparent and stand-out cause is his EGOTISM. Obi is portrayed to be a prime example of a tragic hero. Just as Shakespeare did it with Macbeth, Achebe gives Obi a similar story. The main theme being the Moral Decomposition of the protagonist; our hero. As we see in the end of the book, Obi is too proud to go to the Umuofia
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He had learned to adapt to the way the White man thought, as well as his way of life. Obi returns to Nigeria, seeking to save it from the ‘Corrupt African’. This also contributes to his prideful attitude as he views himself as a saviour to his people, armed with the knowledge and power of the White man. Obi’s isolation from Igbo culture and values, leads him to assume that he could follow his own path without consequences. A good example of this being a problem in Obi’s life is his argument with his father. Obi is torn between two worlds as his parents refuse for him to marry Clara, as she is an Osu, and it is against their culture. And his view that discriminating against people is not right. This attributes to one of the main themes of the book; Traditionalism vs Modernism. With Joseph, his mother and His father all disagreeing with him, Obi uses his education to dismiss them as he feels since he is educated, he must be correct, which is a prime example of his moral decay, in the sense that he does not respect his parents views and
Second, by portraying himself as a champion of justice and human rights, General Ojukwu makes a moral plea to his audience. In his essay, he states, "I decided that as a man, a soldier, and a leader, I owed it to my conscience and to the people of Biafra to tell the truth." By highlighting his dedication to justice and truth, Ojukwu makes a moral appeal to the listener and implies that his story is not prejudiced or self-serving. Given the complexity and division of the fight, which included numerous factions with varied points of view, this is especially crucial. Ojukwu makes an effort to establish himself as a reliable and unbiased source of information by highlighting his moral
How do the British attempt to raise their own perception of “civilization” over that of the colonial subject? 4.How does Okonkwo retain his pride and cultural identity during the British colonial occupation? What cultural and social values make him less susceptible to British colonial tyranny? 5.How does Okonkwo’s understanding of the family unit define his role as a member of Igbo tribe? What indigenous values in African tribes provide a framework for tribal customs in contrast the white European family values that are imposed on him and his family?
In most fairy tales and novels a humble male role is used to dictate the normality of writing. In “Things Fall Apart” by Chinua Achebe, Okonkwo, a strong male role is not only that, a lead character, but he is also cruel and prone to violent tendencies In the novel Okonkwo experiences harsh changes when the white men first came and at the beginning of colonialism. In “Things Fall Apart”, Achebe uses Okonkwo to display the negative change in everyday Igbo culture after colonialism. In this novel by Achebe, before colonialism was introduced, Okonkwo was a known masculine member of Umuofia.
”... Heroism has a lot to do with evolving into a higher human being. ”According to Oliver Stone in, ”Where I Can Find My Heroes” ,but does Odysseus meet the criteria of being a real hero? Odysseus is on a 20 year journey, 10 years fighting in the Trojan War and the other 10 years trying to get back to his kingdom Ithaca. In “The Odyssey”, Odysseus is a hero because of his swift thinking in the Trojan War and his encounter with the Cyclops.
The reason being is because Achebe is trying to divert from a Westernized perspective and instead go for an Africanized perspective to show more authenticity and reality. Also, by doing this, Achebe shows his opposition on the way the West views Africans, in particular in the novel “Things Fall Apart” where European colonialist used derogatory terms to describe the Igbo and glorify their actions of conquest and conversion of
Among those of the same culture, individuals who are adaptive and open-minded can be successful when there is cultural collision. When the Igbo and European cultures collide, Okonkwo gradually spirals out of control, losing everything he values and his own sense of self. From the beginning of the novel, Achebe depicts Okonkwo as a virile warrior and a successful farmer within the Igbo tribe. Reacting with violence to anything he considers “womanly” or “weak”, “He was a man of action and man of war” (10). Because of his reputation as a warrior he is highly respected by his community.
As a reader, it is easy to hear “Oh Romeo, Romeo wherefore art thou Romeo” recited in a movie or see someone lift up a skull in a Hamletesque manner and speak, and immediately recognize that those are references to Shakespeare, but what is less known is that some of the most crowd-pleasing and attention-grabbing scenes in movies and modern entertainment are direct references to Shakespeare. When reading Shakespearean plays or seeing them performed live, it is easy to spot that their storylines and narratives almost parallel media that is observed today. Why is this? Well, as stated by Mental Floss, “..we [writers] cling to legends and potentialities to help us understand anything at all about the man whose writing has helped us to understand
In Chinua Achebe novel, Things Fall Apart Nwoye a young man under Okonkwo’s responsibility is affected positively by the introduction of western ideas into the Ibo culture. This being said Nwoye has found a passion for being apart of a religion not known by any local in Igbo called Christianity, to some it was a blessing and to others a disgrace. To Okonkwo he feels that anybody who converts to Christianity is a disgrace to their village. And how surprising is it that his own son converts to a Christian. And in his conversion he tries to escape his strict culture and find out who he is as a person.
Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie’s coming-of-age novel Purple Hibiscus narrates the story of Kambili, a girl in Nigeria, who deals with religious hypocrisy and abuse of her father, a product of the British colonization. She and her brother, Jaja, visit their aunt and receive a different perspective on their family’s lives. This novel takes place in the Igbo region of Nigeria, after the Nigerian Civil War that ended in 1970 and colonialism of the 1900’s. In Purple Hibiscus, Adichie conveys her views of the Nigerian Civil War to the reader by using the setting, specific events reciprocated in history, and contrasting characters within the novel. Purple Hibiscus is set in post-colonial Nigeria- where incidentally Adichie grew up- in a time of government, economic, and social struggle, after the Nigerian Civil War, also known as the Nigerian-Biafran War.
He became a strong independent man. His true personality showed through. In some people’s cases, things fall apart, but in others, like Nwoye, he found his true purpose in life. At twelve years old, Nwoye was causing his father Okonkwo, “great anxiety for his incipient laziness” (10).
Brilliantly conceived and written, Oedipus Rex is a drama of self-discovery. Achieved by amazing compression and force by limiting the dramatic action to the day on which Oedipus learns the truth of his birth and his destiny is quite the thriller. The fact that the audience knows the dark secret that Oedipus unwittingly slew his true father and married his mother does nothing to destroy the suspense. Oedipus’s search for the truth has all the tautness of a detective tale, and yet because audiences already know the truth they are aware of all the ironies in which Oedipus is enmeshed. That knowledge enables them to fear the final revelation at the same time that they pity the man whose past is gradually and relentlessly uncovered to him.
Achebe’s goals for Things Fall Apart is to counter the single story and portray a more cultured and complex of Africa opposing westerners ideals with the inclusion of Igbo folktales, Igbo proverbs, and 3rd person narration. Igbo folktales are an important piece of what makes Igbo culture complex, and unique. One Igbo folktale from Chapter 11 tells the story of a greedy tortoise who wants to join some birds in the sky for a feast. He tricks them and tells them his name is “All of you” then the birds say the meal is for all of you the tortoise takes all the food. The bird then punishes him by taking his feathers to fly away, the tortoise tells the birds to deliver a message to his wife.
The novel Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe talks about the Igbo, an indigenous Nigerian people, and about a culture on the brink of change. Indeed, through the life of Okonkwo, an Igbo leader in the fictional Nigerian village of Umuofia, Achebe describes how the prospect and reality of change affect different characters. In the Igbo culture the family unit plays a fundamental role and the members of a family highly value the mutual respect for each other, a reverence for all past fathers, and unity. The father is considered not only as the head of the family and its provider, but the defender of its honor as well as the teacher of his sons.
A tragic hero is a term that describes a character who displays certain characteristics which affect their future significantly. In Things Fall Apart, by Chinua Achebe, Okonkwo’s fate as a tragic hero to an extent is greatly true as he portrays hamartia, a fatal flaw, and hubris, excessive pride. Even though the author describes Okonkwo as a hardworking, African farmer, it contradicts his rash decisions following numerous events. Therefore, Okonkwo’s tragedy is true as his fear of weakness and excessive pride lead him to his downfall. Even though Achebe sets Okonkwo to his downfall, it is evident that Okonkwo is a great hero despite his rash behavior and temper.
This affects and can also be seen as a reflection of Okonkwo’s other relationships between male characters, namely Unoka, Nwoye, and Ikemefuna. This essay will discuss how Achebe portrays masculinity in Things Fall Apart (Achebe, 1958), how the hyper-masculinized character, Okonkwo, receives and interacts with certain characters. I will also discuss how Okonkwo’s ridged patriarchal ideals of virility are counterintuitive with his actions and intentions of ensuring a masculine household. Okonkwo is a titled and successful warrior in his village, Umuofia. A great amount of respect is received by Okonkwo because his youth did not promise such a prosperous life, he had to work hard for his wealth and success.