Conflict and Tradition in Things Fall Apart Essay example

Conflict and Tradition in Things Fall Apart nbsp; nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp; The book Things Fall Apart successfully expressed how Chinua Achebe had succeeded in writing a different story. It pointed out the conflict of oneself, the traditional beliefs, and the religious matters of the Africans. Throughout the novel, Chinua Achebe used simple but dignified words and unlike other books, he also included some flashbacks and folktales to make the novel more interesting and comprehensible. Things Fall Apart was about a man named Okonkwo, who was always struggling with his inner fear although he was known for being a strong, powerful, and fearless warior. He feared of weakness, and failure more than the fear of losing†¦show more content†¦When a man wanted to marry a woman, he had to pay the bride price to her relatives if htey accepted him. Each day, the wives had to prepare their own dishes for their husbands and would have to obey them for whatever reason. Although their order might go against the wives will, t hey could not question their husbands because its against the cultural traditions. When a child was born, it belonged to its father and his family instead of the mothers because the man was the head of the family and the wife was always supposed to obey his command. But when a man was in an exile, henbsp; would have to return to his mothers kinsmen until the period of exile was over . Furthermore, when a woman died, she was taken home to burry with her own kinsmen and not with her husbands. Chinua Achebe described these customs clearly in the story because they revealed the distinctness of the Igbo women at that time and these traditions made the story more appealing to the readers. nbsp; nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp; According to Chinua Achebe, the religion was one of the reasons that led to the death of Okonkwo at the end. The clans of the Igbo society worshipped their gods, which made of stones and woods, differently than other religions. They had a representative for each of their goddess such as the Oracle of the Hills. The main god that they worshipped was Chukwu, who was believed had created heaven and Earth. For some people whoShow MoreRelatedThings Fall Apart By Chinua Achebe1414 Words   |  6 PagesRichardson Ms. Talbott English 10 Accelerated December 4, 2015 Things Fall Apart Test 1. What are the similarities of â€Å"The Second Coming† by W.B Yeats and Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe? In Things Fall Apart, it appears like things happen to fall apart at whatever point Okonkwo builds trust. On the other side, the substance of â€Å"The Second Coming† recounted a chaotic world and a base that couldn t hold as its very own inner conflicts. In addition to the synonymous feeling both the book and poemRead MoreAnalysis Of Things Fall Apart 1027 Words   |  5 PagesConflict With in Friends â€Å"Turning and turning in the widening gyre The falcon cannot hear the falconer; Things fall apart; the center cannot hold; Mere anarchy is loosed upon the world.† The author, Achebe, uses part of the poem â€Å"The Second Coming,† and hints at the turmoil that is intensifying as the community falls within the novel â€Å"Things Fall Apart.† (Yeats, 1) The African tribal system is beginning to have many cultural and tradition changes whileRead MoreChinua Achebe s Things Fall Apart1325 Words   |  6 Pages Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe Thing Fall Apart, first published in 1958, is Chinua Achebe’s first and most acclaimed novel. Achebe illustrates an approving rendering of Nigerian and African tribal life prior to and subsequent to colonialism. Achebe presents various aspects of a native African community, including war, women mistreatment, violence and conflict, while maintaining a balance in social coherence, customs and tradition. Achebe portrays a clash of culturesRead MoreThings Fall Apart Paper1409 Words   |  6 PagesYiran Meng Things Fall Apart paper 12/1/2011 Umuofia is a primitive and polytheist clan in Nigeria. People in the tribe uphold their own system of tradition, taboo and justice. Several gods that influence all aspect of the members’ life are worshiped, and profane conducts are punished severely. People are not concerned about their personal interests, as they help each other altruistically. As a matter of fact, all the people in the tribe live harmoniously. However, as Achebe depicts in the secondRead MoreA Civilization Falls Apart Essay1167 Words   |  5 PagesLiterature, talks about the changes from an un-dignified lion-chasing culture to that of a semi-dignified European society. The novel Things Fall Apart by Nigerian-born author Chinua Achebe, tells the story of a Umuofian villager named Okonkwo, and how Okonkwo has to come to grips with the changes that are happening in everyday Ibo life. The novel Things Fall Apart is not your typical tall African tale. The novel is a story, a story not just about one person, but about an entire civil-societyRead MoreThings Fall Apart By Chinua Achebe1341 Words   |  6 PagesThings Fall Apart, by Chinua Achebe, is set in Nigeria during the 1890’s. The novel focuses on the clash between Nigeria’s white government and the culture of the Igbo people. Learning to Bow: Inside the Heart of Japan, by Bruce Feiler, covers Feiler’s journey to Japan to teach English and American culture for a year in the 1980’s. Throughout each novel, the reader is presented many different elements of each societies beliefs and culture. The central conflict surrounding each novel involves oneRead MoreThings fall apart1057 Words   |  5 Pages Reflection on the novel Things Fall Apart The Idea of Culture in Things Fall Apart The novel Things Fall Apart, by Chinua Achebe is a story about personal beliefs, customs and also about conflict. There is struggle between family and within culture and it also deals with the concept of culture and the notion of the values and traditions within a culture. The word culture is Latin and means to cultivate. To cultivate has several meanings; it can mean to plow, fertilize, raise and plantRead MoreWhy Things Fell Apart Essay1186 Words   |  5 PagesIn the book, Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe, the setting of the story is the Igbo tribe in Niger, which is located in southeastern Africa. There is a strong social and economical structure with the Igbo people. The villages have a solid set of traditional beliefs that they live their lives by, without stray of that tradition. The introduction of Christianity to the tribes brought changes to the social and religious lives of the villages. The novel provides a glimpse into the changes of howRead MoreEssay about An An alysis of Chinua Achebe’s Things Fall Apart1631 Words   |  7 Pagesfather of African literature. His first novel, â€Å"Things Fall Apart† is an interesting story full of tragedy, which takes place in Umuofia, Nigeria in the 19th century. Achebe sought to correct European writers who were misrepresenting Africans and life in Nigeria. According to Nnoromele (2000), the Igbo clan is a self-sufficient, complex, and vigorous group of African people. Achebe wrote â€Å"Things Fall Apart† to accurately represent the conflict between Nigeria’s white colonial government and theRead MoreThings Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe and The Second Coming by Yeats1233 Words   |  5 Pages Things fall apart, this phrase being used in both the novel title Things Fall Apart and the poem written by Yeats, â€Å"The Second Coming† keeps us wondering how both are related. Achebe uses Yeats’ poem as an epigraph to foreshadow how the events in the novel later on might occur. Reading the epigraph, we come to understand that Yeats is referring to an image of disaster and to a society that is losing control. In Things Fall Apart, the community faces some changes that affect the lives of certain