Things Fall Apart Essay

In Chinua Achebe’s 1958 novel, Things Fall Apart, the complex dynamic of European Colonialism in Africa is depicted through the story of the native Igbo society in Nigeria and its collision with the European Christian culture. Okonkwo, the main character in the novel, embodies the fundamental values of the Igbo society and fights throughout the novel to maintain the practice of Igbo tradition. The principles of Igbo culture are Okonkwo’s identity, and European invasion of the status quo displaces Okonkwo on a spiritual level. Achebe did not write Things Fall Apart to juxtapose a noble native society against an sinister and oppressive force. Achebe crafted the novel to illustrate the immense emotional, social, and societal impacts of two diverging lifestyles that eventually lead to a man’s suicide.
The novel opens with the fact that “Okonkwo was well known throughout the nine villages and even beyond. His fame rested on solid personal achievements”(3). Achebe goes on to detail Okonkwo’s history, writing that “Okonkwo was clearly cut out for great things…He was a wealthy farmer and had two barns full of yams, and had just married his third wife. To crown it all he had taken two titles…”(8). Okonkwo dedicates himself to fighting the weak reputation of his father Unoka, a man that represented everything that the society resented—weakness, laziness, and cowardice. Okonkwo’s spiritual foundation rests in Igbo tradition, and he spends his entire life working to create a reputation for strength and