Things Fall Apart // Chinua Achebe
Rating: 4/5
**MANY SPOILERS BEWARE**
Before I dive into a review of this book I have a few notes:
1) A little different then my other reviews... this will be more of a summary/ review so read the book before referring to this.
2) My new posting schedule will be for every Sunday
Alright now lets begin...
I will start with a brief spoiler free review...
Overall this book was okay. I enjoyed the style of writing and the setting that it takes place in. The chain of events is a bit strange as it jumps focus sometimes but it isn't too distracting. Overall I think it is a book that most young people should read because it wasn't long or boring as some of these books can be. I highly recommend this book for a book club or a class because of how many discussions you can have around this book and its themes.
Now I will move into a sort of summary portion
****SPOILERS BEGIN FROM THIS POINT! BEWARE****
Since this book has a lot of characters and this book has a third person narrator I am going begin by including a list of characters and some information about them. The book takes place is pre-colonial and colonial Nigeria.
-Unoka- Okonkwo's father. He did not do anything substantial in his life among his tribe. He is a drunk and a debtor who neglected his responsibilities to his family. Unoka also disliked war and spent his time playing music. As a result of all of the qualities listed above Unoka was regarded as a woman by his tribe. Okonkwo greatly resents his father and strives to be the successful man his father wasn't. Although backwards, Unoka connected to manliness is Okonkwo's primary driving force within the novel.
- Ekwefi- Okonkwo's second wife. Ekwefi is the most discussed wife in the novel. She is one of the only strong female characters in the novel alongside her daughter Enzima. Ekwefi was very beautiful when she was young and wanted to marry Okonkwo but he could not afford her bride price. Ekwefi married another man but then later ran away to marry Okonkwo. Even though Okonkwo cares deeply for Ekwefi she is also subject to Okonkwo's beatings.
-Nwoye- Okonkwo's son from his first wife. Okonkwo considers Nwoye as lazy and a disappointment. In his childhood Nwoye did make efforts to get on his father's good side but after the death of Ikemefuna their relationship was ruined beyond repair.
-Ikemefuna- Comes to Okonkwo's tribe from the Mbintu people. His father killed an Ibo women and to prevent a war Ikemefuna's tribe gave him up as well as a young virgin girl. The boy is given to Okonkwo and he lives there for some time. Okonkwo grows fond of the boy and prefers him over his own son.
-Enzima- Okonkwo's most discussed daughter. Enzima is very much like her father and therefore Okonkwo likes her very much. On several occasions Okonkwo remarks that he wishes Enzima was his son and not his daughter. Although she is more loyal and capable then her brother Nwoye, because of her gender she has virtually no status or importance within the family. Enzima was also known to be an ogbanji, or a cursed child who dies young only to be reborn again. She lives after the 9th time which is why her mother Ekwefi is so protective of her.
-Obierika- Very important clansmen. One of Okonkwo's friends. He usually gives him advice.
-Ezeudu- The elder of the clan. When he dies he has a grand funeral. In his life he also advised Okonkwo. When Okonkwo participated in a gun salute during his funeral, his gun clows apart and a piece hits Ezeudu's son killing him. Even though it was an accident, Okonkwo is still banished.
Now lets get into the book part by part:
Part I
The book begins with Okonkwo proving he is a man by winning a wrestling match. After this Okonkwo becomes quite well known among his people. The reader learns about Okonkwo's father as well. We get some background on his father so we can understand Okonkwo's obsession with being manly. We also learn about Okonkwo's stutter/stammer and begin to realize how this affects his personality in the book. His issues with his voice lead Okonkwo to speak through his violence and brutality in order to be heard by the village. In part I we also learn about the tribe and how cultural it is and obviously tradition and culture play a big role in this book. We find that due to his father's lack of achievement, Okonkwo becomes obsessed with being the man he wasn't and obtaining status in his tribe. He is a power hungry character and likes to assert his authority over others. Part I also brings the introduction of Ikemefuna (read his character summary for how he came to the Ibo village) who lives with Okonkwo. Even his son Nwoye takes an extreme liking to Ikemefuna who inspires the boy and temporarily makes it so that Okonkwo is proud of both of the young men and they get along well. Ikemefuna regards Okonkwo as his father and Okonkwo sees him as the prodigy son he wishes he had. We can see that life for Okonkwo for the moment is good. This changes when one of the gods the Ibo people believe in declare that they must execute Ikemefuna. Obviously, Okonkwo is upset and is even advised to not take part in the murder. However, in fear of being seen as weak Okonkwo kills Ikemefuna himself. Afterwards, Okonkwo becomes guilt ridden and depressed. Everything spirals down from here. Soon after Okonkwo attends a funeral and during a gun salute kills a clansmen. The punishment for this is seven years of banishment to his mother's original homeland.
Part II
The significance of Okonkwo being sent to his motherland can be seen in many ways. I like the interpretation that when you are in need or in trouble, you go to your mother just as Okonkwo is. Although his mother isn't alive it still serves the same representation. While he is away, Okonkwo's friend Obierika visits and also sells Okonkwo's remaining yams (crops) back home and gives him the profit. Obierika also tells Okonkwo about the Christians. Basically to sum it up the Christians come and slowly get people to follow them, build churches, etc. The Nigerian people leave it in their gods hands to get rid of the foreigners. Sometimes this works, other times it doesn't. Regardless the Nigerians who don't are unshaken in their beliefs. Among those who convert is Nwoye, this deeply hurts Okonkwo and he is ashamed of his son for abandoning the religion of his forefathers. While Okonkwo lives in his motherland he believes that the leaders there are soft and womanly because they don't treat the Christians with violence.
Part III
Okonkwo plans to return to his motherland with a bang. He even tells his daughters to wait to get married in their own clan so that they can attract the attention of powerful Ibo suitors. They agree furthering Okonkwo's belief that Enzima should've been born a male because of the way she understands him. When Okonkwo gets there many things have changed and Christianity has a strong hold. After a conflict Okonkwo and the other leaders have with the Christians they are arrested and held for a large bail. After this another conflict occurs. A Christian breaks a holy rule and the tension rises. At a tribe assembly Christian messengers tell the leaders that they cannot hold their meeting. Okonkwo is fed up and kills a messenger. Disappointed in his tribe Okonkwo walks away. We find that he commits suicide and because this is a sin he cannot be buried by his tribe mates, not even his friend Obierika. At the end the Christian leader in the Ibo tribe says he is going to write a book about the pacification of Nigeria.... IRONIC because the Christians made everything fall apart.
1) A little different then my other reviews... this will be more of a summary/ review so read the book before referring to this.
2) My new posting schedule will be for every Sunday
Alright now lets begin...
I will start with a brief spoiler free review...
Overall this book was okay. I enjoyed the style of writing and the setting that it takes place in. The chain of events is a bit strange as it jumps focus sometimes but it isn't too distracting. Overall I think it is a book that most young people should read because it wasn't long or boring as some of these books can be. I highly recommend this book for a book club or a class because of how many discussions you can have around this book and its themes.
Now I will move into a sort of summary portion
****SPOILERS BEGIN FROM THIS POINT! BEWARE****
Since this book has a lot of characters and this book has a third person narrator I am going begin by including a list of characters and some information about them. The book takes place is pre-colonial and colonial Nigeria.
- Okonkwo- The main protagonist of the book who resides in the Ibo village. He is driven by his father but not in the way you would think. He strives to be a great man and have a high status within his tribe. He has a stutter and due to this he often resorts to violence in order to make himself heard. Did not grow up with a good male influence and therefore his perception of manhood is a bit skewed. The more brutal Okonkwo is, the more manly he feels. His obsession with manliness also leads him to judge others by this same standard.
-Unoka- Okonkwo's father. He did not do anything substantial in his life among his tribe. He is a drunk and a debtor who neglected his responsibilities to his family. Unoka also disliked war and spent his time playing music. As a result of all of the qualities listed above Unoka was regarded as a woman by his tribe. Okonkwo greatly resents his father and strives to be the successful man his father wasn't. Although backwards, Unoka connected to manliness is Okonkwo's primary driving force within the novel.
- Ekwefi- Okonkwo's second wife. Ekwefi is the most discussed wife in the novel. She is one of the only strong female characters in the novel alongside her daughter Enzima. Ekwefi was very beautiful when she was young and wanted to marry Okonkwo but he could not afford her bride price. Ekwefi married another man but then later ran away to marry Okonkwo. Even though Okonkwo cares deeply for Ekwefi she is also subject to Okonkwo's beatings.
-Nwoye- Okonkwo's son from his first wife. Okonkwo considers Nwoye as lazy and a disappointment. In his childhood Nwoye did make efforts to get on his father's good side but after the death of Ikemefuna their relationship was ruined beyond repair.
-Ikemefuna- Comes to Okonkwo's tribe from the Mbintu people. His father killed an Ibo women and to prevent a war Ikemefuna's tribe gave him up as well as a young virgin girl. The boy is given to Okonkwo and he lives there for some time. Okonkwo grows fond of the boy and prefers him over his own son.
-Enzima- Okonkwo's most discussed daughter. Enzima is very much like her father and therefore Okonkwo likes her very much. On several occasions Okonkwo remarks that he wishes Enzima was his son and not his daughter. Although she is more loyal and capable then her brother Nwoye, because of her gender she has virtually no status or importance within the family. Enzima was also known to be an ogbanji, or a cursed child who dies young only to be reborn again. She lives after the 9th time which is why her mother Ekwefi is so protective of her.
-Obierika- Very important clansmen. One of Okonkwo's friends. He usually gives him advice.
-Ezeudu- The elder of the clan. When he dies he has a grand funeral. In his life he also advised Okonkwo. When Okonkwo participated in a gun salute during his funeral, his gun clows apart and a piece hits Ezeudu's son killing him. Even though it was an accident, Okonkwo is still banished.
Now lets get into the book part by part:
Part I
The book begins with Okonkwo proving he is a man by winning a wrestling match. After this Okonkwo becomes quite well known among his people. The reader learns about Okonkwo's father as well. We get some background on his father so we can understand Okonkwo's obsession with being manly. We also learn about Okonkwo's stutter/stammer and begin to realize how this affects his personality in the book. His issues with his voice lead Okonkwo to speak through his violence and brutality in order to be heard by the village. In part I we also learn about the tribe and how cultural it is and obviously tradition and culture play a big role in this book. We find that due to his father's lack of achievement, Okonkwo becomes obsessed with being the man he wasn't and obtaining status in his tribe. He is a power hungry character and likes to assert his authority over others. Part I also brings the introduction of Ikemefuna (read his character summary for how he came to the Ibo village) who lives with Okonkwo. Even his son Nwoye takes an extreme liking to Ikemefuna who inspires the boy and temporarily makes it so that Okonkwo is proud of both of the young men and they get along well. Ikemefuna regards Okonkwo as his father and Okonkwo sees him as the prodigy son he wishes he had. We can see that life for Okonkwo for the moment is good. This changes when one of the gods the Ibo people believe in declare that they must execute Ikemefuna. Obviously, Okonkwo is upset and is even advised to not take part in the murder. However, in fear of being seen as weak Okonkwo kills Ikemefuna himself. Afterwards, Okonkwo becomes guilt ridden and depressed. Everything spirals down from here. Soon after Okonkwo attends a funeral and during a gun salute kills a clansmen. The punishment for this is seven years of banishment to his mother's original homeland.
From part I you can tell that this book is not slow moving at all and reels you in within the first few chapters.
Part II
The significance of Okonkwo being sent to his motherland can be seen in many ways. I like the interpretation that when you are in need or in trouble, you go to your mother just as Okonkwo is. Although his mother isn't alive it still serves the same representation. While he is away, Okonkwo's friend Obierika visits and also sells Okonkwo's remaining yams (crops) back home and gives him the profit. Obierika also tells Okonkwo about the Christians. Basically to sum it up the Christians come and slowly get people to follow them, build churches, etc. The Nigerian people leave it in their gods hands to get rid of the foreigners. Sometimes this works, other times it doesn't. Regardless the Nigerians who don't are unshaken in their beliefs. Among those who convert is Nwoye, this deeply hurts Okonkwo and he is ashamed of his son for abandoning the religion of his forefathers. While Okonkwo lives in his motherland he believes that the leaders there are soft and womanly because they don't treat the Christians with violence.
Part III
Okonkwo plans to return to his motherland with a bang. He even tells his daughters to wait to get married in their own clan so that they can attract the attention of powerful Ibo suitors. They agree furthering Okonkwo's belief that Enzima should've been born a male because of the way she understands him. When Okonkwo gets there many things have changed and Christianity has a strong hold. After a conflict Okonkwo and the other leaders have with the Christians they are arrested and held for a large bail. After this another conflict occurs. A Christian breaks a holy rule and the tension rises. At a tribe assembly Christian messengers tell the leaders that they cannot hold their meeting. Okonkwo is fed up and kills a messenger. Disappointed in his tribe Okonkwo walks away. We find that he commits suicide and because this is a sin he cannot be buried by his tribe mates, not even his friend Obierika. At the end the Christian leader in the Ibo tribe says he is going to write a book about the pacification of Nigeria.... IRONIC because the Christians made everything fall apart.
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Find me on Goodreads @ Iman Oza
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Check out the book: http://www.amazon.com/Things-Fall-Apart-Chinua-Achebe/dp/0385474547
Contact Me: jenminoa0820@gmail.com
Check out the book: http://www.amazon.com/Things-Fall-Apart-Chinua-Achebe/dp/0385474547
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