Review: Things Fall Apart By Chinua Achebe
- shivangi83
- Aug 11, 2021
- 5 min read
“Perhaps down in his heart Okonkwo was not a cruel man. But his whole life was dominated by fear, the fear of failure and of weakness. It was deeper and more intimate that the fear of evil and capricious gods and of magic, the fear of the forest, and of the forces of nature, malevolent, red in tooth and claw. Okonkwo’s fear was greater than these. It was not external but lay deep within himself.”
Achebe’s African historical classic is well known for it’s controversial narration in English and his response back to the colonial government with it’s proverbial usage like with the tradition of Ibo. My interest, however, was caught by the characterization to advance the moral story through the novel.
I read this novel for class and although I knew it prematurely that it is a tragedy of sorts, my mind was immediately entrapped in the locks of this novel’s simplicity and characters, making me forget what I had known already.
The story is about an African clan that is known for it’s fierceness, pride and masculinity, but is told mainly from Okonkwo and his family’s point of view. Okonkwo is a strong wrestler who takes pride in his aggression and control over the women and children of his family. Okonkwo’s father was the exact opposite of his son. He did not achieve much in his life. He was lazy, a coward and vulnerable, and in Okonkwo’s own thoughts, a lot like a woman. Evidently, growing up, Okonkwo’s mission had always been to not be like his father. So, he became a wrestler, the man of his house and he’d beat up his children and his wives if they show emotions because apparently that’s what men are supposed to do, as dictated by the patriarchic social convention.
However, with the arrival of colonial powers and the settlement of an alien religion, things did not take long to change in his village. Buildings and roads were built. Many got converted. The once important hierarchy in his clan was now neglected. Nothing that mattered earlier, matters now. Okonkwo’s control- completely gone. His clan, no longer worthy of its strength and fierceness.
This aspect of the novel rammed me into the main story, which clearly elucidated gender roles and what according to society means “strength”. Although I did sympathize with Okonkwo’s character and his conflict about not being able to show his emotional side but I also hated him with a passion so much so that I was looking forward for the parts when he would show his vulnerable side, when his demeanor towards this ideology of strength would finally change for the better. I desperately wanted his character to develop, and I had my hopes up because there were many subplots that suggested it- like his growing empathy towards his newest family member Ikemefuna and his pride whenever he thought of his only “capable” daughter who he thought should have been a man. Alas! The character development I sought never happened.
And, that’s what a good book does to you! It may promise you something but leaves you believing the opposite, oblivious to it’s plan on wrecking your heart. Reading this book felt like I was Jordan from Rockstar who thought of heartbreak as something glorious but when he got his heartbroken, he found that there’s no glory in it. YES, I FORGOT THAT THIS IS A TRAGEDY AND THE HEARTBREAK THAT IT GAVE ME WAS….UNBEARABLE. That’s what Things Fall Apart made me feel.
Okonkwo observes a negative arc in this novel, as in, he becomes the coward he hated his father to be, giving in to the strength of colonial power when he realised that he no longer has the control he was once proud of. Needless to say, I was a teeny tiny bit disappointed about the end because I really looked forward to a positive development in his character, like I mentioned. But, that is honestly just my personal opinion on how I wished it should have been like. I also kept reminding myself that it is historical, and that modern morals may not always be entailed in the works of history, which made things a little bit easier for me to accept.
Another thing that slightly disappointed me was the fact that going into the novel, I thought it would be solely about the struggle against the colonial powers however, in reality, the first two parts (the book is divided into three parts), is mostly about the traditional ways of his tribe and the colonial part comes much later in the third segment. I just felt that personally, the promised concept of colonialisation (as given on the back blurb of the book) was not well executed. Although I do appreciate the idea behind it as Achebe tried his best to convey Africa and their traditions and ways, debunking the stereotypes created by the foreigners as he formulated a foundational base of familiarity (or as we, writers call it- the exposition of how things initially are) for the reader to understand the difference colonisation had brought in their lives. I still feel that the colonisation part could have started a little bit earlier than it has in the book.
The rest is unquestioningly amazing! I loved the writing. It is proverbial and poetic and yet still very easy to understand. The pattern is mostly linear with a few flashbacks and stories about other people of the clan (It’s not Okonkwo’s story. It’s his clan’s story) thrown here and there. I also loved learning about the controversy of this book and how it was banned in several places including Nigeria and Malaysia because of its critical portrayal of colonisation. It was also critiqued by many because Achebe chose to write in English, which people would debate about as if it was to confront the Western model or upholds it. To this, Achebe had clarified that he wanted to put forth an interior description of Africans to resolve the image of the Africans as savages thus created by the whites. He said,
“English is something you spend your lifetime acquiring, so it would be foolish not to use it. Also, in the logic of colonization and decolonization it is actually a very powerful weapon in the fight to regain what was yours. English was the language of colonization itself. It is not simply something you use because you have it anyway.”
Also, the characters although were woven under the same pretense of patriarchy structure and traditions, had diverse features up close. Every character was distinct and had a role to play that was significant in some way or the other. Yes, I know, I said that I hated Okonkwo’s agressive, half self-decieved character but this flaw made him really realistic and interesting to read, also, I have a thing for morally grey characters so….
But, yes, despite my personal expectations from the book, it’s a classic! I give this book a 4 out of 5 stars! I think it fits perfectly for curious people who love history, stories in general of long lost traditions with a simple yet lyrical, beautiful narrative of the igbo language and of Africa. Highly, highly recommend it!
Thanks for reading. I hope you enjoy this book as much as I did ❤
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