Strength Through Life’s Troubles
There are often times in hard situations when we want to give up on life and ourselves. Emotions take over and weigh you down. Life is a challenge that is difficult to go through. In the famous book Things Fall Apart a character named Ekwefi experienced life’s hardships. Ekwefi stays tough throughout the book Things Fall Apart. She pushes on through her young daughter Ezinma’s sickness and she stays brave when her husband Okonkwo, a strong and feared warrior in the Ibo tribe, breaks into a streak of hateful actions and words. Ekwefi is a brave woman who stands up for her fears, she teaches us to be strong in life, no matter how painful and emotional life has become. Ekwefi's life was not an easy one. She ”... had suffered a good deal in her life”(77). She
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“She swore within her that if she heard Ezinma cry she would rush into the cave to defend against all of the gods in the world. She would die with her. Having sworn that oath. She sat down and waited. Her fear had vanished”(108). The Priestess, Chielo, takes Ezinma into the cave and Ekwefi becomes worried. Ekwefi has a deep bond with her single daughter, Ezinma. Her pain in losing nine other children leads her to cherish her only daughter even above life itself. She spoils her child, which builds a deep relationship and trust between them. Ekwefi's considers her daughter's safety more important that her own personal safety. Ekwefi's fear vanishes when she decides that she wouldn’t let anything get into her way to protect her daughter. “Ezinma is dying, came her voice, and all the tragedy and sorrows at her life were packed in those word”(76). Ekwefi shows how much she truly loves her daughter and now she is afraid of losing her. Ekwefi cares for her daughter to the point that she would do anything to protect her and love her. The relationship between Ekwefi and Ezinma shows a deep connection between daughter and
The novel Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe is a story that opens the reader's mind to an entirely different way of living in a Nigerian village. Achebe was born in Nigeria in 1930, perhaps this is why he writes a whole book on a Nigerian village and introduces to us the ways of life for the Nigerian people. From the first page of the book to the last, Achebe allows the reader to enter the mind of the main character Okonkwo. Okonkwo is the leader of his village and is very respected for his many achievements. Although Okonkwo means well for his village, the novel invites the reader to see him has a flawed character who eventually suffers from the consequences of bad "masculine" decisions he makes throughout the book.
When I read Things Fall Apart, I had a clear mind of what a life could be like Okonkwo’s. For the rest of the reading, a question was contacting me in different places of the novel. Okonkwo was an angry man in front of his Nigerian tribe and changed when Christian missionaries came to the Ibo village; also, I responded to the book, and my personal applications to a different culture were related to a missionary trip that was a powerful one back in 1956 in Ecuador.
In Achebe’s novel, Things Fall Apart, the Ibo culture revolves around structured gender roles, from the crops that the men and women grow, to the characterization of crimes,which creates tension between the sexes and will ultimately lead to detrimental consequences. Things Fall Apart represents the hardships and struggles between females and males. For example, Ekwefi, the wife of Okonkwo, she is often beat for the things she has genuinely forgotten about . Also, we have Enzima, Okonkwo's favorite daughter, but since she is a female, she must be treated like a women. Although females are considered the weaker gender, they possess many qualities that make them worthy, such as bearing children. Achebe explained the importance of both genders and how they contribute to the society.
One often hears tales of humanity’s greatest feats from friends, family, and the media - whether it is a groundbreaking scientific discovery or a miraculous survival story, it is only natural for humans to marvel at which they cannot comprehend, including the awe-inspiring deeds accomplished by other humans. However, if one merely stops to reflect upon these aforementioned feats, one will quickly realize that every single individual who has accomplished one of them, from Marie Curie to Usain Bolt to Queen Elizabeth I, had a single thing in common: spirit. In fact, said individuals are not unlike the protagonist of Unbroken by Laura Hillenbrand, Louis Zamperini, who possesses the same iron will and drive. In Unbroken, Louis “Louie” Zamperini withstands the countless trials and tribulations of war, both big and small, all with the help of hope, his undying spirit, and shatterproof dignity. Additionally, despite all of the hardships he faces, he finds it within himself to forgive his tormentors when his ordeals are finally over. If there is anything that Louie’s story teaches readers, it is that the human spirit is incredibly strong - one can endure almost anything if one’s dignity remains intact.
A man who was emotionally hardened by the war, learned how to care for someone deeply. When Kanaalaq’s health was deteriorating he allowed her to rest and tried to feed her.
Culture makes us who we are. Each individual has their own culture from their experiences in life and is developed from societal influences. The various cultures around the world influence us in different ways which we experience at least once in our lifetime. There are occasions, especially in history, where cultures clash with one another. For instance, the English colonization in Africa changed their culture. Chinua Achebe, the author of Things Fall Apart, portrayed this change in the Igbo people’s society, especially through the character Okonkwo in the village of Umuofia; the introduction of Western ideas challenged him. In the novel Things Fall Apart, the author Chinua Achebe introduces to us Okonkwo whose character’s response to the
William James, a famous American philosopher, once stated, “The greatest revolution of our generation is the discovery that human beings, by changing the inner attitudes of their minds, can change the outer aspects of their lives”. This quotation effectively illustrates how change in one’s attitudes, perceptions, and beliefs can alter the environment in which one lives. This concept is clearly demonstrated throughout the novel Things Fall Apart, authored by Chinua Achebe, by establishing a connection through the development of its characters and the change in traditional African tribal villages seen in the Nineteenth Century. It will be established how various characters demonstrated by the author throughout the novel exemplify how change in one’s attitudes, perceptions, and beliefs can alter the environment in which one lives addressed by William James’s quote above. First, by analyzing Achebe’s development of Okonkwo’s character through his initial character description and the emergence of outsiders, it is evident that he is portrayed as an old fashioned character that is less responsive to change. Secondly, through examining Nwoye’s character, Okonkwo’s son, it becomes apparent that the youth in the novel are more open-minded, easily persuadable and more adaptive to societal changes. Lastly, uncovering the meaning behind the arrival of European missionaries, it becomes apparent that Achebe defines this group as being a “disease”, poisoning the society in which Okonkwo lives. The author look’s at individuals as being critical and influential figures in shaping the environment to which they belong, beginning with Okonkwo.
Things Fall Apart is about the tragic fall of Okonkwo our main character and the Igbo culture. Okonkwo is a respected leader within the Igbo community of Umunfia in eastern Nigeria. He first gets respect within the village by defeating Amalinze the Cat in a wrestling contest. Okonkwo is determined to become a powerful and wealthy man unlike his father who was weak. Within the community, Unoka was considered a failure and a laughingstock he was looked upon as a woman who had no property to call his own. He eventually died a shameful death and left numerous debts. Okonkwo despises and resents his father gentle ways he decides to overcome the shame that he feels for his father’s weakness by becoming what he considers to be “manly”. He dominates his wives and children by being insensitive and controlling. Over the years, Okonkwo becomes an extremely volatile man. For example beating his youngest wife Ojiugo for accidently forgetting to prepare the afternoon meal for his family. Things begin to fall apart soon with the arrival of Christian missionaries who spread their religion and culture throughout the land and. Colonialism is a theme that’s constantly addressed throughout the book and is to blame for the fall of the Igbo culture and Okonkwo.
The characters in Things Fall Apart are not black and white: they are flawed, redeemed, frustrated, assertive, violent, reasonable, and genuine. These traits are determined by perspective, and the a...
“He wanted Nwoye to grow into a tough young man capable of ruling his father’s household when he was dead and gone to join the ancestors. He wanted him to be a prosperous man, having enough in his barn to feed the ancestors with regular sacrifices.” (Achebe 53). In Chinua Achebe’s novel Things Fall Apart, it demonstrates how a person can change by the revealing of a new culture and how things can actually fall apart with an introduction of new ways. In the novel, Nwoye goes through a great deal of change while developing to the new culture.
The realistic fiction novel Things Fall Apart, by Chinua Achebe, depicts the life of Okonkwo, a descendant of Igbo heritage, during the imperialistic times in Africa. The story follows through the village of Umuofia, present-day Nigeria, and places significant ties between the historical background in this time period. During the story, the tribe is bombarded by the white man’s religion, and while Okonkwo is away in exile, their culture begin to fall apart. Torn by the woman-like behavior of his clan upon his return, Okonkwo can’t bear the idea of living with such change, and hangs himself. Like Okonkwo, John in Brave New World also takes his own life because of the changed society. Many of the same factors in Brave New World and Things Fall
The character of Okonkwo in Chinua Achebe’s Things Fall Apart was driven by fear, a fear of change and losing his self-worth. He needed the village of Umuofia, his home, to remain untouched by time and progress because its system and structure were the measures by which he assigned worth and meaning in his own life. Okonkwo required this external order because of his childhood and a strained relationship with his father, which was also the root of his fears and subsequent drive for success. When the structure of Umuofia changed, as happens in society, Okonkwo was unable to adapt his methods of self-evaluation and ways of functioning in the world; the life he was determined to live could not survive a new environment and collapsed around him.
In the story Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe, there were many events that occur that is pertaining to many different types of themes. Three examples of themes in this story are gender, fear and religion. Gender is a theme of this story because men and women have their own roles that they abide to in Umuofia. There was not any roles that both men and women share in common. Fear is a theme of this story because Okonkwo had a negative perspective of his father Unoka and he did not want to become like his father. In the story he try to do everything differently than his father. Religion is a theme in this story because this story shows how Umuofia’s traditional religion changes to Christianity.
Okonkwo sees his father’s gentleness as a feminine trait. He works hard to be as masculine as possible so that he will be the opposite of his father and overcome the shame his father brought to his family. Okonkwo deals with this struggle throughout the entire book, hiding the intense fear of weakness behind a masculine façade (Nnoromele 149). In order to appear masculine, he is often violent. In his desire to be judged by his own worth and not by the worth of his effeminate father, Okonkwo participates in the killing of a boy he sees as a son, even though his friends and other respected tribe members advise him against it. (Hoegberg 71). Even after the killing of Ikamefuna, Okonkwo hides his feelings of sadness because the emotions are feminine to him. He goes so far as to ask himself, “when did you become a shivering old woman” (Achebe 65), while he is inwardly grieving. The dramatic irony of the secret fears that Okonkwo has will open the reader’s eyes to how important gender identity is to him. This theme is also presented among Okonkwo’s children. He sees his oldest son, Nwoye, as feminine because he does not like to work as hard as his father (Stratton 29). When Nwoye eventually joins the Christian church, Okonkwo sees him as even more feminine. On the other hand, Okonkwo’s
Chinua Achebe’s book, Things Fall Apart, was based on a story and the culture in Nigeria, Western Africa. Women’s roles and responsibilities have transitioned over several of years. The book arises a situation of how the Ibo women were treated and looked upon. In the Ibo culture, the women did not only suffer a great loss of their dignity, but also their pride as women. The whole role of women in the Ibo culture is different in various ways compared to the female race in modern society. The modern society in Nigeria, women are not so powerless, and also have the opportunity to work alongside the opposite gender.