An Analysis of Chinua Achebe's Things Fall Apart

An Analysis of Things Fall Apart

“A penny will hide the biggest star in the Universe…..”

It’s very smart to step out of my own shoes in order to see myself clearly in a situation. It’s necessary to do this in order to see and understand the whole picture. It’s smarter yet, to not only step out of my own shoes, but into those shoes belonging to someone else. Belonging to someone different than me in as many ways possible. Chinua Achebe’s, Things Fall Apart, shows us the importance of this through his story. He shows us that you have to physically put yourself into other people’s shoes, find out everything about them, in order to make any realistic judgment at all. He shows us the difficulties of doing this, but also the rewards that come of it in the end. Taking every possible opportunity to widen our perspective makes the walk back in our own shoes that much more worthwhile.

Achebe’s story brings up a lot of issues pertaining to everyday life, even today. It brings the idea of tolerance, and asking questions about our ways and ourselves. It makes the readers question when it’s okay to get involved, and the consequences of that. All these being tiny matters compared to the idea of understanding of the importance of seeing the world through multiple perspectives, no matter how difficult. Its like flying a plane across country and sharing to others what you saw, as opposed to driving across the country and then doing the same. We live today in a society that wants to do things quickly, and easy. Achebe wants to show us that that’s not the best way to view and pursue our lives.

Okonkwo, the main character in Things Fall Apart is a member of the Ibo culture. The Ibo is held together by one string, which is basically their very own traditions. Okonkwo is an extreme believer that his way, is the ONLY way. Even though Okonkwo breaks some rules in his own society, he thinks very highly of his own culture. The Ibo ways are the only ways that Okonkwo allows himself to see. He is a man demanding of his own family, dominating those around him, and rules “his household with a heavy hand.” Okonkwo is plagued by the fear of failure and weakness. Throughout the story he puts his effort into struggles to repress any part of him that may resemble his father.