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Things fall apart analysis essay
Native American religious beliefs and practices
Native American religious beliefs and practices
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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.
As I kept on reading, there was a strong connection between the novel and the Operation Auca missionary trip in Ecuador in 1956. The life of a native like Oknokwo’s and his tribe are rough and can be a problem with the more civilized people in a country. God needed some of His followers to reach towards the tribes to teach the Gospel, so that they can get along with anyone that intersects with the natives. In the mission trip in Ecuador, five missionaries were speared to death to spread God’s Word. After words, their wives took their places, took part in the native tribe, and members accepted Christ in their lives. When I read through the book, one question was connected to me; the question said, “What do Christian missionaries do in different cultures to spread the Gospel?”
In some of the novel’s pages, there is one answer with reasonable explanations that were shown with great understanding. In all, the pages that the answer will show for the question had four locations. The first location is on page 155; it said, “Nobody gave serious thought to the stories about the white man’s government or the consequences of killing the Christians. If they became more troublesome than they already were they would simply be driven out of the clan” (pg. 155). If the Chr...
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...se the people around me are followers of God and I will see them in Heaven. In Heaven, I will see the people that I have met and made friends with, so it would be nice to get to know each other as brothers and sisters in Jesus before we go to Heaven together.
I had a clear mind of what a life could be like Okonkwo’s when I read Things Fall Apart. 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. With the question that I looked at on four pages of the novel, I answered that I understood the cultural field of the book. Christian missionaries would do activities in a different culture that the natives will believe in the Word of God.
Smith, we see two big errors in his tactics in dealing with the people of the African tribe. First, Mr. Smith was insensitive to the native’s belief system. In response to hearing stories of the souls of demonic babies coming back in the form of other babies, Mr. Smith said, “those who believed such stories were unworthy of the Lord’s Table” (page 185). While child sacrifice is wrong, he made a critical error in thinking that unsaved people would act like those who knew the Lord. Of course a tribe of natives would hold to their practices without knowing Jesus. They have no reason not to continue this practice! If the only thing that a people group has ever known is suddenly put into question, of course they would not be in favor of a change. When people are shown Jesus and accept Him, then true revival of the heart will happen. We have to understand that the main issue here is the issue of the heart, not the issue of outward sin. The main issue needs to be addressed, then the secondary issue will follow suit. Once the natives accepted Christ, then they can address the issue of child sacrifice. Second, Mr. Smith was far too forceful on the natives regarding Christianity. The natives wished to live in peace, but Mr. Smith replied, “Tell them to go away from here. This is the house of God and I will not live to see it desecrated.” Mr. Smith exhibited a superior philosophy, which is never welcome in true
There are many differences between the Clan's beliefs and Christian's beliefs. This is illustrated on pages 126-129, in the mention of `the one true god.' Both the tribe and the Missionaries have different perceptions on who this one true god is. The clan has trouble understanding the Christian beliefs as they have lived a tribal existence for so long. They have only ever been aware of their own culture, which makes it hard for them to adjust to the ways of the Christians.
Many took up strategic responses to the presence of white missionaries without resorting to violence. One strategy from Things Fall Apart was to burn down the church the missionaries had built in their village. While attempting to burn down the church, the locals had a conversation with a white missionary trying to stop them. “You can stay with us if you like our ways. You can worship your own god. It is good that a man should worship the gods and the spirits of his fathers. Go back to your house so that you may not be hurt. Our anger is great but we have held it down so that we can talk to you”.2 These men did not want to fight with the missionaries. They objected to their attempt to convert the natives to Christianity, but did not want violence. The church was the center of the missionaries’ life in Africa and burning it down would result in a setback for their movement to evangelize and convert the locals to Christianity. It was a strategic response to counteract the missionaries’ attempts at
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
Nigeria has a rich culture stemming from the many civilizations that inhabited the land. In the novel Thing Fall Apart, Chinua Achebe brings light on to the great Igbo people, a society Nigeria hosted for centuries. The tale follows a man named Okonkwo as he tries to make amends for his father 's failures and a name for himself within his village. This path leads Okonkwo to become reckless and unreasonable. Through this, readers are exposed to the village’s judicial system, revealing that the clan’s laws based off sexism, superstitious nature, and deep religious ties.
There was a lot of Christian cross-cultural interactions that were violated. First and foremost, the brothers and their entourage was not going in to learn. They were going in just for themselves. They did not care about the people. If the people changed, it was for the better, but they were not specifically trying to change them. The brothers went in for themselves and only for themselves. Whatever interaction they had was all for selfish reasons. Because all interactions were selfish, Christian principles could not have been kept, because we are not supposed to be selfish.
In the novel “Things Fall Apart” by Chinua Achebe, the protagonist Okonkwo struggles between tribal tradition, his internal conflicts with his own beliefs, and the arrival of European missionaries to Africa. Okonkwo’s own perspective is limited to a heavily masculine praising mindset, driving him to be rash and violent at times, but his own tribe has a variety of traditions and personalities. Immediately, Okonkwo sees these missionaries as a threat to his place in society, their beliefs are frowned upon by most of the tribes and people of power. Missionaries see African tribes as animalistic and primitive. Okonkwo’s perspective was valid considering all the damage missionaries would eventually cause in the long run. A loss of culture and the
In Things Fall Apart, Achebe is able to express this embarkation with his division of the novel into two parts. The first part introduces Okonkwo along with his family’s beliefs and their origins, religions, etc. However, in the second part with the arrival of the Christian missionaries, the seeds of colonialism take root within the Ibo tribe and Okonkwo’s family, particularly in his son Nwoye. At the beginning, the missionaries are calm and peaceful. However, as time goes on they start to undergo their mission and start to denounce the Ibo’s gods as “false gods, gods of wood and stone.” At first, many are appalled and find their preaching laughable, but as they continue to thrive, people such as Nwoye begin to reach out. Because Nwoye is unable to forgive Okonkwo for his betrayal in killing his adopted brother, he converts to Christianity in an attempt to get back at his father for his crime. In addition, the missionaries’ hymn about brothers living in “darkness and fear,...
The book Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe brings to light the treatment of native Africans during the 1800s by missionaries that claimed to liberate and modernize the culture that had stood in Africa for hundreds of years. The book begins by explaining the traditions and rituals of the native people then it goes on to explain the changes in culture that occur because of European influence on the region. Things Fall Apart tells the story of a man named Okonkwo and his experiences during this time period. Okonkwo is described as an angry man with insecurities based on the fear of being weak like his father. In his culture he feels that it is necessary to raise his sons to be strong, manly, and successful.
Chinua Achebe’s novel, Things Fall Apart, depicts the story of a man named Okonkwo, who undergoes many adjustments throughout the course of his life. After being one of the most respected men in his village of Umuofia, he is exiled for seven years. Within his exile, Okonkwo has to overcome his feelings about the situation he has gotten himself into. Upon returning to Umuofia, he has to adjust to the cultural shifts that have occurred during his absence. The way Okonkwo deals with the drastic changes exemplifies and builds up his character.
The western missionaries also bought a new faith and realigion to the people which started to change many of the villages in Africa all together. Most missionaries came to this country with the idea of just helping the Igbo see what was right. Instead they ended up almost forcing or imposing mainly their religion and education upon the Igbo people. This happened in the book as well when they tried to burn down the shriens of the Igbo people’s gods. The head missionary, Mr. Brown, relized that instead of forcing something he should try a different approach like trying to understand the Igbo and using that to convert them. The missionaries basically used mainpulaiton to convert the Igbo people. Western imperialism were able to attract some of the Africans and convert them over to Christianity was by being able to show that they can bring just not religion but trade and money to their country and villages. They also attracted them by telling them what type of life they would be living if they converted over to Christianity, which was their way of taking over the community. In Things Fall Apart, the British colonist used force in order to give the support of the missionaries which was by any needs neccsary. When Okonkwo and some of the other villagers burned down the church they ended up being arrested and are suddenly under British rule and justice system at this point. The British command disrespect and treat those people that are in prison by shaving their heads and starving them for three whole days. They then forced this poor village to pay money in order for these men to be
Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe tells the story of how one unified Umuofian community falls due to its own inner conflicts, as well as to the arrival of Christian missionaries. Achebe wrote Things Fall Apart to change the brutish image of Africa, for the Western world. The use of changing perspectives greatly aided Achebe in accurately portraying Africa as colorful, diverse and complex. For Westerners, viewing Africans as more than tribal and barbaric was a new concept, of which Achebe helped usher in. The story is told through the eyes of many Umuofians, which gives the reader a personal sense for the individuals within the tribe. When all the individual pieces of the story are brought together, the sifting perspectives creates a vast overview of the community, while also deepening the readers since for the tribe by allowing personal details to show through. Achebe captures the complexity of the Umuofia community by changing the perspective from which the story is being told frequently.
Soon after the missionaries began to teach the tribal people about the Christian faith, their tribal customs began to be questioned. This caused a sense of unrest in the village. The missionaries were trying to bring with them new ways of life, and mostly better ways of life. Mr.Achebe tries to show us that the missionaries showed people who were hurt by the beliefs of the tribe that this did not have to go on in their religion. This is one of the main reason people switched to their religion.
There are many themes evident throughout Things Fall Apart, but one of the most prominent is the struggle between change and tradition, in the sense that some people change, but others don’t. Nwoye’s callow mind was greatly puzzled” (Achebe 89). Nwoye finds the missionaries hymn soothing, but it leaves him more confused about what he believes. Nwoye finally finds the courage to convert after a violent encounter with Okonkwo, “He went back to the church and told Mr. Kiaga that he had decided to go to Umuofia where the white missionary had set up a school to teach young Christians to read and write” (Achebe 93).
Chinua Achebe's novel, Things Fall Apart, uses the changes in African tribal culture brought about by European colonization to illustrate the evolution of the character Okonkwo. As Okonkwo leads his life, his experiences, personality and thought are revealed to the reader. The obstacles he faces in life are made numerous as time progresses. Okonkwo's most significant challenge originates within himself. He also encounters problems not only when in opposition to the white culture, but in his own culture, as he becomes frustrated with tribal ideals that conflict with his own. The last adversary he encounters is of the physical world, brought upon himself by his emotional and cultural problems. The manner through which Okonkwo addresses his adversaries in Things Fall Apart creates the mechanism that leads to his eventual destruction.