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Summary: Portrait of colonial Africa
Review: This is a story about colonization. True, the colonization of the Ibo takes place only in the last third of the book, but that is what makes this book so interesting. Colonization did not occur in a vaccuum; it was imposed upon already existing and sophisticated cultures. I think it is Achebe's purpose to show us a portrait of such a culture in order for us to better understand exactly what effect colonization had. Achebe raises several interesting questions. One of these is the question of an idea of universal rights and wrongs. In traditional Ibo culture, twins were left to die at birth as they were harbingers of evil spirits. The colonizers come and vanquish this custom in order to save innocent children. In doing so, they upset Ibo culture. In this case, who is right? Achebe also raises questions about the culpability of the colonizers. In Western education today, colonization is blamed for a great deal of the present-day woes in Africa and Southeast Asia. Achebe's portrait of pre-colonial Africa is neither peaceful nor utopian. Local tribes war against each other without the artificial divisions later imposed by the colonizers. In this context, the modern-day conflicts in Nigeria between the Ibo, Hausa-Fulani, and the Yoruba come into clearer focus. Achebe's writing style is simple and aggresive. You will be hard pressed to find a passive sentence, which makes for some choppy and dynamic literature. I felt like it read more like a translation than a book that was originally written in English. It is a quick read, 3 days at the most should do it. However, unless one has at least a passing interest in Africa and its cultures and histories, this book may be a bit dull. Also recommended: V.S. Naipaul.
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Summary: Wonderful Book
Review: I first read this book in high school at first I did not thik I would like this book, but I was completley wrong. This book travels back to a time before books, computers, cellphones and credit cards. The main character in this book wants to live up to his villages expecations but in the end those expectations lead to his destruction. If you are an avid reader like me then you have your own personal library and this book should be in it.I have both read the book and seen the play. If the play comes to your area then you must see the book come alive.
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Summary: Doesn't Deliver
Review: Things Fall Apart has been hyped as a book about the effects of colonialism upon Africa. It really fails to deliver upon that promise. The theme of colonialism isn't introduced until the last quarter of the book. Further, the story really fails to extrapolate upon the full effects of colonialism. It just doesn't deliver. What Things Fall Apart does have going for it, is a well written portrait of African tribal life. The author takes the brave course of showing how well tribal life worked, both in it's communal beauty and it's communal brutality. The characters shown within the tribe are diverse and full. The author does a good job of creating a 'village'. For those who enjoy reading books that give not just information, but the 'feel' of another culture, this book will be much enjoyed.
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Summary: One of the best cultural portraits in any novel.
Review: First of all, let me say that the 1- and 2-star reviews of this novel listed here seemed to me to be totally missing the point of this book. Both said that it was unitersting because it wasn't deep enough or lacked any substance other than a portrait of the Ibo culture. In my opinion, this could not be further from the truth. Many people believe that "Things Fall Apart" is a reaction to Conrad's "Heart of Darkness." What this means is that Achebe is showing that the "natives" that Conrad writes of dancing on the bank of the river actually are a people and are not just resources for white men. It also means that this book is a protest against imperialism, which is portrayed in the relationship between the Ibo people and the Church representatives.
Also, Okonkowo's plight to become something in society and his ultimate demise is quite universal. Similar to Ellison's "Invisible Man," Achebe shows the struggle between trying to find an individuality and following societal expectations.
Overall, this book is fun, emotional, educational, and just plain great, all in one. I would recommend it to anyone, especially book lovers.
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Summary: Summer Reading
Review: BeforeI began reading 'Thing's Fall Apart' I logged on to websites like Amazon.com and read reviews of the book I had to read for summer reading. I initially thought the the book to be dry and boring but after a couple of chapters I started to really enjoy it and did not want it to end. I can agree with other reviewers who say the book had long words but the dictionary in the end of my book really helped.
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Summary: Argh
Review: I'm not going to tell any one not to read this novel because of my personal opinion. It is up to you to decide on how to interpret or accept this novel. I, myself, found it boring and unmoving. Yes, I am interest in learning about other cultures, but I think this could have been written better. I also believe it needed a deeper meaning, without simple symbolism everyone tends to exhaust. I only see this a novel worth reading if you're not looking for depth.
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Summary: Review of ¿Things Fall Apart¿ by Chinua Achebe
Review: Hailed as Chinua Achebe's masterpiece and sold for millions of copies worldwide, 'Things Fall Apart' is in my opinion an average story that is overhyped. In the story, Okonkwo is a strong warrior who begins his life with disadvantages but works his way to earn titles, respect and wealth in his village. A manslaughter incident costs him seven years of exile, during which his village as well as the neighbouring villages find themselves changed and divided under the influence of missionaries importing the Christian religion. Okonkwo returns disappointed but determined to unify the clan again, not knowing a worse fate awaits him... This story is largely about tribal life in Africa, with all its intimate details about customs, beliefs and practices. On one hand, Chinua Achebe portrays suffering people (especially women and children) who are victims of tribal systems. Wives are ill-treated by husbands, while some children become sacrifices for disputes or religion. On the other hand, Chinua Achebe questions the authority and power of the Westerners who attempt to change the villages via import of their own religion and law. If there is a central theme in this book, it would be division -- as the title itself suggests. This begins only when the missionaries arrive at Umuofia and other villages. Christ says that He brings division, and this prophecy is fulfilled when one of Okonkwo's sons leaves home to embrace Christianity. On a larger scale, people in the village are divided amongst themselves. This division, like all others, leads to inevitable despair. 'Things Fall Apart' is simple in both language and content. It is easy to read and can be completed in a single sitting. However, unless one is interested in the rich customs of African tribal life, this book is otherwise very average and uncaptivating. This book is strongly recommended for all who are interested in African culture and way of life. If you are a reader like myself trying to discover the greatness of Chinua Achebe's most famous work, then you may end up rather disappointed by this somewhat average story.
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Summary: Wonderful, Interesting, Great to learn more about Africa
Review: I chose to read this book for a report in my High School World History class. From some of the reviews I read, they made it seem like the book was going to be a boring waste of my time, but it wasn't. It is an easy book to read, not long at all, and it helps you learn a lot about the Nigerian culture. The book is about a man named Okonkwo who is afraid to share his feelings for fear of being thought as weak and he had to protect his reputation. He is brave, but stands alone a lot with his decision to fight. He believes everyone in the tribe has turned into women when they do not want to fight, but deep down he is just like them, but afraid of how people will now view him. When he starts to become violent he accidentally kills a man and is forced to leave his tribe. When he is allowed to return his society has changed dramatically. Missionaries have come to teach the different African countries of the right ways, but the people of Okonkwo's tribe have different views on how to live their life. The missionaries do not understand their way of life and so this book show how communication can be a problem that can lead to the downfall of a once powerful society. I recommend this book to anyone who wants to learn about previous African culture in a well written, interesting, book.
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Summary: Read Another Book
Review: What I think. I think his book was very boring. I really did not understand it. It had humongous words in it, that were very hard to understand. If I were to tell someone my opinion about thisi book I would say to read a different book.
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Summary: DENIAL OF THE ONE YOU WOULD BECOME
Review: At its deepest level, Things Fall Apart is a human tragedy. Okonkwo despises his father because of the shame his lazy ways bring to his family. Okonkwo determines to be nothing like his father. With the exception of the brief time in which he comes to love Ikemefuma, he succeeds. Okonkwo gains fame in Umofia for being everything his father was not: hardworking, a man of stature, and concerned with the business of the community. Okonkwo's rejection of his father, Unoka, is an act of social self-preservation. It also becomes a form of self-hatred. His denial of the parts of his father that exist inside himself makes him famous and revered. It is also his undoing as a human. On the surface all seems well. Under the surface Okonkwo is a boiling mess of bottled emotion and impaired judgment. His determination to not be like Unoka causes him to put public appearance over internal intuition. This leads directly to his slaughtering of Ikemefuma. It also costs Okonkwo whatever humanity he may have had.
This incident robs Okonkwo of any ability to deal sanely with the changes taking place in his society. His rage breaks upon the immovable rocks of colonial power. In his final futility, he becomes totally unlike his father--who at least enjoyed life.
The things Okonkwo's homeland of Umofia reveres in their "great men" (and they are all men) are things that lend themselves to the preservation of people. Qualities like strength, the ability to create wealth (yams), and adherence to social and religious norms are all valued.
Okonkwo manically lives out these qualities in an attempt to not become a "failure" like his father. Though Okonkwo's heartlessness manifests itself a few times, and some of his fellow villagers notice it, his greatness is already established in his titles and past actions. The unease of others is set aside in acknowledgement of his actions.
This position Okonkwo has achieved falls apart the first time with his accidentally killing another. Yet even here, after he has, so to speak, "paid his debt to society"--he is allowed to return, his status is intact. This return and the change in society that has taken place in the interim, leads to the second, permanent "falling apart."
Okonkwo returns to a society being reshaped by the principles and, more importantly, resources of colonialism. In the face of the vast wealth and power of the colonial government the basis for Okonkwo's greatness looks rather silly and pathetic. What are yams in the face of guns?
Okonkwo's status dissolves into irrelevance as his society moves on. All that he has accomplished in his life washes away in the face of those who have more. The grass withers, the flower fades and Okonkwo's greatness goes with it.
The two white missionaries who come to Umofia, Mr. Brown and Mr. Smith, represent two very different worldviews. One (Brown) is a true-blue, "the last shall be first, the greatest is the least among you" kind of Christ-Follower. The other (Smith) represents the masses who crucify the true Christ in the name of co-opting the ways and power of those who are in charge of the temporal world.
Brown is a missionary with zeal for the lost. Not only that, he evidences a desire to help lift up the down-trodden of Umofia's society. In the face of aggression from the people of Umofia, he attempts to lovingly turn aside their wrath. In all this, Brown shows himself (by his love for others) to be a follower of Christ.
Smith on the other hand is a lackey of the state. His concern is not the condition of the souls of the people of Umofia. His concern is that no one "rock the boat" of colonial society. He has no inner restraint in dealing with the problems he finds in Umofia. The smallest gnat of a problem is met with the crushing hammer of the colonial power at his disposal.
Of course there are more temporal dangers in truly following Christ than in debasing oneself before earthly power. Smith's ways show results, Brown's largely do not. The difference is in the audience they are performing for. I choose Brown's. I give Things Fall Apart my heartfelt recommendation.
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