Things Fall Apart: A Novel

This is a note to myself to remind me that I have read this book twice now. The first time must have been years ago. This week a friend offered a copy suggesting it was a good read and I should read it. Not remembering it by the title or author I took it home and started to read it and instantly remembered reading it before. Each page brought back the memory of how things went. It is a good read, and an interesting and informative story. Hopefully, this time I will remember having read it for a longer period than last.

I was at first pleased to find a book that was written by an African, as well as one that discusses African traditions and customs. Not only that, it has also garnered enormous acclaim and praise from critics. However, after finishing Things Fall Apart and mulling it over in my mind, I now feel let down by author Chinua Achebe. While I managed to learn much about the culture of West Africa, particularly the traditions of the Igbo people in modern day Nigeria, as well as the effects of British imperialism, I was not enthralled by the sharp transitions, harsh and simple minded characters, and lack of a well developed story.

With a title ironically derived from a European poem (The Second Coming by W.B. Yeats), Things Fall Apart chronicles the adult life and exploits of Okonkwo, a member of the Igbo tribe who rose from humble beginnings to become a simultaneously respected and feared farmer and warrior. Okonkwo's fervent adherence to tribal customs of manliness and his tendency to conform stem from his desire to retain all that he worked hard for and now holds. To ensure that his legacy will live on, Okonkwo instills these values in his eldest son Nwoye by any means possible, even through abuse and alienation. The first major part of the story is an exhibition and explanation of various tribal customs, and describes Okonkwo's role in the special events and daily occurrences of life. Extremely detailed accounts of tribal processes in practically all aspects of life, from cooking to farming to law are given by Achebe. These descriptions are interesting to readers like me who have never been able to acquire much information about African culture, yet I was not able to relate or even sympathize with any of the characters. Okonkwo is the protagonist, but is a misogynist and narrow minded savage who is only able to command the respect and admiration of those around him through fear and violence. Other characters are either colorless and do not possess personalities that appeal to readers. Extremely simple language makes the novel far too easy to read, and makes the themes of the novel too obvious for readers.

What I despised most about this book was its sudden transition from relative calm to swift and destructive action following Okonkwo's accidental shooting of another tribe member. Okonkwo is punished by being exiled from his village and sent to live in his mother's village for seven years. Upon his return, Okonkwo finds his world turned upside down by the British settlers and their lifestyles, which contradict all of his values that he cannot compromise on, leading to his suicide. It is this overly quick change from an exposition of sorts to an actual plot that completely derails the reader and damages the novel. I feel that this novel fails to provide an adequate link between the two stages of the story, and that the two parts should have been completely separated into two different books. Only the second half the novel seems to have any actual plot, which proceeds too rapidly and without much explanation of the facts. The novel ends with an anticlimax, just as much of the book itself is sobering and disappointing, but this conclusion suits the story well and provides an appropriate ending situation for a novel on imperialism.

The amount of description of objects and scenes in this novel was remarkably vivid, as well as its explanation of tribal culture. Another aspect of the book that I enjoyed was that it provided interesting accounts of tribe life and the effects of imperialism on Africa. These qualities, however, pale in comparison to the bland and poorly structured story that Achebe has created, and the unappealing and cold characters that populate the novel. Critics have referred to Things Fall Apart as the quintessential African novel. This novel, however, has given me a poor image of African literature, and deserves to be read only by those who have the time required for progressing through its simpe language and unappealing plot.

This book has been sitting on my shelf as a TBR read for so long that I can't remember where or when I got it. But I'm glad I finally read it. I enjoyed reading about the traditions and customs as they were (not sugar coated to present a better image). To me, the story showed strengths and bonds of a people and how it can be broken by outside influences. I also saw a story of a man feeling one way within, yet displaying something else totally different, and fearing that his real feelings may be found out and he would be considered weak. That's something that can be transposed to any culture. Overall, this is tremendous read that kept me engaged the whole time.

Things Fall Apart, by noted author Chinua Achebe, is the fictional story of a family living in a small village, weathering and tolerating clan and religious traditions, until the coming of the British, who bring their own set of "clan" and religious traditions.

It's also a misogynistic tale full of anger and violence.

Achebe develops a story that has, as its key insult, to be called a woman. The reader is reminded of this over and over:

"That was why he had called him a woman. Okonkwo knew how to kill a man's spirit" (p. 26).

"No matter how prosperous a man was, if he was unable to rule his women and his children (and especially his women) he was not really a man" (p. 53).

"If any one of you prefers to be a woman, let him follow Nwoye now while I am alive so that I can curse him" (p. 172).

"He mourned for the clan, which he saw breaking up and falling apart, and he mourned for the warlike men of Umuofia, who had so unaccountably become soft like women" (p. 183).

There is an interesting story here, but the stories of the women are not just hidden and untold, but they are ground into kola nut paste. Frankly, Achebe is either not interested, or not able, to incorporate a female perspective in this tale. It is an ancient male fantasy of control and dominion. Beat the wife who is late with dinner. But she still exists 24/7. How can she be invisible?

The answer, I believe, lies in the location (Africa) and Achebe's creative period for this book (it was first published in 1959). If written today, it would be a different story. But the misogyny is still key. This is a story written by one who didn't understand women, even in 1959.

I wonder about its attraction today. Are we to pity the poor, "uncivilized" Africans? Are we to accept the deletion of women as significant in a community?

So... interesting, but irritating. Well-written, but brutal enough to lack "classic" status. This is not Africa, and even in the past, Africa was a big enough place that this tale didn't "speak" for all clans, tribes, and nations.

On the back cover, the promotional material states "Uniquely and richly African, at the same time it reveals Achebe's keen awareness of the human qualities common to men of all times and places." I don't think so.

I read Things Fall Apart as part of a survey course on African History. The writing style is simplistic but elegant, and Achebe's ability to craft a story is magnificent. I found it very difficult to put down, and will be reading it again soon.