Things Fall Apart (Norton Critical Editions)

Okonkwo ruled his household with a heavy hand. His wives, especially the youngest, lived in perpetual fear of his fiery temper, and so did his little children. Perhaps down in his heart Okonkwo was not a cruel man. But his whole life was dominated by fear, the fear of failure and of weakness. It was deeper and more intimate than the fear of evil and capricious gods and of magic, the fear of the forest, and of the forces of nature, malevolent, red in tooth and claw. Okonkwo's fear was greater than these. It was not external but lay deep within himself. It was the fear of himself, lest he should be found to resemble his father.

Achebe does not introduce the theme of colonialism until the last 50 pages or so. By then, Okonkwo has lost everything and been driven into exile. And yet, within the traditions of his culture, he still has hope of redemption. The arrival of missionaries in Umuofia, however, followed by representatives of the colonial government, completely disrupts Ibo culture, and in the chasm between old ways and new, Okonkwo is lost forever. Deceptively simple in its prose, Things Fall Apart packs a powerful punch as Achebe holds up the ruin of one proud man to stand for the destruction of an entire culture. --Alix Wilber

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Chinua Achebe describes "Things Fall Apart" as a response to Joseph Conrad's "Heart of Darkness", which is, comparatively, a denser, perhaps less accessible read. The parallels are there: the ominous drumbeats Marlow describes as mingling with his heartbeat are here given a source and a context. We, as readers, are invited into the lives of the Ibo clan in Nigeria. We learn their customs, their beliefs, terms from their language. Okonkwo, the main character, is the perfect anti-hero. He is maybe Achebe's ultimate creation: flawed, angry, deeply afraid but outwardly fierce. To have given us a perfect hero would have been to sell the story of these people drastically short. Achebe's great achievement is in rendering them as humans, people we can identify with. So they don't dress like Americans, or share our religious beliefs. Who's to say which method is correct, or if there has to be a correct and incorrect way. Achebe provokes thoughtfulness and important questions. His narrative is easy to read structurally, but the story itself is painful and frustrating. It is worthy of its subject.

"Things Fall Apart" provoked some of the best classroom discussions I've ever experienced. As a reader, it has enriched my life. My thanks to Achebe for his marvelous contribution to literature. This book has a permanent place on my shelves.


Read This Book   April 16, 2000
131 out of 142 found this review helpful

The first two-thirds of "Things Fall Apart" is an affectionate description of the culture of an Ibo clan told from an insider's viewpoint, focusing on the life of Okonkwo, one of his tribe's most respected leaders. The customs and religion of the Ibo village are described with sympathy and simplicity, creating a sense of nostalgia for a way of life completely exotic to Western sensibilities, but making the reader feel the force and logic of a traditional culture seen from within. This idyllic description is clouded by the reader's awareness of the culture's fragility, a foreboding sense of pity and of looming disaster. Disaster comes, of course, in the shape of white missionaries. In the last part of the story, evangelizing Christians and English colonial administrators establish themselves in the Ibo village, and act to corrode and unravel the traditional life of the Ibo people. An escalating series of misunderstandings and conflicts between the whites and natives lead to the inevitable tragic ending. In the last paragraph of the novel, the perspective shifts suddenly to that of the English colonial adminstrator, and ends with one of the most powerful and affecting last lines of any novel I've read.

This book was thoroughly enjoyable, and I recommend it unreservedly.


One of the Best Books Ever Written - Great African Novel!   April 18, 2003
Darcy L. Mott (Surrey, ND United States)
38 out of 44 found this review helpful

I was required to read this book in a college literature class and actually dreaded reading it because I really had no interest in Africa. After reading this book by the amazingly talented Chinua Achebe, I became more interested in Africa than I would have ever thought possible! Achebe has masterful skill in portraying African culture to the readers. He colors Africa in a magnificent yet somewhat tragic shade.

I wrote an essay in college based on the Nigerian folktales in this book and received a 100% from my professor. This book has the power to touch lives and I recommend it to absolutely everybody on the planet. I have given my copy to my brother in hopes of educating one more person in this world on African culture. If you think this book is just for African Americans you're wrong... I am caucasian and this book has become my absolute favorite ever!

Please buy this book and when you've read it pass it along to someone else. This book really enlightens people and makes the world more aware of the great and slightly overlooked continent of Africa - and in particular, Nigeria. I will travel to Africa someday solely because of this book!


Classic   March 22, 2007
A.S.I (Maryland, USA & Lagos, Nigeria)
27 out of 28 found this review helpful

I don't even feel worthy enough to write a review for this novel. It is the greatest work of literature to have come out of Nigeria and perhaps even the entire African continent and one of the most brilliant pieces of fiction in the world. It has somehow become staple reading English literature for all levels of Nigerian education and the unattainable standard by which subsequent indigenous literature is judged by.

The plot revolves around Okonkwo; a physically and materially powerful member of his village, his family, the entire village as a whole and how Okonkwo (representative of Iboland as a whole) reacts when forcibly faced with colonization.

This book deliciously tells the tale of a lost world and the way Chinua Achebe handles the psychological aspects of his tale is pure genius especially that breaking moment in time when the old is violently juxtaposed against the new and a mad, sad confusion sets in.

I like that this book affords me the opportunity of interacting with a culture I should be acclimated with but I am unfortunately too removed from.

A must read for any person who indulges in [socio-political] classic literature (Dickens, Orwell, Shakespeare etc) . Chinua Achebe is an undisputed master at this game.






Things Fall Apaprt:Simple Folktale, Complex Message   March 6, 2000
Meredith Tickner (santa Barbara, Californ (U.S.A.))
26 out of 29 found this review helpful

Things Fall Apart is an excellent book that introduces the reader to both the African Ibo culture and the struggles of one individual. This novel opens with the despcription of simple daily life in the village of Umuofia educating the reader of the primitive daily life in Nigeria at the turn of the century. The novel describes the village life as it was before the white man at all times making the reader aware that their simple village life is about to change. The main chracter Okonkwo is a strong warrior whom possesses all of the villages most repsected attributes. However, he is man that struggles with the fear of failiure and uncontrollable anger. Throughout this novel we see how these qualities lead to self-destruction in the face of a changing world. The end of the novel most clearly shows how severe Okonkwo's destructive nature has become in an unexpected way. When I first began to read Things Fall Apart I did not understand the importance of the novel. As I easily read along I was not understanding many of the deeper messages that the book was communicating. I was simply enjoying the folklore and the simple stories that were told within the novel. However, this changed when the novel took a turn from describing less of the village life and more of Okonkwo's struggles. It was here that I began to see all the issues that an African villager might have been facing and understanding Achebe's message. Okonkwo was a man that was faced with the changes brought about with the white man. Okonkwo feared the impact that these men might have on future genrations and questioned whether village life would ever be the same again. I saw this message as valid for not only historical analysis but also present day analysis. We live in a world, and I live in a country that sees the need for further colonization and development in foreign countries to offer the natives a better way of life. However, this novel clearly presented that although a foreign country might have good intentions they are not always what it best for the country. The reason is that the outsiders are never truely understanding of the culture that existed prior to their arrival and therefore can never offer what is best for the culture. In this novel we see that although the Ibo life was imperfect, with the arrival of the white man, a war zone of ideologies was created in which neither culture lived peacefully. I thoroughly enjoyed my read of Things Fall Apart and would recommend it to any reader interested in the African culture and history. I recommend that, even if some of the descriptions seem rather dry, stick with it and you will find Achebe's messsage thought provoking and powerful.