The Destruction Of Igbo Culture The African Perspective

The Destruction of Igbo Culture: The African Perspective When the colonization of Africa by European nations began during the late 1800s, the African tribes could do little to resist their culture being destroyed. As a result, Europe wrote much of African history during the colonial period of Africa. In this version of African history, African tribes were looked down upon as primitive and savage as they did not have many of the advancements of European culture. This narrow portrayal of African culture motivated Chinua Achebe, a man of the Igbo nation in Nigeria, to write his landmark novel Things Fall Apart (published in 1959), to not only tell the African perspective of their colonization, but also as a way of showing that his culture was not simple and straightforward to understand; it was intricate and dynamic. Forty-nine years after the publication of Things Fall Apart, Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie published her short story â€Å"The Headstrong Historian†. The story has the same setting as Achebe’s Things Fall Apart, and begi ns at the time when missionaries had first come to Africa to convert Africans to Christianity. The short story delves further into one aspect of Achebe’s Things Fall Apart, which is how changing religion can cause separation from culture, while showing criticism of Achebe’s portrayal of women and the ending of his novel. In Igbo society, unmasking one of the egwugwu (a man impersonating one of the ancestral spirits of the village) is the equivalent ofShow MoreRelatedThings Falll Apart by Chinua Achebe1082 Words   |  4 Pagesgreat village man is highly respected in the Igbo tribe of Umuofia. Although, Okonkwo is highly respected by the Igbo people, they are fearful of him because of his violent anger. When the Europeans arrived in Umuofia, they brought with them a new religion: Christianity. The Westerners changed Umuofia, destroyed tradition and destroyed Okonkwo. Things Fall Apart is a great novel recognised for its impact on the world’s understanding of Africa and African people. The novel’s English translation enabledRead MoreCritical Analysis Of Okonkwo1678 Words   |  7 PagesLevel Two Questions: 1.  Ã‚  Ã‚   Okonkwo embodies all the ideal and heroic traits of the Igbo culture. He is strong, authoritative, hardworking, and successful. The opening sentence states that â€Å"Okonkwo was well known throughout the nine villages and even beyond† (Achebe 3). Okonkwo is great and famous because of his â€Å"solid personal achievements† (Achebe 3). How does he achieve greatness and how is he defined by his culture? Okonkwo first achieved fame and recognition when he became the village’s wrestlingRead MorePostcolonial Literature (Persepolis Things Fall Apart)1504 Words   |  7 Pagesinferior through western perspective and both texts, even though reinforce colonialists’ oppressive ideology, don’t stand completely against the colonialists and fault their own culture. They present the themes of dislocation on how western influences changes, religious, social and economical aspects in the Igbo and the Iranian society. ‘Things fall Apart’ presents an African response to British imperialism in contrary to Joseph Conrad’s ‘Heart of Darkness’, which presents African as â€Å"savage†. As saidRead MoreThings Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe740 Words   |  3 Pagesand they largely portrayed Africans as savages who needed to be enlightened by Europeans. For example, Joseph Conrads classic tale Heart of Darkness (1899), one of the most celebrated novels of the early twentieth century, presents Africa as a wild, dark, and uncivilized continent. In Mister Johnson (1939), which in 1952 Time called the best novel ever written about Africa (Cheerful para. 15), Irishman Joyce Carys protagonist is a semieducated, childish African who, on the whole, reinforcesRead MoreList Of Major Characters In Things Fall Apart By Chinua Achebe1345 Words   |  6 PagesEzinma: Okonkwo’s favorite kid, understanding, Okonkwo wishes she was a boy Mr. Brown: White missionary, brings peace and understanding to the Igbo people, builds schools and hospitals 4. List of Minor Characters: Ekwefi: Second wife of Okonkwo, mother of Ezinma, ran away from first husband Reverend James Smith: Replaces Mr. Brown, strict, wipes away culture and tradition Obeirka: Old and close friend of Okonkwo, guide and mentor to Okonkwo Uchendu: Younger brother of Okonkwo’s mom, foilRead MoreThings Fall Apart Best Qoutes1148 Words   |  5 PagesThis daring perspective brought to the world the figure of Okonkwo, a powerful and respected village elder who cannot single-handedly repel the invasion of foreign culture into his village. The book has been taught in a variety of contexts from cultural history to anthropology to literature and world history classes. Its application to such a number of fields reveals its historical importance in the world. Things Fall Apart  is a tragic and moving story of Okonkwo and the destruction of the villageRead MorePostcolonial Literature: Uncovering Western Myths Essay1309 Words   |  6 PagesAfrica has been the embodiment of european perspectives before and after the Colonialism; these perspectives have attempted to provide insights on the facts behind it. In those terms, Africa has been reduced an atmosphere of concepts such as deep darkness, mystery, and madness, a place in which attrocities arise at any time of the day, and people are savages and chaotic. From that colonialist viewpoint, Africa was a place that needed help and control urgently in order to save it form itself and civilizeRead MoreAntigone Iriola Analysis1129 Words   |  5 Pagesclearly can be classified as an heir of Orlando. The story is both written by and in the perspective of a Nigerian woman. As Orlando touches upon issues of identity and misogynistic cultures, so does Unigwe. Newly-widowed Nneka was physically a bused throughout the duration of her marriage to Okpala, who raped her on their wedding night and caused her to have a miscarriage. It does not appear that Nigerian culture values survivors of domestic assault, as Nneka’s experiences remain secretive. AdditionallyRead MoreAnalysis Of Things Fall Apart 1817 Words   |  8 PagesCrystal Wu Ms. Johns Honors English 3-4 12 August, 2016 Things Fall Apart 1. Okonkwo endeavors to measure up to the traditional Igbo standards of masculinity, for which his culture highly regards and esteems. Epitomizing and personifying the ideal heroic qualities in the Igbo culture, an industrious Okonkwo experiences not only social but financial success which is driven and fueled by a passion of loathing â€Å"everything that his father Unoka had loved† (13). His idle, imprudent father owes nearlyRead MoreThings Fall Apart Essay2440 Words   |  10 Pages(1958) is a fictional novel by Chinua Achebe that examines the life the Igbo tribe living in a rural village called Umuofia in Nigeria during the early 19th century. The central values of the novel revolve around status, virtues, power, and traditions that often determine the futures and present of the characters in the Achebe story. The novel shows the life of the protagonist Okonkwo and his family, village, and Igbo culture and the affects of colonisation of Umuofia on him and the people of h is