Attempt a complicated reading of the project of the novel, Things Fall Apart, by Chinua Achebe. Also show why you think it is all about re-writing the Africa which is “mis-represented” in the literature of Empire

Rewriting African history through

an African ' perspective (Chinua Achebe 's

Things Fall Apart

Introduction : Things Fall Apart , by Nigerian author Chinua Achebe is a postcolonial

Critical approaches , African novel celebrated in academic circles as the most powerful rendition of Africa 's lack of self-identity ' theme as narrated from an African 's point of view Achebe (1930- ) who considers himself an unambiguous and staunch critic of Western sources ' stereotyping of Africa , her culture , the people and their so-called backward ' customs (Emenyonu 73 ) drew revengeful inspiration for his work from Joseph

Conrad 's The Heart of Darkness

In that earlier novel Conrad , an Englishman , had been quite forthcoming in his fictionalized account of the benighted people of Africa as subhuman savages , and European missionaries as intrepid , altruistic role models commissioned by God to bring the blessings of Western civilization , to them in to end their misery (Emenyonu 21 . In his novel , Achebe would scathingly attack these racist presumptions with an unbiased educational portrayal of Africa 's traditional values and how Western imperialism had impinged on those values to undermine their significance to African people . Despite the title 's worldwide popularity amidst soaring sales until today , Achebe has never been recommended for a Nobel Prize mainly due to his unapologetic stance on alleged White racism ( Akubuiyro though even from a neutral perspective , it can be clearly seen that the novel is a classic and a masterpiece

The biggest attraction of Things Fall Apart is its historical validity in terms of the accurate portrayal of Achebe 's people in Nigeria , the Igbo community (pronounced as Ibo ) and their unique ways of life (Ogbaa 1 . It is important to note here that Achebe never approved of some of the brutal customs prevalent in 19th century Igbo society e .g . the killing of twins , ostracizing of mothers because they were considered religiously unworthy and other baneful superstitions of which Achebe gives an unfailing critical account but not without opposing the justification of European colonialism of Africa based on those isolated incidents alone (Ogbaa 3

The plot revolves around Okonkwo , a patriarch belonging to an Igbo ethnic group called Umuofia and also , a local wrestling champion who lives with his three wives (the subject of polygamy is depicted with economic simplicity and a tone of sympathy ) and children in a small Nigerian hamlet which subsequently , became the target of missionary activists who in their overzealous drive to bring the heathens into the fold of Christ , wreck the Umuofia family apart with their newfangled preaching , ultimately leading to tragic consequences for the family (Achebe xii

The first half of the novel primarily depicts the different cultural traditions of the Umuofia people , and their meaningfulness in a social context- the second half goes down into the gory details , and the senseless brutality of White missionaries such as Mr . Smith who unilaterally oppose accommodation and pacification toward the Igbo people a case in point is the massacre at Abame (Achebe 221 ) where with the tacit approval of imperial rulers...