Things Fall Apart

Chapter One:
A: What are Okonkwo's main characteristics as he is depicted in the first few chapters? What were the characteristics of his father which affect him so powerfully?

Note how the ritual for sharing kola is described without being explained. Why do you think Achebe does this?

What do you think are the social functions of such a system?

One of the most famous lines in the novel is "proverbs are the palm-oil with which words are eaten." What does this mean?

I: Okonkwo’s main characteristics, are depicted in the first few chapters of the novel. He is depicted as strong, influential as a leader within his family, hard working, and manly. He has control of his family and of his work. He is well known throughout Umuofia. The characteristics of his father are opposite to that of Okonkwo. His father was portrayed as weak and useless. He did not have control of his family and his crops did not nourish very well. He did not leave anything for Okonkwo to inherit. I think that Okonkwo described the ritual of sharing Kola without explaining it because he wants people to get a sense of the Ibo culture without him having to explain it, and since there are many rituals he does not want to explain them all.ySocial functions this system include being known in the village and earning the people’s respect and admiration. This means that it is important to know what people are talking about or what they are saying the meaning of the words they say are important.

Chapter Two:
A: What effect does night have on the people? What do they fear? How do they deal with their fear of snakes at night? What is the cause and nature of the conflict with Mbaino? What is the purpose of the taking of Ikemefuna?

In what ways does Okonkwo overcompensate for his father's weaknesses? In what ways is he presented as unusual for his culture? What is his attitude toward women? Why does he dislike his son Nwoye so much?

What do you think the advantages and disadvantages of this form of social structure are?

What seems to be Achebe's attitude toward this culture so far? Is his depicting it as an ideal one? Can you cite any passages which imply a critical attitude?

I: The night brings fear to people, even those who are consider strong and courageous. Dangerous animals became more noticeable during the night and the people were afraid of evil spirits. A snake was never called by its name at night because it would hear, instead it was called a string. One of the women of Umuofia was killed at Mbaino. Since they killed one of their women, the people of Umuofia proposed to take Ikemufa and one of their women in order to avoid war. Okonkwo overcompensates his father’s for his father’s weaknesses by being strong and making his way up without any inheritance. He is presented as unusual for his culture because he did not inherit anything from anyone, which people who are important in the village usually do. Okonkwo had to work his way up through hard work, his own hard work not from inheritance. Okonkwo views women as subjects, that need to be controlled. He dislikes his son Nwoye because he sees him as week. The advantages of this social culture are being able to see every wife, the disadvantages are having more than one wife. He is not depicting this culture as an ideal one, but he is not depicting it as an unusual one either. “ ‘Okonkwo ruled his household with a heavy hand. His wife especially the youngest lived in perpetual fear’” (13).



Chapter Three:

A: What effect does her status have on your judgment of the roles played by women in the culture?

How is awareness of rank observed in the drinking of the palm wine? How does share-cropping work? What is the relationship of women to agriculture? How does Okonkwo react to "the worst year in living memory?"

I: Agbala is trusted because she can tell people when they are having misfortunes or she can help people through those misfortunes. The fact that she is respected, even though she is a women makes me think that women can be respected as long as they have a certain gift or they hold an important role in the village. The awareness of rank is observed in the drinking of palm wine by knowing who gets to drink first. Share cropping was a slow way of building up a barn of one’s own. It was a different way. The relationship between women and agriculture is that this is what the men have to control in order to avoid weakness. Okonkwo did not shrink in despair while experiencing the bad harvest, but he does shiver up every time he remembers.

Chapter Four:

A: What are Okonkwo's virtues? What are his faults? What does this proverb mean, "When a man says yes his chi says yes also"? What is Okonkwo's relationship with Ikemefuna like? What is the crime that causes Okonkwo's to be reprimanded? What does it tell you about the values of the culture? What evidence is there in this chapter that customs have changed over time? That customs differ among contemporary cultures? What are the limits of the power of the village rain-maker?

I: Okonkwo’s virtues are being a hard working man, who had to work harder than others because he did not have any inheritance from his father. Now he is at the top of the clan and is admired and feared by many. He is not considered weak he is considered strong. Okonkwo’s faults came when dealing with less successful people, he held a certain amount of pride. A man’s word is important and when he says something his God agrees with him, and so does his clan usually. Okonkwo’s relationship with Ikemufa is a good one. He is like his son. Okonkwo admires him because he is not weak like his own son. The crime that causes Okonkwo to be reprimanded is beating up his wife during the weak of peace. This tells me that they hold certain rituals that can not be broken and are very important to them. The limits of the power of the village rain-maker are a resting period in the month of harvest.


Chapter Five:

A: What is Okonkwo's attitude toward feasts? Briefly summarize the story of Ikwefi. What kind of a woman is she? What do you think is the significance of women having to sit with their legs together?

I: Okonkwo never becomes enthusiastic during feasts. Ikwefi just got beaten and she runs away from her husvand and is a little bit of a rebel. She loves wresting and thinks it is sexy. She runs away after being beaten. I think that the significance of women having to sit with their legs together is their intimacy and their way to show respect.


Chapter Six:

A: This chapter introduces a much-discussed aspect of Ibo belief. As in most pre-modern cultures, the majority of children died in early childhood. If a series of such deaths took place in a family it was believed that the same wicked spirit was being born and dying over and over again, spitefully grieving its parents. They tended to be apprehensive about new children until they seemed to be likely to survive, thus proving themselves not to be feared ogbanje. What roles does Chielo play in the village?

I: Chielo was the priestess of Agbala, the oracle of the Hills and the caves. Chielo in a way is the protector of Ekwefi and her daughter which helps Okonkwo treat them with respect. Chielo cares a lot for Ekwefi’s daughter and as long as she is alive Okonkwo will treat both his daughter and Ekwefi better other than if it was just Ekwefi.

Chapter Seven:

A: How has Nwoye begun to "act like a man"? What values does Okonkwo associate with manliness? How does Nwoye relate to these values? "Foo-foo" is pounded yam, the traditional staple of the Ibo diet. How does the village react to the coming of the locusts? Achebe is doubtless stressing the contrast with other cultures here, familiar to African readers from the Bible, in which locusts are invariably a terrible plague. Why is Okonkwo asked not to take part in the killing of Ikemefuna? Why do you suppose they have decided to kill the boy? Why do you think Achebe does not translate the song that Ikemefuna remembers as he walks along? A matchet is a large knife (Spanish machete). Why does Okonkwo act as he does?
Most traditional cultures have considered twins magical or cursed. Twins are in fact unusually common among the Ibo, and some subgroups value them highly. However, the people of Umuofia do not. Note how the introduction of this bit of knowledge is introduced on the heels of Ikemefuna's death. Nwoye serves as a point of view character to criticize some of the more negative aspects of Umuofia culture. This incident will have a powerful influence on his reaction to changes in the culture later.

I: Nwoye began to “act like a man” by spending more time with Okwonko and being sent to do masculine jobs. According to Okonkwo a man must be able to control his women and his children. The village hopes that the locusts stay for the night because they are good to eat. They think that Okonkwo is going to be too weak to kill him, since Ikemefuna calls him “father”. They decide to kill the boy because he belonged to a different clan. Achebe does not translate the song that Ikemefuna remembers as he walks along so the song has more meaning since it is in his native language. Okonkwo acts the way he does because he does not want to be seen as a weak soul. He wants everyone to think he is strong.

Chapter Eight:

A: What is Okonkwo's attitude toward his daughter Ezinma?" Bride-price is the converse of dowry. Common in many African cultures, it involves the bridegroom's family paying substantial wealth in cash or goods for the privilege of marrying a young woman. Do you think such a custom would tend to make women more valuable than a dowry system where the woman's family must offer the gifts to the bridegroom's family? How do you think such a system would affect the women themselves? Note again the emphasis on differing customs, this time as it applies to palm-wine tapping.

Young women were considered marriageable in their mid-teens. Why do you think this attitude arose? It is worth noting that European women commonly married between 15 and 18 in earlier times. There is nothing uniquely African about these attitudes.

Note the continued treatment of the theme of the variability of values. How is the notion of white men first introduced into the story? Why might Africans suppose that they have no toes? What sorts of attitudes are associated with white men in this passage?

I: Okonkwo’s attitude toward his daughter Enzinma is that he wanted her to be a boy, but he favors her. He believes more in her than in his son. I think it does make a woman more valuable if the groom has to pay because he has to pay more in order to marry her. I think it would make the woman feel more important because someone is paying for them to get married or someone is paying to marry them. At this stage is when women begin to develop, so they need to be in control by a man. The notion of white men is introduced in the story by introducing them as an outcast. Africans may suppose that they have no toes because they do not wear sandals instead they wear shoes. The attitudes associated with white men are to treat them as outcasts.

Chapter Nine:

A: The story of the mosquito is one of several West African tales which explain why these insects buzz irritatingly in people's ears. Why does Ekwefi prize her daughter Ezinma so highly? In this chapter the notion of the ogbanje is treated at length. What attitudes toward children does it reflect? Note how it balances against the "throwing away" of twins. Does Achebe seem to validate the belief in ogbanje?

I: Ekwefi prizes her daughter Ezinma so highly because it is her only child and cares for her very much, from experience she is afraid of losing Ezinma Ogbanje effects certain attitudes towards children, the attitudes towards children that it effects are many sicknesses while the children are alive. It reflects that children are to be taken care of, and that children are perhaps difficult to maintain. Achebe does not seem to validate the belief in ogbanje.

Chapter 10:
A: The egwugwu ceremony of the Ibo has been much studied. The women clearly know on some level that these mysterious beings are their men folk in disguise, yet they are terrified of them. What do you think their attitude toward the egwugwu is? What seem to be the main functions of the ceremony? How does Evil Forest refute the argument of Uzowulu that he beat his wife because she was unfaithful to him? How are problems like this affected by the fact that whole families are involved in marriage, unlike in American culture where a man and woman may wed quite independently of their families and even against their families' wishes? What are the advantages and disadvantages of each system?

I: I think that their attitude toward the egwugwu is fear of them, because they know what they symbolize, and in a way they know that they are supposed to be feared. The main functions of the ceremony seem to be to solve problems that the village has been experiencing. Evil Forest refutes the argument of Uzowulu that he beat his wife because she was unfaithful to him by responding that a man would sleep with a pregnant woman, therefore she could not have been with her lover. Problems like this are affected by the fact that the whole family may be involved in marriage because they can intervene in a marriage, even if it is none of their business. The advantages of the system where families are involved in marriages are protection of the wife from an abusive husband such as in this case, more involvement of the family. Some of the disadvantages include too much involvement and very little privacy for the husband and the wife. The advantages of the independent system include being able to have privacy to solve personal problems such as financial problems, some of the disadvantages include the family may not intervene or is less likely to intervene when a husband is abusive, and families may be separated if the husband of wife marries against their families’ wishes.

Chapter 11:
A: What is the moral of the fable of the tortoise? What values does it reflect? What does the incident involving the priestess of Agbala reflect about the values of the culture?

I: The moral of the fable of the tortoise is not to have too much trust in someone who looks or is an outcast, in this case such as the locusts or the white men. It reflects the values of working together with the people of ones own kind, in other words the people of their race. The values of the culture include believing in gods such as Agbala the oracle of the hills. Although Ekwefi did not want to let Ezinma go, she had to because it was Agbala.

Chapter 12:
A: Notice the traditional attitudes of all small villagers toward large marketplaces like Umuike. How is the importance of family emphasized in the uri ceremony? Notice that the song sung at the end of the chapter is a new one. Achebe often reminds us that this is not a frozen, timeless culture, but a constantly changing one.

I: The importance of family is emphasized in the uri ceremony by bringing whole families together, due to a future marriage, and by showing how families protect each other and how they are there for each other.


Chapter 13:
A: Having shown us an engagement ceremony, Achebe now depicts a funeral. We are being systematically introduced to the major rituals of Ibo life. How does the one-handed egwugwu praise the dead man? Okonkwo has killed people before this. What makes this incident so serious, though it would be treated as a mere accident under our law?

I: The one-handed egwugwu praise the dead man by asking him to come back to life the way he had been, without changing anything, because he was courageous, was rich, and lived long. This incident is emphasized seriously because the one handed man had just praised Ezeudu by telling him to come back and get revenge if his death was not caused by nature. Okonkwo’s incident seems more than a coincidence. It may be inferring that Ezeudu was truly hurt when Okonkwo killed Ikemefuna, whom Ezeudu considered Okonkwo’s son. Some even think that Okonkwo is responsible for Ezeudu’s death, and his exile is his punishment.

Chapter 14:

A: What is the significance of comparing Okonkwo to a fish out of water?

How does Okonkwo's lack of understanding of the importance of women reflect on him?

I: The significance of comparing Okonkwo to a fish out of water is to show how Okonkwo does not fit in Mbanta. He has been removed from his home village which is hard for him to adapt to. When one compares it to the life he had in his village, it is really difficult to see him in this new village. Okonkwo’s lack of understanding of the importance of women reflects on him by showing how he is not happy to be with his mother’s kinsmen, and he does not show any gratitude towards him. Okonkwo believes that he is being forced to spend time in a womanly place, which is the place of his exile, Okonkwo feels uncomfortable towards this.


Chapter Fifteen

A: How does the story of the destruction of Abame summarize the experience of colonization? Movie Indians call a train engine an "iron horse," but the term here refers to a bicycle. Note that although the people of Abame acted rashly, they had a good deal of insight into the significance of the arrival of the whites. Note how the Africans treat the white man's language as mere noise; a mirror of how white colonizers treated African languages. What sorts of stories had Okonkwo heard about white men before? In the final exchange with Okonkwo Obierika is good-naturedly refusing to accept Okonkwo's thanks by joking with him.

I: The story of the destruction of Abame summarizes the experience of colonization by demonstrating how the natives did not trust the colonists. Abame killed the white man who had said nothing in his instinct to listen to the oracle, this might have seemed foolish to Uchendu, but it seemed the safest thing to do. Okonkwo had heard many stories about the white men, he heard stories about them making powerful guns and strong drinks and that they took slaves away across the seas.


Chapter Sixteen

A: The British followed a policy in their colonizing efforts of designating local "leaders" to administer the lower levels of their empire. In Africa these were known as "warrant chiefs." But the men they chose were often not the real leaders, and the British often assumed the existence of a centralized chieftainship where none existed. Thus the new power structures meshed badly with the old. Similarly the missionaries have designated as their contact man an individual who lacks the status to make him respected by his people.
Why do you think Nwoye has become a Christian? Note how Achebe inverts the traditional dialect humor of Europeans which satirizes the inability of natives to speak proper English by having the missionary mangle Ibo. What is the first act of the missionaries which evokes a positive response in some of the Ibo? Achebe focuses on the doctrine of the Trinity, the notoriously least logical and most paradoxical basic belief in Christianity. How does this belief undermine the missionaries' attempts to discredit the traditional religion? Why does the new religion appeal to Nwoye?

I: I think that Nwoye has become a Christian because he is confused about the village he has grown up in. Achebe portrays Nwoye as someone who does not fit in, or at least in his father’s eyes, is not a real man. Converting himself to Christianity answers many of his question and is soothing for him. The first act of the missionaries which evokes a positive response in some of the Igbo is that the white man will live among them. The belief of Trinity undermines the missionaries’ attempts to discredit the traditional religion because it is hard for them to believe that God had a son, but did not have a wife. The new religion appeals to Nwoye because he has found an answer and it seemed relieving and soothing to his soul.

Chapter Seventeen

A: What mutual misunderstandings are evident in this chapter between the missionaries and the people of the village? How does the granting to the missionaries of a plot in the Evil Forest backfire? What does the metaphor in the next to the last sentence of the chapter mean?

I: The mutual misunderstandings that are evident in this chapter between the missionaries and the people of the village are a place for the missionaries to build their church and the fact that many people have been converting to Christianity. The missionaries were granted the plot in the Evil Forest because the natives hoped they would refuse to build their church in that setting, to their surprise the missionaries agree, and they have shown to be successful and nothing wrong has occurred to them how it was believe to happen. The metaphor in the next to the last sentence of the chapter means the relationship between him and his son. He does not understand how he had a strong character and his son was so weak.

Chapter Eighteen

A: The outcaste osu are introduced in this chapter. Why do you suppose Achebe has not mentioned them earlier? Their plight was indeed a difficult one, and is treated by Achebe elsewhere. In India the lowest castes were among the first to convert to faiths which challenged traditional
Hinduism; and something similar seems to happen here.

I: I think that Achebe did not mention the outcasts earlier because he wanted to introduce them at a certain moment. He chose to introduce them now because he wanted to show how the missionaries react to the native beliefs that they should not be converted in to Christianity. The missionaries refuse to deny them the choice of conversion.

Chapter Nineteen

A: Note how traditional Umuofian custom can welcome back an erring member once he has paid for his crime. In many cultures Okonkwo would be treated as a pariah, but this culture has ways of accommodating such a person without destroying him, and in fact encouraging him to give of his best. What does the final speaker say is the main threat posed by Christianity?

I: The final speaker says that the main threat posed by Christianity is that it is breaking families apart. People are forgetting the “kinship” of their traditions and their cultures, and Christianity is bringing people apart. It is separating not only families, but the people of the village as well.

Chapter Twenty
A: Okonkwo's relationship to the newcomers is exacerbated by the fact that he has a very great deal at stake in maintaining the old ways. All his hopes and dreams are rooted in the continuance of the traditional culture. The fact that he has not been able gradually to accustom himself to the new ways helps to explain his extreme reaction. The missionaries have brought British colonial government with them. Missionaries were often viewed as agents of imperialism. There is a saying common to Native Americans and Africans alike which goes like this: "Before the white man came, we had the land and they had the Bible. Now we have the Bible and they have the land."
What clashes in values are created by the functioning of the British courts? Note the final phrase of Obierika's last speech, alluding to the title of the novel.

I: The clashes in values that are created by the functioning of the British courts are the clans lose of kinship, which does not allow them to work together. The new British courts ignore the customs of the clan and the clan can not seem to do anything about it.


Chapter Twenty-One
A: Why do some of the villagers--even those who are not converts to Christianity—welcome the British? The missionaries try to refute what they consider idolatry with the simplistic argument that the animist gods are only wooden idols; however the villagers are perfectly aware that the idol is not the god in a literal sense, any more than the sculpture of Christ on the cross in a Christian church is God. This sort of oversimplification was a constant theme of Christian arguments against traditional faiths throughout the world as the British assumed that the natives were fools pursuing childish beliefs who needed only a little enlightenment to be converted. Mr. Brown here learns better. It is worth noting that Achebe, like his fellow Nigerian writer Wole Soyinka, was raised a Christian; but both rejected the faith and have preferred to affirm certain aspects of traditional beliefs in their own lives. Note how Akunna shrewdly senses that the head of the Church is in England rather than in heaven. Note the recurrence of the phrase "falling apart" in the last sentence of the chapter.

I: Some of the villagers welcome the British even though they are not converts because they believe they have brought money to the village. They have also set up trading posts which makes the people of the village satisfied.



Chapter Twenty-Two
A: How is Rev. Smith different from Brown?

What is the result of his black and white thinking?

I: Reverend Smith is different from Brown because he is not tolerant like Rev. Brown was. Reverend Smith is forceful and strict. The result of his black and white thinking is that he makes most of the villagers angry. Smith’s stereotypical thinking of “black and white” makes Enoch go insult traditional Igbo beliefs.

Chapter Twenty-Three
A: What does the District Commissioner say is the motive of the British in colonizing the Africans?

I: The district Commissioner says the motive of the British colonizing the Africans is to make them happy. He states that if the Africans are mistreated, the British will come to their rescue, but they will not be aloud to mistreat others, therefore they should be punished.

Chapter Twenty-Four
A: Once again Okonkwo uses his matchet rashly, bringing disaster on his head. But he could be viewed as a defiant hero defending his people's way of life. What do you think of his act?

I: I think that Okonkwo was hoping his people to rise against the white men once he did this to the messenger, but instead the clan gives another response, a response he did not expect. People of the clan are confused as to why Okonkwo did this. I think this can be seen as a hero act on Okonkwo’s part and the villagers could be seen as being blinded or accepting the white men and the falling apart of their own customs.

Chapter Twenty-Five
A: Why do you think Okonkwo kills himself?

What is your reaction to the final paragraph of the book? Analyze it.

I: I think Okonkwo kills himself because he did not want to be part of a village who does not stand up for their beliefs. He had been depressed and disappointed in the villagers for accepting the new religion and beliefs. I think he killed himself as an act of depression and desperation. Since Okonkwo hoped to become something more within his clan, something he was part of, he is upset that everything has fallen apart and not only can he not gain a title, but he can not represent his clan, his beliefs, or his customs. My reaction to the ending of the book is that it serves as a contrast to the author of the novel, Achebe. The Commissioner thinks Okonkwo’s story would be a good to be part of the book he is writing. He thinks he could include him in one or two paragraphs or maybe even a whole chapter, whereas Achebe was able to write a whole novel on Okonkwo. Achebe included Okonkwo’s life, whereas the Commissioner only plans to write about a man who kills a messenger and then commits suicide. It was kind of stereotypical of the Commissioner. I also could predict what he would write about the African people.