The Written Word
The written word symbolizes the power of Europeans, which Achebe tells us outright. We see that Isaac Okonkwo embraces it early on:Mr. Okonkwo believed utterly and completely in the things of the w...
Obi's Razor and Pencils
Obi remembers how his mother cut herself on his razor while washing his clothes. Obi had used the razor to sharpen his pencils for school. The pencils, newly introduced to Igbo culture with the adv...
Mr. Green
Mr. Green symbolizes the colonial mentality, which recognizes that some Africans may be intelligent but believes that African culture is inherently inferior to European culture. Furthermore, Mr. Gr...
The Umuofia Progressive Union
The Umuofia Progressive Union symbolizes a body of African men intent on hanging onto their indigenous culture even while succeeding in the new world of capitalism, business, and Western values. Wh...
Hannah Okonkwo's Dream
Hannah Okonkwo dreams that termites eat the bed underneath her. She realizes that Obi's westernized values are leaving her with nothing solid beneath her; they are eating up the very thing that sup...