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Things Fall Apart and Imperialism
Books become classics because they either reflect on or influence the world around us. As was the casewith Chinua Achebe’s Things Fall Apart. Of course, a book can also become a classic because its author does something crazy like try to assassinate a world leader, but those are really fringe cases.
| Author | Achebe - Chinua Achebe |
| Form | Novel |
| Language | English Language |
| Literature | World Literature |
| Post-1945 Literature | Post-1945 World Literature |
| Themes | Family Fate and Free Will |
Transcript
...and he was hoping to enact some real change by writing this novel.
So... what was Imperialism?
What effect did it have on Africa, and how did our author feel about it?
And... how do we as a Western culture feel about it?
In the late 19th and early 20th centuries...
...European powers swooped into Africa and decided to divvy it up amongst themselves.
Never mind that quite a few people were already living there.
It is referred to as a period of New Imperialism...
...or the Scramble for Africa...
...which isn't as delicious as it sounds, and was notably lacking in chunks of breakfast
sausage. By the time the imperialists had had their
way...
...the continent had been divided up like this: Aside from demonstrating a complete indifference
with regard to the cultures and boundaries recognized by Africa's existing residents...
...they were making it exceedingly difficult for anyone to play a simple game of Risk.
Why did all these Europeans think they could just hop across the pond and snatch all that
land away from its inhabitants?
Because at the time, all Africans were viewed as savage and unsophisticated.
From the imperialists' point of view, it was more like they were displacing a bunch
of animals than human beings. Obviously, this mindset infuriated and frustrated
Achebe...
...and he decided to write a book that would reveal the true nature of tribal cultures...
...and hopefully open people's eyes as to how poorly they had been treated...
...and how unfairly they had been disregarded. Achebe strove to show that, no matter what
the outside world may think...
...the values of any society are valid within that culture.
We here in the states may assume we've got it all figured out...
...but someone in a tribal culture might be appalled at how we ship our elderly off to
retirement communities...
...rather than taking them into our homes and caring for them ourselves.
Or, at the very least, sitting down with them once in a while to watch 60 Minutes.
Rather than write an essay about the issue, Achebe wanted to write a fictional story...
...so that, rather than feeling lectured at...
...we could enter the lives of just a handful of fleshed-out individuals...
...and really get a sense for their day-to-day trials and tribulations.
But most importantly, he wanted us to see that they were human beings...
...and not just inanimate objects that could be moved around when it suited the whim of
another...
...as if they were merely redecorating an apartment. Was Achebe successful?
Did you feel for the plight of the characters in his novel...
...or are you on your way to Africa now, to put in your claim for Botswana?