Chinua Achebe’s Things Fall Apart - The Downfall of the Ibo Essay

One of Chinua Achebes goals in Things Fall Apart is to portray Ibo culturevividly and honestly. Unlike European perspectives of the Africans such as Conrads oculus of Darkness Achebes representation explains intricate customs, rituals, and lawsand develops individual characters. Things Fall Apart shows Ibo society to be fullyfunctioning and full of life. However, Achebe maintains his objectivity and avoidsgiving the Ibo all undue sympathy, painting some of their customs such as themandatory abandonment of infant twins in a questionable light. While it is flaccid for us especially in this age of political correctness and multiculturalism to place upon thewhite man all the blame for the downfall of the Ibo, Achebe does not make the government agencyso simple. In fact, it is the acquiescence of his comrades, not the intrusion of theEuropeans, which eventually causes Okonkwo to take his own life. Thus, it is difficult toplace the Ibo and the white men into traditional categories of good and evil, for apieceexhibits positive and negative qualities. Although the Ibo certainly possessed a lively,stable society before the Europeans arrived, their internal struggles contributed to theirown demise.DEVELOPED CULTUREThroughout the novel, Achebe offers detailed illustrations of the impressiveness of Iboculture. Many episodes do not directly advance the plot, but rather serve to provideexamples of this culture. One of the most significant signs of the development of Iboculture is its governance of laws and justice. A whole chapter describes the proceedings asegwugwu (important clansmen who dress as village ancestors) determine the verdict in awife-beating case (87). The villagers are not dense enough to believe... ...ld do if the missionaries brought militaryreinforcements. In any case, if Ibo society can be compared to a tragic hero, its irrationalbeliefs would be its tragic flaw. It was these beliefs which directly alien members ofsociety, such as Nwoye, Nnek a, and the osu, and created a rift within the Ibo. While suchbeliefs and customs are certainly evidence of the depth of Ibo culture, their irrationalbasis could not withstand the white mans defiance of them, as shown by the churchssurvival in the Evil Forest. Ironically, it is these beliefs the presence of a brotherlystructure, the development of a religion which not only show the richness of Iboculture, but also lead to its downfall.Works CitedAchebe, Chinua. An Image of Africa Racism in Conrads Heart of Darkness. An Introduction to Literature. Terry, Joseph. New York, NY Longman, 2001.