Okonkwo And Umuofia
Set in Nigeria during the nineteenth century, Things Fall Apart uses the life of Okonkwo to illustrate the conflict between the traditional Igbo culture and European colonization. Given his father’s indolence, Okonkwo was born into poverty, yet he soon became the most respectable person in his clan by aggressively annexing other clans. When Okonkwo was in exile, the European colonizers invaded Umuofia and other clans in which they established Christian churches and implemented a new system of governance, thereby undermining the traditional hierarchy of the clan. Though the presence of missionaries was welcomed by some members in the clan of Abame and Umuofia, many clan members sought to preserve their traditional Igbo culture and religion through
…show more content…
With no doubt, some villagers underestimated the strength of European colonizers, which led to harsh consequences after the villagers confronted the European churches and missionaries. The vandalism of the church was the most obvious illustration. During the conference between the missionaries and the villagers after the church was burned, the court messengers prosecuted Okonkwo and his subordinates (194-195). The incident demonstrated the strength and power of the villagers was not compatible with the missionaries. Moreover, as soon as Okonkwo and his friends were released, the village “was astir in a silent, suppressed way” (199). The depiction contradicted with the normally friendly atmosphere, and illustrates how the burning incident affected the harmonious culture of the clan. In the aftermath of this burning incident, Okonkwo was convinced that the problem of missionaries could only be solved through violent means, whereas others believed that battles would only lead to deaths of clansman. Okonkwo ultimately killed the man who opposed the war against missionaries, leading to the deterioration of the relationship between Okonkwo and other clansman (203). The consequences proved how the unity of the clan was being affected by the burning incident. In comparison, though Okonkwo felt repugnance towards the policy of ostracization, he didn’t attempt to violate the will of most villagers to fight against the Christian members of the clan. This showed that ostracization has a smaller effect in destructing the unity of the clan, thereby proving the burning of the church to be the most disruptive
With no doubt, some villagers underestimated the strength of European colonizers, which led to harsh consequences after the villagers confronted the European churches and missionaries. The vandalism of the church was the most obvious illustration. During the conference between the missionaries and the villagers after the church was burned, the court messengers prosecuted Okonkwo and his subordinates (194-195). The incident demonstrated the strength and power of the villagers was not compatible with the missionaries. Moreover, as soon as Okonkwo and his friends were released, the village “was astir in a silent, suppressed way” (199). The depiction contradicted with the normally friendly atmosphere, and illustrates how the burning incident affected the harmonious culture of the clan. In the aftermath of this burning incident, Okonkwo was convinced that the problem of missionaries could only be solved through violent means, whereas others believed that battles would only lead to deaths of clansman. Okonkwo ultimately killed the man who opposed the war against missionaries, leading to the deterioration of the relationship between Okonkwo and other clansman (203). The consequences proved how the unity of the clan was being affected by the burning incident. In comparison, though Okonkwo felt repugnance towards the policy of ostracization, he didn’t attempt to violate the will of most villagers to fight against the Christian members of the clan. This showed that ostracization has a smaller effect in destructing the unity of the clan, thereby proving the burning of the church to be the most disruptive