Things Fall Apart Umuofia Essay

Things Fall Apart in Umuofia Many countries imperialize for land and raw materials, inadvertently causing conflicts between the dominating country and the natives. More conflicts can arise when the unwelcome country becomes “superior” to the original inhabitants and disrespects their traditions or tries to govern the natives themselves. This is seen in Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe. The book follows the life of an Igbo clan before Christian missionaries imperialize the natives. When the missionaries come, they begin to dominate the indigenous people and the African culture begins to fall apart. Even though the Christians helps bring education and new careers to the Africans, it also destroys their customs and freedom. Achebe’s Things
The Christian missionary, Mr.Brown, begs the Africans to send their children to the new school. Eventually, “more people came to learn in his school... They were not all young... Some of them were thirty years or more.” (156) This allows countless of Africans, young or old, to learn how to read and write and also to get a bigger grasp on knowledge, albeit a western one. In addition to this, the Africans are able to get better jobs, the longer they stay in school. “A few months in it were enough to make one a court messenger or even a court clerk. Those who stayed longer became teachers.” (156) While the Christians did destroy numerous cultural traditions, they impose new careers for the Africans who now have the chance to make a living outside of a farm. While the Christians bring education and new jobs, it comes at a cost to their culture and freedom. Achebe thoughtfully uses the conflicts in Umuofia in Things Fall Apart to illustrate the destruction that imperialism can cause to the natives. Many choose to convert to the dominating country’s culture while others tightly hold onto their traditional roots. Tension arises when the converted also belittle and disrespect their old customs and that is when things really do begin to fall