Treatment of women in "Things fall apart"

Written task two: the role of women in Igbo society

In Chinua Achebe’s “Things fall apart”, the women of the Igbo tribe may appear as an oppressed group with little power at first glance, and that fact is true to a certain extant. Nevertheless, this conception of the Ibo women seem to be simplistic once the reader notices the many roles the Ibo women are playing in their village throughout the novel. We can see such examples in the religion, where women play the role of priestess. As mentioned by the narrator at the beginning of the novel, during Okonkwo’s childhood: “the priestess in those days was a woman called Chika. She was full of the power of her god, and she was greatly feared” (P.17). The current priestess is a woman as well, her name is Chielo, she is described as The priestess of Agbala, the horacle of the hill and the caves (P.48)
There is a passage in the novel where Ezinma is sick but Chielo needs to take her to the cave for a ritual. At that time, Okonkwo begs her to come back later but she refuses to listen to him and shouts: “Beware Okonkwo!” (p.101). This is the only time in the novel we can see Okwonkwo pleading his cause to anyone, male or female. That woman did not only order Okwonkwo, but threatened him as well. Okwonkwo is a very proud and macho man, the fact that he accepts that is a proof that he aknoledges the priestess’s powers. The fact that the priestess is a woman, the spiritual leader, shows a reverence for women in the Ibo society.
Ani is another exemple of such women. The goddess of the earth is described as playing: “a greater part in the life of the people than any other deity. She was the ultimate judge of morality and conduct. And what was more, she was in close communion with the departed fathers of the clan whose bodies had been committed to earth” (P.36). It makes much more sense that a society viewing its female members inferior to males would not choose to represent it’s most powerful deity as a woman. Her power is explained to a further extent in her role during the yam harvest. The entire clan take part in a week long ceremony called the week of peace in order to: “honour our great goddess of the earth without whose blessing our crops will not grow" P.30
Indeed, a female spirit playing such an important role in the success of the yam harvest is granting power to women.This is a well-rooted belief in the Igbo tribe. When Okwonkwo broke the peace of Ani, Ezeani said that “The evil you have can ruin the wole clan. The earth goddess whom you have insulted may refuse to give us her increase and we shall all perish” (P.30 ). The idea of Women having their powers attached to nature is also expressed in Chapter fourteen, when Okwonkwo has to return to his mother’s clan after being exiled from the Igbo village. Uchendu, reproaching Okwonkwo his sadness of having to came live with his mother’s clan, explains that: “It's true that a child belong to its father. But when a father beats his child, it seeks sympathy in its mother's hut. A man belongs to his fatherland when things are good and life is sweet. But when there is sorrow and bitterness he finds refuge in his motherland. Your mother is there to protect you. She is buried there. And that is why we say that mother is supreme ” (P.134)
Uchenda’s speech reveals that the women in the Igbo society are seen as foundation of the clan and of his people. They are the constant that can be relied on, they are the ones who are taking care of the people. These are powerful roles.
There are other interesting examples proving the powers and roles of women in the village. For instance, it is explained that it is: “the women [who] weeded the farm three times at definite periods in the life of the yams, neither early or late” (P.33) That is a very important role, as if they fail this duty the yam crops will fail and the village won’t have enough yams to survive. The women also play the roles of educators for the children of the village, partly through storytelling. The narrator describes, “Low voices, broken now and again by singing, reached Okwonkwo from his wives’ huts as each woman and her children told folk stories” (P.96). It is indeed through the ritual of storytelling that the children are taught important lessons, such as the human condition and the Ibo creation myths. They then master the art of communicating by retelling the stories after hearing it themselves. As stated earlier: “Among Ibo the art of conversation is regarded very highly, and proverbs are the palm-oil with which words are eaten” (P.7) The Ibo women are therefore playing a significant role in the learning process for the Igbo culture.
As mentioned previously, the role of women in Chinua Achebe’s Things Fall Apart may appear limited in terms of the authority and powers granted to them. But after a deeper study of the novel, it is clear that the women of the clan can hold some powerful positions: They can be spiritual leaders such as the priestess. They can hold symbolic roles such as the Earth Goddess. On top of that they are taking care of the Ibo people and children.