Guthrie 1 Language and Identity in Postcolonial African Literature: A Case Study of Chinua Achebe’s Things Fall Apart A Thesis Submitted to The Faculty of the School of Communication In Candidacy for the Degree of Master of Arts in English By Abigail K. Guthrie 1 April 2011 Guthrie 2 Liberty University School of Communication Master of Arts in English ____________________________________________________________ __________________ Dr. Jaeshil Kim‚ Thesis Chair Date ______
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Things Fall Apart By Chinua Achebe Summary and Analysis Part 1: Chapter 12 Summary After Chielo took Ezinma away‚ Okonkwo was not able to sleep. He made several trips to the cave before he finally found and joined Ekwefi waiting outside the cave. When Chielo came out of Agbala’s cave with Ezinma in the early morning hours‚ she ignored Okonkwo and Ekwefi and carried the sleeping Ezinma home to her bed‚ with the girl’s parents following behind. On the following day‚ the village celebrates the next
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twenty two miles apart‚ are the birthplaces of two extremely different authors both culturally and age wise. Although very different‚ these authors‚ Chinua Achebe‚ author of Things Fall Apart‚ and William Shakespeare‚ author of Macbeth‚ both wrote popular stories in which the protagonist’s downfall is caused by a common flaw‚ a misconception of masculinity. To Okonkwo and Macbeth‚ masculinity equates to power and power equates to success. Okonkwo‚ the protagonist in Things Fall Apart‚ vows to be nothing
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As the acclaimed author of Things Fall Apart‚ Chinua Achebe once said‚ “Art has a social purpose [and] art belongs to the people… The total life of a man is reflected in his art” (Popova). These words hold true in Ibo culture‚ for whom the presence of art is essential. The tribe often uses masks‚ carvings‚ and tattoos as forms of artistic expression (“Igbo”). Tattoos are essential to Ibo culture as they convey the tribe’s identity. Yams signify honor and masculinity‚ traits the Ibo idolize. Achebe
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century and ending through the years of British Imperialism‚ “White Man’s Burden” was a common term used by Europeans to state that the white race is superior to all races and were obligated to civilize all non-white people. When one is reading Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe‚ they may ask themselves what makes the missionaries want to “help” others? Or what makes them think their way is better than the norm? Throughout the novel‚ readers follow the life of Okonkwo and his family as they learn to
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The book Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe is about pre-colonial life in Nigeria and the arrival of European culture. This book talks about how the village of Umuofia reacts to the culture shock of the Christian missionaries coming in and taking over. Nwoye is one of the main characters in this book. He had a negative response at first because of the way Okonkwo‚ his father‚ responded to them. After Nwoye was able to discover them for himself he decided that he wanted to pursue their beliefs.
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build himself up from his childhood. In the book‚ Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe‚ Okonkwo is known as a wealthy man as well as a strong warrior. He grew up in a poor household‚ and had to build his fortune himself‚ giving himself a name in his village. His father was very shameful‚ and Okonkwo tries hard not be like him‚ so he is the man of the household‚ often beating the women and children to keep them in line. In the Igbo society‚ men and women are unequals with different family expectations
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The two characters that are quite comparable are‚ and will be broken down in this essay‚ are Paul from Hotel Rwanda‚ and Okonkwo from Things Fall Apart. These two men have many similarities and many differences. Both men were the head of a family‚ and took that position very seriously. They were not to fail at this. Okonkwo took a more aggressive approach in that he was to be respected by his family and if he wasn’t he would force that upon them. He wasn’t one to be kind and loving‚ but tough and
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In Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe‚ we see that Okonkwo was raised into the Igbo belief system and cultural practices which are very different from today’s modern world. As the story goes on there are many happenings and situations that we question about because its not something we consider normal unlike the Igbo society does. The narrator wants us to understand that their beliefs and culture is a daily lifestyle and is their type of nature. The narrator wants us to feel as if we are in one of
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throughout Things Fall Apart and other writings by Chinua Achebe. According to Foley‚ the chi‚ “functions as the divine agent whereby an individual is created and through which that individual’s life-destiny is determined” (50). This quote clearly supports the theme of the gods dealing with the fate of an individual. Many times in Things Fall Apart‚ Achebe writes about Okonkwo’s chi‚ or personal god. Achebe’s writing leads the reader to believe that the chi is the reason that the good and bad things happen
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