By Chinua Achebe

 Father of modern African literature
 Born in 1930 in the Ibo town of
Ogidi, Nigeria
 Son of a missionary; raised as a
Christian
 Born Albert Chinualumogu
Achebe
 Grew up with both English colonial and Nigerian tribal cultural influences

 In college, rejected English name and went by “Chinua”
 Worked in radio for a time
 Left job in 1966 due to the conflicts that precipitated the
Nigerian civil war
 Had car accident in 1990 which left him a paraplegic from the waist down
 Currently teaches at Brown
University

 Translating Nigerian linguistic rhythms and imagery into English (African proverbs, idioms, etc.)
 Illustrating Nigerian culture
 Giving voice to natives
 Teaching moral lessons through writing

Turning and turning in the widening gyre
The falcon cannot hear the falconer;
Things fall apart; the center cannot hold;
Mere anarchy is loosed upon the world.
-- W.B. Yeats: “The Second Coming”



1890s Nigeria, at a time which British colonialism was beginning to take over
Specifically, nine villages on the lower
Niger which house the powerful and large Umuofia clan





Week of Peace: Sacred week; no violence tolerated
Bride-price: dowry given by bride’s family by groom’s family
Ikenga: wooden figurine that every Igbo man has in his shrine; represents masculine power or
“strength of a man’s right hand”
Polygamy: the practice of one man having multiple wives

 Osu: lowest class; considered outcasts and unfit to associate with other members of clan
 Eating habits: Male head of household eats separately in central hut; the yam is the staple food





Leader of the Igbo community of Umuofia
(Oo-moo-oh-fee-ah)
Tough, fearsome warrior
Effective at farming
Obsessed with repairing his family’s reputation that was damaged by his lazy, weak father.


Mr. Brown Christian missionary who is the first to come to Umuofia and
Mbanta. Friendly and kind.
 Rev. James Smith
Christian missionary who replaces Mr. Brown. Stern and unbending.

•
•
•
•
•
Effects of colonialism on culture
Nigerian tradition and culture
Masculinity and femininity in Nigerian culture
Family conflict
Tradition vs. change








 What is the significance of the title? How does the idea behind Yeats’s poem “The Second Coming” get reflected in Things Fall Apart?
Why and how does the village of Umuofia change during the seven years that Okonkwo is in exile?
What is the role of Nigerian tradition in the story?
What is the role of colonialism in the story?
What is the role of religion in the story?
Is Okonkwo a tragic hero? Why or why not?
Why does Okonkwo hang himself?
Why couldn’t Okonkwo accept the changes occurring thanks to colonization?