Analysis of Things Fall Apart Essay -- Chinua Achebe

Different countries have people that hold many different views and beliefs. In Nigeria the Igbo area is located in the southern area of the country. And within this area is Umuofia, which is where the Ogidi tribe lives. These people have beliefs that rest strongly on religion and faith in god. "Things Fall Apart" by Chinua Achebe takes a look at the life of an African tribe that has been isolated from the outer more technologically advanced world where science has become a part of religion proving that certain things live sickness are not caused by evil spirits. But the African tribe has no knowledge of this and they live in a society where there traditions, beliefs and there forms of communication differ from are own. In Umuofia, traditions are an important part of their lives. They celebrate festival that has been celebrated by their people for hundreds of years. ?The feast of the New Yam was held every year before the harvest began, to honor the earth goddess and the ancestral spirits of the clan?. They beliefs were that if they prayed to the earth goddess she would give them a good season to grow their crops. They had other traditions in their tribe, like the process you must follow to marry. After coming to the ugi they would bid for the price of the woman in broomsticks because they felt that talking with cowries was insulting to the woman because it was like buying something at the market. ?. Akueke?s bride price was finally settled at twenty bags of cowries?. This tribe believed that the groom must pay to have his wife, which is how they had always done it. To be successful in Umuofia you want to, have many wives and many kids and have many barns full of yams and have titles with the clan. Okonkwo was one of the w... ...e had such a temper he would beat them. And because of his pride he would never stop until he was done beating them. Okonkwo had a very tough personality and was known through out the land as being a fierce fighter who had claimed five heads of his opponents. This culture really varies from ours in many ways because of the ways they communicate is so different from how we would ever consider doing here. The Igbo tribe has values beliefs and ideas that are strongly rooted in the gods. The way in which they communicate and interact shows a lack of respect towards woman and they are treated like slaves to men. Achebe?s novel ?Things Fall Apart? gives a good insight into the aspects a of a culture that before him had never need explored, and it gives the reader a good look at what the beliefs, values and the way the members of the community communicate and interact.