The Theme of religion in Things Fall Apart Novel
Chinua Achebe was a renowned Nigerian professor and novelist that passed away at the age of 82. The first novel he wrote was Things fall apart. It was and still is, considered one of his most influential books on account of its contribution in the literal world. This book gained Chinua Achebe worldwide recognition and a platform among influential individuals in Africa and the world at large. Today, Chinua Achebe is recognized and remembered as a legend. His works keep on impacting and enriching readers across the globe on various issues by sensitizing generation after generation on African history and roots.
Chinua Achebe’s writings were inspired by other renowned scholars with whom he found a common ground with his novel, Things Fall Apart, which portrays Africa as a continent that humanizes its people. This was borne out of an inspiration to depict the African continent and its people in a positive light, unlike what other contemporary writers had sought to portray the continent. His statement, “Reading Heart of Darkness . . . I realized that I was one of those savages jumping up and down on the beach” (Gikandi 8) forms the basis of our analysis. Achebe even candidly acknowledges that Joseph Conrad’s Heart of Darkness was among the leading works that influenced his writing due to how the author has horribly characterised Africans. Thought his book, Conrad utilises images of darkness to depict Africa. In this case, darkness stands for primitive, unknown, impenetrable, and evil (Conrad 68 ).
Conrad thus portrays Africans as “other”, a representation that Chinua Achebe fights hard to discredit in Things Fall Apart.
This novel shines a light on the true nature of African life. It is based on a story of a yam farmer by the name of Okonkwo. This is during the colonial era when Nigeria was under the British colonial rule, as were many other African countries. At the time, very few Africans were being educated. The novel besides enlightens its readers on the true form of Africa as a continent and the character of its people, It further creates a contrasting image to the information Joseph Conrad depicts in his ‘Heart of Darkness’, published in 1899. The novel takes one through the experiences that Conrad underwent while in Africa during the colonial times through the main character Marlow.
Conrad expounds and brings the true picture of imperialism (Conrad 69). Chinua Achebe to some level felt different when it came to the issue of where he fitted among his fellow Africans. Going through his writings and bibliography, it is clear that from when he was a young boy he was very intelligent in comparison with his age mates. He excelled in his studies from that early age and this prompted his educational growth. Chinua Achebe’s upbringing and exposure led him to believe that he was not just an ordinary African man, but a great African man at that. He felt as though he was at par with the white man due to his educational achievements. Having been educated well, enabled him to socially and intellectually associate with the white people with ease. This clearly shows that to some level, Chinua Achebe did not have to deal with the challenges that other Africans were facing due to colonialism.
Unlike, Conrad, Chinua Achebe was not aware of how colonialism was negatively affecting the African continent, as well as how other western counties perceived Africans.
This is among the reasons he thought of himself as being different. One cannot know the plight of his brother unless they experienced similar problems. Under the colonial rule, Africans were suffering and oppressed by the white man. They dealt with racism, hard labour, torture, and other inhumane treatments. They had no freedom. Politically, socially and economically they were suffering a great deal in their own motherland (Boahen 12).
Chinua admits to having read Conrad’s work. He initially even applauds and recognizes how captivating he is as a writer until he reads the novel ‘Heart of Darkness’. At the time, he was mature and open minded enough to realize the true state of how Africans were perceived. This is the point where the statement of this discussion comes to life. After he read the novel ‘Heart of Darkness’, he comes to the realization that he is indeed ‘one of the savages jumping up and down on the beach’ (Conrad 61). This ‘savages’ is in reference to the Africans that Conrad talks about in his book. He has even described Africans as ‘dogs wearing trousers’. It is this realization that pushed Chinua Achebe to create a critic composition.
Things Fall Apart was aimed at portraying the picture that Chinua Achebe felt he could speak about as an African. He did not find is right for Conrad to describe Africa and African in the way he did. He knew deep down, the picture Joseph Conrad created needed to be revoked so that the whole world could see what African is about (Caminero-Santangelo 5). As much he agrees on how remarkable Joseph Conrad’s work is, he did not agree with the information he was passing across (Achebe 252).
Conrad painted Africans as people who do not deserve to be described as human beings. He tainted the true nature of Africa’s beautiful sceneries. According to him, Africa and Africans did not deserve equality when it came to dealing with them (Kalu 3). This is a position that Chinua Achebe was against. He was one of the savages and he felt he had a duty to defend his people. He had to write a different story and depict the true picture the world needed to see. Being a writer, he was in the position to retaliate and give his views as an African. Most African being illiterates were not in a position to defend themselves from the information Conrad had spread about them. This was among the negative impacts of colonization in Africa. Taking a step in writing Things Fall Apart was one of the ways the decolonization process was tackled.
Works Cited
Achebe, Chinua. "An Image of Africa: Racism in Conrad's Heart of Darkness." Heart
of Darkness: An Authoritative Text, Backgrounds and Sources, Essays in
Criticism. 3rd ed. Ed. Robert Kimbrough. New York: W.W. Norton, 1988. Print.
Boahen, Albert. African Perspectives on Colonialism. London: The John Hopkins University
Press, 1987. Print.
Caminero-Santangelo, Byron. African Fiction and Joseph Conrad: Reading Postcolonial
Intertextuality. Albany, New York: SUNY Press, 2009. Print.
Conrad, Joseph. Heart Of Darkness: A case study in contemporary criticism. New York:
St. Martins Press, 1989. Print.
Gikandi, Simon. “Chinua Achebe and the Invention of African Literature.” Classics in
Context: Things Fall Apart. Chinua Achebe. Portsmouth: Heinemann Educational
Publishers, 1996. Print.
Kalu, Anthonia C. Women, Literature, and Development in Africa. New Jersey: Africa World
Press, 2001. Print.
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