Murray leads The Classic Book Club in Midlothian, Virginia, where we recently discussed this book*
The novel takes its title from a verse in the poem “The Second Coming” by W. B. Yeats, an Irish poet, essayist, and dramatist:
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.
Chinua Achebe presents readers with both an insider’s and an outsider’s perspective of the tribal customs of a large Nigerian tribe in the first part of his 1958 novel. He was the first African born writer to produce an internationally acclaimed novel about the culture and rich traditions of his native country. In the first part of his story, he writes about the beliefs and social customs of a Nigerian tribe, focused through the experiences of Okonkwo and his wives and children. Later in his story, he shifts his focus to the effects on that tribe, as British colonizers and the Anglican missionaries arrived in the early 1900s and gained increasing control over virtually all aspects of their lives. The communities described in this book then constituted about 33 million people and occupied about 1/3 of their country. In 1960, Nigeria proclaimed its independence from England, and the present author provided readers with sufficient documentation that this movement was justified.
Achebe grew up in Nigeria during this period, Achebe understood and respected the native people. Yet, he was also able to present their limitations. What is most notable about his book is that he presented African culture, mythologies, and religious beliefs in a more dignified and unbiased way than English writer, Joseph Conrad did in his regrettably iconic nineteenth-century novel, The Heart of Darkness. Whereas Conrad portrayed Africans as uncivilized barbarians, in need of refinement, Achebe provides a more comprehensive and respectful view of their culture. He makes the reading experience more vivid by illustrating how their complex mythologies that go back to the dawn of all civilizations. His complexly developed characters struggle to hold on to their beliefs at the same time that the missionaries try to use the power vested in them by the Anglican Church and the British Colonialists to tear down traditional African beliefs and practices. The author is reported to have developed the concept of the story based on reports of an Englishman reportedly murdered in the heart of Africa by local tribes. Perhaps what gives him more authority than others who have written about Africa, is that he has seen both sides of the struggle and has learned to tell his story in an unbiased way. Apparently, he learned his craft by graduating from the University of Nigeria, working as a broadcaster for BBC Africa, and then completing his career as a University Professor at Bard College.
The most compelling and symbolic story he told in this book explained how the tortoise’s shell became cracked: Once the birds were preparing to fly to a great and joyous feast. The tortoise, who was hungry, asked the birds if he could also attend. Although they distrusted the sweet-talking tortoise, they gave him wings and allowed him to fly with them to the banquet. Once there, he anointed himself as the king, and named himself, “All of you.” When the host said, “This food is for all of you,” he ate most of it and left only scraps for the rest of the birds. They were so angry that they took his feathers away, fly him over his home and dropped him on the ground—thus cracking his shell. This mythological interpretation serves two purposes for the natives: to inform their understanding of why the tortoise has a rough and cracked body; and as a symbol that the greedy missionaries sweet-talked them and stole the richest parts of their culture and traditions.
The plot revolves around Okonkwo, who “was well-known throughout the nine villages and even beyond. His fame rested on his earlier-day solid achievements. As a young man of eighteen he had brought honor to his village by throwing Amalanize…the great wrestler who was unbeaten, from Umuofia to Mbaino.” However, as we are introduced to Okonkwo, his powers of fame are declining because he has violated several of the tribe’s taboos, including his direct involvement in the ritual slaying of his step-son. The tribe’s spiritual leader required the sacrifice but had forbidden Okonkwo from doing the killing. Some critics have pointed out that this act, as shocking as it sounds, almost parallels the story in the Bible, where God asks Abraham to sacrifice his only son. Contrary to Abraham, who obeyed God, Okonkwo disobeyed a spiritual tenant of his beliefs. This warped action sets in motion his struggles throughout the book—which was to try to regain his credibility as a strong leader. His personal ambitions and continued careless acts forced the village leaders to exile him and his family to a neighboring village for seven years. As he returned home, he found that his village had been changed so much that it was losing its cultural values to the missionaries, and its control of the legal system to the British courts.
In the present day, more people are aware that there are rich traditions and values of indigenous cultures. To Achebe’s credit, he does not totally extol or degrade the tribe’s culture but shows us both the bright and dark sides. Also, he does not portray the missionaries either all good or all bad. A high point of the book is when the first missionary meets with the tribe’s spiritual leader to discuss their two seemingly different points of view about a Supreme Being. The white missionary spoke sweetly through a translator, saying that the black man and the white man are all sons of God, the Creator of all. But then he added that they worshipped false gods—“ones of wood and stone.” The one true God, he proclaimed, lives in heaven and, one day, all men would come before him in judgment. “We have been sent by this great God to leave your wicked ways and false gods and turn to Him,” so that “you, me and all of us” may be saved. The missionaries then explained the Holy Trinity, which seemed like a contradiction to the natives— if their God is one. The native spiritual leader reasoned that if missionaries were sent by the great ruler and of the English church, then they also, only represented the power of God. In the same way, the native spiritual leader reasoned that their idols were also only symbolic of their beliefs about the singular power of the Supreme Being.
The message that Achebe, who later became a Christian, was making, is that underneath the distinct ritual and outer forms, the two cultures had more similar views than even they recognized. I believe he was also trying to suggest that if we could learn to respect and try to understand each other’s point of view, we would a better chance of getting along with others who have different ideas than ours. As one might guess, nothing ends well in this tale; Actually, Things Fall Apart. But, don’t let this discourage you from reading Achebe’s book and the two that follow it in the series. His writing comes together very powerfully and introduces us to a world that we never really understood very clearly
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