In the novel Things Fall Apart, Chinua Achebe presents the central protagonist who is surrounded by his cultures slow erosion. The Main Character, Okwonko, is the central protagonist who, like the traditional Greek tragic hero, suffers from a tragic flaw—fear of appearing weak. The novel is centered on a cultures slow decay into a pitiful shadow of its former self, and the protagonist’s mistakes of beating his children and wives, and the murders he commits because of his fear.
Chinua Achebe had a further purpose though than writing about this fictional man, Okwonko. Chinua Achebe in later essays discussed the theme of this novel. His main purpose in writing Things Fall Apart was to prove that these African Societies, more than just the Igbo society that is mentioned, suffered greatly from the British colonists that invaded Africa and robbed them of their culture and resources. That purpose of writing this novel, in my opinion, makes this novel slightly more admirable. When today in Literature many authors such as Joseph Conrad, who portray these Africans as being barbaric and primitive, when in actuality the society possessed a culture that was crafted of many intricate elements of government and religion. Because of the perspective the novel is written in, the reader can take full advantage and recognize the different characters and observe their thoughts.
Today, this novel has received critical acclaim, and is considered to be Chinua Achebe’s “magnum opus”. In perspective in modern literature, schools in Nigeria, and many European and American schools study this novel. Many consider it to be the archetypal modern African Novel.
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