A principal driving force behind the writing of Things Fall Apart, by Chinua Achebe is the common stereotype that African culture is "primitive." The following website explains a lot about Achebe's thoughts and reasoning for the novel. Some of the first characteristics we see in the small village of Umuofia is the strict day-to-day protocol and deeply profound traditions. The dialogue is rich and and expressive, unlike the African literature written by Europeans, which criticized and berated their culture. "The language of the novel is simple but dignified. When the characters speak, they use an elevated diction which is meant to convey the sense of Ibo speech. This choice of language was a brilliant and innovative stroke, given that most earlier writers had relegated African characters to pidgin or inarticulate gibberish. One has the sense of listening to another tongue, one with a rich and valuable tradition." (Brians, 1994).

It's evident from the very beginning that the tribes have more honesty and greater values than their European colonizers. For instance, like I said in my last post, Okonkwo began life poor. He had no titles or Because he was a hard worker, he managed to succeed in life. The wealthy man that he borrowed from to get his life started gladly supported him, regardless of how irresponsible and unethical his father had been. The point Achebe was making is that in this Nigerian society, people are judged by who they truly are. Not by their ancestry or titles. It gives the poor a chance to make it in life. The European colonists, on the other hand, came from a land with strict social classes that lacked flexibility. Back in Europe at this time, if a person was rich, it's because they were born into it. The impoverished majority remained poor while the slim percentile of rich folk had a tight grip on the power.

I can understand Achebe's anger and frustration. "As a young boy the "African literature" he was taught consisted entirely of works by Europeans about Africa, such as Conrad's Heart of Darkness and Joyce Cary's Mister Johnson, which portrays a comic African who slavishly adores his white colonist boss, to the point of gladly being shot to death by him. Achebe has said that it was his indignation at this latter novel that inspired the writing of Things Fall Apart. He also wrote a famous attack on the racism of Heart of Darkness which continues to be the subject of heated debate." (Brians, 1994). I 100% agree with Achebe's reaction. The European colonizers were power hungry, arrogant, and narcissistic . They viewed themselves as the superior race and tried to suppress African culture. Sounds a lot like Nazi Germany.

Chinua Achebe not only wrote this novel to enlighten the ignorant, but also bring hope back to his own people. "All too many Africans in his time were ready to accept the European judgment that Africa had no history or culture worth considering." (Brians, 1994). I find this statement incredible. It's almost as if European influence was so strong that it had a brainwash effect or something. Kinda scary to think about.