Things Fall Apart - Prior and During Arrival
Why would Achebe choose to set his novel prior to and during the arrival of the colonial administration as opposed to during the context of production?
The novel
Things Fall Apart, written by Chinua
Achebe was published in 1958. I think
the reason Achebe chose to write Things Fall Apart prior to
and during the arrival of the colonial administration mainly to include the
tribal traditions that were around 1880s. Achebe knew that people would not try
to restore, (to try to commemorate), Nigeria's traditions, beliefs, stories etc.
as they are a third world country.
As many of us are well aware, (and some guilty for believing), single-sided stories are supposedly what defines a country nowadays and the media is a major factor as to why we believe these single-sided stories. Culture and traditions of a country are part of what makes it unique to the rest of the world. As countries are evolving, things such as tradition tend to fade.
When Achebe wrote this book, he wanted to make sure that people knew what Nigeria was like before it was "colonized", as the British would put it. When the British conquered the country now known as Nigeria, they created separation between the indigenous tribes. This was primarily because many villagers were not bothered about the arrival of the British while others were quite disturbed by it. They refused to welcome the newcomers. Many people from the different tribes converted to Christianity and many chose to be on the Britains side of the war before it even broke out. This resulted in many villagers turning on each other and participating in killing their own people.
Achebe wrote this book to make sure that the memory of these traditions and the Igbo cultures never die. He wanted the rest of the world to read a book about Nigeria by someone who is a native and who knows the place extremely well, (not just a tourist). Achebe wanted people to see authentic Nigeria before the Europeans invaded. Even though the British did cause a commotion, their invasion led to Nigeria to become independent. The story is set in a fictional world but is based on what had really happened to Nigeria in the 1880s.
As many of us are well aware, (and some guilty for believing), single-sided stories are supposedly what defines a country nowadays and the media is a major factor as to why we believe these single-sided stories. Culture and traditions of a country are part of what makes it unique to the rest of the world. As countries are evolving, things such as tradition tend to fade.
When Achebe wrote this book, he wanted to make sure that people knew what Nigeria was like before it was "colonized", as the British would put it. When the British conquered the country now known as Nigeria, they created separation between the indigenous tribes. This was primarily because many villagers were not bothered about the arrival of the British while others were quite disturbed by it. They refused to welcome the newcomers. Many people from the different tribes converted to Christianity and many chose to be on the Britains side of the war before it even broke out. This resulted in many villagers turning on each other and participating in killing their own people.
Achebe wrote this book to make sure that the memory of these traditions and the Igbo cultures never die. He wanted the rest of the world to read a book about Nigeria by someone who is a native and who knows the place extremely well, (not just a tourist). Achebe wanted people to see authentic Nigeria before the Europeans invaded. Even though the British did cause a commotion, their invasion led to Nigeria to become independent. The story is set in a fictional world but is based on what had really happened to Nigeria in the 1880s.
Comments
Post a Comment