Paper 2 Practice

• To what extent has an awareness of context enriched or enhanced your understanding of Things Fall Apart?

The novel Things fall apart examines the effect of colonialism on the fictional clan called Umofia which is proclaimed to be in the Southeast of Nigeria. The novel provides a greater understanding of the labyrinthine Igbo culture through the protagonist, Okonkwo. It is important to understand how an awareness of the Igbo culture enriches the reader's understanding of the text. The novel significantly impacts ones understanding of gender roles and gender equality. This response will examine how an understanding of traditional Igbo culture enriches the reader's understanding of masculinity and femininity in Things Fall Apart. Okonkwo is portrayed as a manly, arrogant, strong and fierce character which is what eventually leads to his downfall. Many people truly believe that Okonkwo actually epitomises everything Achebe believed shouldn't be in his characteristics. In the novel there is a drive that truly obliges Okonkwo to become this masculine and fierce person, and it it that he wanted to become everything that his father, Unoka, wasn't. In the story Unoka is portrayed as a friendly person yet he is also portrayed as a coward and usually referred to as un-masculine. 

Some people might believe whilst reading the story that  Okonkwo's ways would seem very sexist and unfair to women. The use of a feminist lens is thus there to support the most precise understanding of the Igbo culture. The novel itself was  set during the 1800s, a time where racism and sexism was conventional world wide. Achebe does not depict the standard society in which we live in due to the fact that this would have made the story seem a bit unrealistic. The descriptions of the oppression of women throughout the novel including wife beating, are needed. Achebe make a genuine note on how the igbo life was before the European colonisation . Achebe points out that life in the igbo world wasn't really a shortcut to nirvana. The reader of Things Fall Apart who generally can't relate to the story has a chance of receiving the wrong interpretation of the cultural context whilst of the contrary, the readers who can relate have a respectful understanding of their traditional culture.They are more forgiving of their own historical misdeeds, such as slavery, because they understand them and have moved on. These readers are not close enough with African culture to engage in such reflections with this novel. Through reading Things Fall Apart with a feminist lens, one can better understand the historical role of gender in the novel.

In the novel  things fall apart , men are portrayed as more powerful and more superior than women. This is visible through the protagonist, Okonkwo, who is very arrogant and has very narrow minded beliefs over gender roles in the Igbo culture. The idea of masculinity in the Igbo culture is reflected through men. The fact that there are some activities that require the attention of men rather than women increases the amount of sexism which is portrayed by Achebe in the text. Women however, are portrayed very differently than men. In the novel women cook food, take care of the house, take care of the children and there are crops which require women's attention. Women, however, are sometimes referred to as Agbala, which means titles man. Okonkwo uses this word to refer to his father, meaning that men are abashed whilst being compared to women. In the Igbo culture, a rich man can have multiple wives which can be processed as a symbol of power. There is also a practice known as wife beating, which shows how it was norm for women to be oppressed in the igbo culture.