Things Fall Apart Reflective Statement

REFLECTIVE STATEMENT Response to interactive oral on Chinua Achebe’s Things Fall Apart When I first read Chinua Achebe’s Things Fall Apart I found it very interesting how she was able to show us what was going on in Nigeria at that time, how he showed us the ways of living of the blacks, and whites weren’t the only ones who had a culture, but in fact were the ones who destroyed the African culture. Moreover during the interactive oral interesting themes and issues such as Town Unity and Culture were highlighted, which gave me an even more distinct insight of the characters in the book and how they were affected by these things.

Achebe uses the main character, Okwonko as a vessel to depict how ‘Things Fall Apart’; in the novel, and through Okwonko we are able to adequately grasp a lot of cultural practices in Nigeria. Diction in this novel plays a major role, and it is through diction that many of the themes are unlocked and also the diction used in the novel, effectively induces you into the culture and lifestyle of the Nigerians. Achebe uses Proverbs, Short Songs, Nigerian Words and Some Literary devices like metaphors and similes.

These all contribute to keeping you in-tune with what kind of setting you are in and in this case Nigeria. The women in this novel are characterized too be empowered and they genuinely help each other, through Ezinma, who is even a little girl and the only daughter from Okwonko’s first wife, you can tell how strong willed she is, as she even tells her dad to eat his food when he wasn’t in the right state, she was also even seen by Okwonko as the ideal son, in contrast to Nwoye who is actually even a boy.

Okwonko’s wives also in the novel stick together and look out for each other; the prepare food for each other’s children when one happens not to be around and they also even go on to lie for each other. Wrapping it all up, the interactive oral gave me a better understanding of the book and brought to light many details that were covered. Through diction and proper documentation of the novel Chinua Achebe’s Things Fall Apart also taught me many things about Nigeria and their various cultures.