Personal History of an Author

The personal history of an author can have a significant influence on the way meaning is constructed in his/her writing. Comment on specific instances of such influence in Things Fall Apart

 

Thesis Statement:

The personal history of Chinua Achebe is a factor that plays an important role in the meaning of his novel Things Fall Apart, as the personal background of an author influences his or her perception of the world and consequently the indirect portrayal of the world through the means of character selection and plot development.

 Topic Sentence I:

Being raised in a family of converts, Achebe grew up surrounded by both the Christian and Igbo religions, acquiring precious knowledge that allows him to view the world from two different perspectives.

1)      The Igbo characters’ appreciation of the gods and the punishments for offending them (Author portrays the world through the eyes of the Igbo people)

2)      Presence of characters such as

-          Chielo, the Priestess of the Oracle, who has a high degree of appreciation and respect for the Igbo gods versus Okonkwo who is aware of the existence of gods yet does not seem to respect them as other members of the Igbo culture (keeps offending the Earth goddess through his actions)

-          Mr. Brown, the Christian missionary who respects the values and beliefs of the Igbo people and tries to convince them to embrace Christianity through kindness versus Reverent James Smith who does not appreciate the Igbo culture and forces people to convert to Christianity

(Author acknowledges the values and attitudes of both cultures as well as the existence of extremists who make an exception from the rule)   

Topic Sentence II:

Another important aspect is the historic context, Achebe’s childhood in a culture undergoing the process of colonization potentially influencing his perception of the world.

1)      Plot development – life of the Igbo people before and after the apparition of the first Christian missionary. (This reflects the author’s perception of the impact that colonization has on a culture and its members)                                                                       

2)      Characters such as Reverend James Smith and Mr. Brown reflect the importance of Hegemony in the process of colonization.

-Mr. Brown is more effective than Reverend James Smith in the attempt of gaining the trust of the Igbo people and convincing them to convert to Christianity.                                                                                                                                                                                

Topic Sentence III:

The influences of the cultural context in which the author was raised are also visible in the novel Things Fall Apart as Achebe portrays the Igbo culture in a way that makes it easier to accept and understand by the Western Culture.

-          Achebe grew surrounded by the Western Culture’s influences, gaining knowledge about the differences between this culture and the Igbo culture. These differences are taken into account when he portrays the Igbo culture.

a.       Out of the three wives of Okonkwo, only one is constantly mentioned in the novel as in the Western Culture (the audience) polygamy is uncommon.

b.      Same rule applies to the gods. Even though the Igbo people are polytheists the earth goddess Ani is mentioned most of the times as in the Western Culture, people are monotheists.

Gender Influences in Things Fall Apart - Essay Outline

With reference to Things Fall Apart, discuss how an understanding of gender influences how the text may be understood.

 

Thesis Statement:

Throughout the novel Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe the concept of gender is explored through the eyes of the ancient Igbo culture, view which in the modern society can generate different responses from an unaccustomed Western audience.

 Topic sentence I:

As opposed to the modern Igbo culture, where the attitude towards women presented in the novel is not anymore applied yet it is accepted as a value of the past, members of a modern Western audience could consider the novel as being sexist and violent.

-          Members of the modern Igbo society accept the described attitude towards women and consider that if this would disappear from a novel such as Things Fall Apart, it would lack authenticity

-          Violent attitude of Okonkwo towards his wives

-          The use of the name Agbala or woman for a man with no titles reflects the lack of appreciation towards women as members of the Igbo culture with no titles. Only the first wife of a man was allowed to carry her husband’s titles.  

 Topic sentence II:

Western audiences might interpret Achebe’s novel not only as a representation of a misogynistic society, but also a society of anomalies where a man is allowed to “own” multiple wives who are considered solely means of boosting his social reputation.

-          Polygamy in the Igbo culture

-          Advantages and privileges of the first wife in front of the other wives

-           Representation of Okonkwo’s wives

 Topic sentence III:

Both the power and role of the women in the Igbo society portrayed by Achebe are greatly reduced and this is not only a deviation from the actual life of ancient Igbo women, but also a factor which could give birth to anger and frustration from the Western audience, accustomed to the gender equality mostly present in a modern society.

-          Igbo women and religion

-          Chielo, an exception from the rules

-          Role of women in the society as seen through the representation of Okonkwo’s wives’ activities.  

 

Okonkwo, a Tragic Hero

Hi

 

Today I will be discussing why Chinua Achebe considered using the tragic hero archetype in Okonkwo’s characterization.  

To begin, a tragic hero is the type of hero who faces a downfall, which is also the case of Okonkwo in Things Fall Apart. One of the main reasons why Achebe chose to characterize Okonkwo this way could be to show what would happen when a person fails to maintain a balance in his or her life. According to the Igbo culture, people were expected to maintain a balance not only in their religious life, having a good relationship with the gods, but also in their social life, having good relationships with other members of the society. Okonkwo as opposed to other characters such as his friend Obierika is not a representative figure of the Igbo culture, being an extremist who does not try to achieve a balance in his life but to have a hyper masculine appearance, eliminating emotions, affection and compassion from his life.

Achebe might have tried as well to show that when one is living by one’s own rules, ignoring the cultural beliefs the consequences can be severe and even tragic. Some examples include Okonkwo being proud of his kills in war, drinking palm wine from his first human head, killing Ikemefuna and even beating his wife during the week of peace. It can be said about Okonkwo that he lives in his own world, a world of excessive masculinity, severity and violence. These, along with the previously mentioned deeds of Okonkwo are not part of the cultural beliefs of the Igbo people. In their culture, one would not brag about killing a person, neither about cutting one’s head off since all of these were considered terrible sins against the earth goddess. Same applies to violence during celebrations such as the week of peace.

                Okonkwo’s death in the end of Things Fall Apart emphasizes these two potential intentions as it could be considered the severe and tragic consequence of his extreme actions and behaviour. In conclusion, Achebe’s overall purpose in characterizing Okonkwo as a tragic hero was to offer the audience an example of negative behaviour along with its consequences since this generates a more powerful impact on the audience than a simple advice on how not to behave.

Guidebook

Getting the differences makes a difference

As a western person travelling to Igboland, it is important that you are aware of the differences that you will encounter between the western culture and Igbo culture. A good understanding of their customs could potentially prevent unnecessary troubles and would lead to the desired good diplomatic relationship. This guide will offer information about the key elements of the Igbo culture including the cultural differences and eventually offer suggestions for a good relationship with the Igbo people.

1)      Family life

In the Igbo culture, family is one of central elements of an individual’s life. It is considered one of the important steps that one has to make in order to improve his social image. One major difference between the western culture and the Igbo culture is the acceptance of polygamy. Men get married and work in order to increase the size of their households however if they are unable to do this the first wife can bring more wives in order to help. Yet, the first wife will always be the only one carrying the titles of her husband, this being only one of the privileges in front of the other wives. It is very important to consider however the freedom of the wives who can leave at any moment if they consider themselves mistreated.

2)      Religion

Religion, similar to family, has been important to Igbo people even from antiquity and presents another significant difference from the western culture. Igbo people believe in one Supreme Being named Chukwu; however they also believe in spirits which are generally representatives of the elements of nature such as rain, iron, the earth and many more. Igbo people approach these spirits in order to be given help in their lives. Sometimes, sacrifices are needed in order for the request to be accepted. Here is where the Oracles are being considered. Oracles play an important role in the relationship between the people and the spirits as they are the ones informing Igbo people whether a sacrifice is needed; Oracles also help them communicate with their deceased fathers in order to seek advice.

3)      Activities

Throughout their lives, Igbo people work hard in the attempt of obtaining wealth and titles that improve their social image. The most common activities are iron working and agriculture and they allow hard working individuals to obtain wealth and buy titles which are generally very expensive. The highest title one man can get is known as ozo which is considered by Igbo people the gift of immortality, which makes the owner a god in the eyes of other people. These ozo people are highly appreciated and respected by the others, the ozo title being extremely hard to attain. Yet, one man is not allowed to achieve a title which would make him equal or superior to his own father.

Apart from title earning, Igbo people are also members of different groups such as age groups, women’s associations, council of chiefs or council of elders. In age groups, people under 15 years old are being given easy tasks in the society such as bringing water from a stream. People between the age of 15 and 40 generally take part in wars and do jobs such as cutting trees and bushes before the planting season.

After the age of 40, they are in charge with judicial matters. These include decisions of war, punishment of offenders and so on. In women’s associations, members are taking care of the punishment of aggressive people as well as urging male Igbo to go to war. Councils of elders are in charge with hereditary matters, the biggest authority being the one of the eldest member. Yet all the decisions are being taken only with the approval of the entire group. Lastly, the chief’s council is composed of the people who achieved the ozo title and it represents the community in front of outsiders.

4)      Rules and beliefs

One of the first and most important rules is that no one has the right of killing another human being. This is however not a difference from our own culture. Even after wars, men have to go through rituals of purification. Homicide is generally punished by hanging the murderer since killing another human being is considered an offence towards the earth goddess Ani. So is the act of committing suicide, the person not being buried after death, but abandoned in the forest. This is also the fate of twins which are left by their parents in the forest. In some villages however only one of the twins killed.

 Respect the customs:

Customs are very important for Igbo people since they are offering guidelines for Igbo life. Offences and rule breaking can be severely punished. One of the most important aspects is that Igbo people prefer to be in balance with both the gods and the other members of their society. Therefore, people often make compromises in order to make sure that the members of a trade are both equal. This means both winning or both losing. Do not try to incline the balance towards yourself as they will not be happy with your actions. Another very important aspect is respect, especially for the elders and people with high titles, which has to be shown for a good relationship to be established. Do not try to convince them that their religion and their beliefs are false. Religion has been an important element in Igbo life even from antiquity, Igbo people having a very well developed explanation of how life on earth began. Moreover, Igbo people are willing to listen to people that listen back to them and respect their customs. As long as these rules and beliefs of the Igbo people are being respected and followed, a good diplomatic relationship should be easy to establish.

Most Meaningful Takeaway

Hi

In today’s post I will be discussing one of the ideas that have been mentioned during an interview of Chinua Achebe.

The author of “Things Fall Apart”, Chinua Achebe, mentions during one of his interviews from august 2 2000 that literature has great power consisting in the ability of making us “identify with situations and people far away”. The reason I found this idea interesting is because it highlights one of the things that literature can do.  Literature gives us a different perspective of the world, the perspective of a different culture through the eyes and mind of the author. In the very beginning of the interview, Chinua Achebe mentions that at the time he wrote the novel “Things Fall Apart”, “there was no African literature as we know it today”. Some of the questions that could be asked here is how did this situation change?  What made people be more opened in terms of accepting other pieces of literature from different cultures?

 Well, it is possible to say that humans are by nature inclined to have a need of understanding the world and more importantly to socialize and to find other people they can identify themselves with. Therefore through the means of literature, not only can an individual gain knowledge about different aspects of the world but he or she could be given a different version of the same story which has been previously learnt. Having more versions of a story allows us to analyse and draw conclusions for ourselves, not simply accepting a fact which is being given to us by other means. This is what could satisfy an individual’s need to understand the world. Furthermore, literature can offer insight into the lives of people from different places around the globe having also the advantage of being able to send in the same time the emotions and perspective of the author to the audience.  Having more information about a culture including the successes and struggles of its members could help one identify with them which is the first step in the process of socializing. In conclusion this could be both the answer to the questions above and the most meaningful takeaway for me from this interview. Literature is an element that helps shaping an individual and keeps the world improving. One has to understand this in order to continue developing and accepting new pieces of literature from different culture is one of the most important steps that have to be taken.  

We shall fight on the beaches

Hi

Today's post will be an analysis of Winston Churchill's "We shall fight on the beaches" .

This text is a political speech by Winston Churchill from June 4^th 1940, right after the beginning of the Second World War in the dawn of the Battle of Britain. This can also be deduced from the text since Churchill is constantly referring to Germany, their opponent during the Battle of Britain, as a threat for England, a “menace of tyranny”. The identification of the text as a speech is based on the consistency of the text as it contains a powerful message that is being directly sent to an audience orally, with the aid of rhetorical devices and phrases with powerful meaning and impact on the audience. This analysis will look into the features of this speech along with the devices used by the author in order to effectively send the message to the audience.  

                  One of the most important features of a political speech is its audience since depending on the audience the content can be changed so that the purpose could be achieved. The main audience of this speech are people from Great Britain as the author focuses his ideas on the future actions of the country in what regards protecting it from the attacks of the Nazi oppressors as well as the future of the country itself after their success. The author mentions that “we shall prove ourselves once again able to defend our Island home” giving another reason to believe that the audience are people from England, since Winston Churchill, a British statesman, includes himself in the group of people he is talking to by mentioning the pronoun “we”. Therefore, we can deduce that the overall purpose of this political speech was to encourage people to fight for their country, be united in times of crisis and even more important to convince them of their power and ability to succeed.  The author uses repeatedly the pronouns “we” and “our” in order to achieve the goal of uniting people and bringing them closer to each other as well as building a stronger relationship between himself and the people. By mentioning all of the environments in which the British could fight and succeed - on seas, oceans, in the air, etc. - he also tries to achieve the previously mentioned purpose of convincing the British of how powerful they are and their good odds of winning.

                  The content of this speech also plays an important role in the ability of the author of reaching his goals and delivering the message effectively to his audience. The speech starts with Winston Churchill, the author, mentioning that he has “full confidence” in the ability of the British Empire of overcoming the current crisis consisting in the attacks of the Nazi. The allies of the country, the French Republic, are mentioned as well and they are described as ready for fight, ready to die to protect their “native soil”. Furthermore the author describes a variety of places, environments and conditions such as seas, oceans, air, beaches, France, where their people could be able to fight and still win. The speech ends with a brief description of what would happen in the eventuality of the British losing, however not much importance seems to be given to this situation or possibility. The main overall ideas would be that for the British Empire, the current threat from another nation represents only a challenge that could be overcome and that their power and ability to adapt to numerous battle conditions would be enough in order to eliminate this threat. This is what in the view of Winston Churchill should give everyone confidence and eliminate the idea of being defeated from the audience’s minds. Throughout the speech, we can identify the overarching themes as being the one of confidence, tyranny and power. Firstly, the theme of confidence is highlighted even from the beginning of the speech, when the audience is being encouraged to have confidence in their power to overcome the threat imposed by the oppressors of England. This is generated indirectly by Churchill who has “full confidence” and who could be using his authority, people themselves starting to feel confident if he declares himself confident as well. Secondly, the theme of tyranny is being developed constantly throughout the speech. Churchill describes the current threat coming from the Nazi as “the menace of tyranny” and continues to develop this image throughout the speech by using words such as “odious apparatus” and mentioning that many other “famous States have fallen” while fighting the Nazi. Lastly, the theme of power is omnipresent in the speech as were the previously described themes. The audience is constantly being encouraged using as predominant argument the power that England has in wars and the ability of adapting to any given situation. This is done through the previously mentioned enumeration of battlefield conditions such as seas, oceans and air.

                The overall tone that this speech is mostly informative, containing however hints of criticism while exposing specific ideas. The informative side of the speech is based on the attempt of Churchill of assuring people that “the best arrangements are made” and that this is also “the will of Parliament and the nation”. The atmosphere created by Churchill’s speech is stimulating, inducing hope and confidence to the audience since if an authority figure with high power in the state wishes to accomplish something, it is more likely for that to be done, but it also helps building up the mood of the speech which will be discussed later on. In this part, the priority and power of the nation which is composed of the people is being placed as an equal to the Parliament. As previously mentioned, the tone could be considered as well as being critical when the author mentions that the “old famous States” have fallen, meaning that they might not have done the best they could to overcome the “menace of tyranny”.  It is possible for the author to have been sarcastic and even a bit satirical when describing these nations as old and famous which would be in complete antithesis with their current status of defeated countries. The mood created by the speech is mostly a friendly and encouraging one. Starting from the use of the pronoun “we”, the author of the speech is placing the task of protecting the country in the hands of everyone, including himself, gaining more trust and appreciation from the others.  In other words, the task of defending the country is distributed among the people of the society, not only one specific group. The use of the pronoun “we” is also one of the elements giving the speech the friendly and encouraging mood, suggesting that no one is alone in this fight and that everyone will help everyone. As previously mentioned, the idea related to the authority of the people being equal to the one of the Parliament helps building up the mood as by doing so, people are encouraged to take action and they are more likely to do so if they know someone will listen to them.

                As in any other political speech, Churchill’s speech makes use of an abundance of stylistic and rhetoric devices as well as appeals in order to achieve his purpose. The speech makes use of ethos by mentioning even from the beginning the fact that Churchill has “full confidence” and continuing by using the Parliament that is a big authority symbol in the state. Pathos is used as well through the means of the pronouns “we” and “our” since they are creating a more friendly relationship between the author of the speech and the audience.  Also, a metaphor is being used in the beginning of the speech, Churchill associating the Nazi with a “storm of war” potentially because a storm can be very destructive, therefore trying to reinforce the vicious image of their enemy in the minds of British people. The anaphora “if necessary” is used as well, in order to make people understand that the best will be done in this situation, no matter what happens. Furthermore, Churchill uses antithesis in order to compare the British Empire with the other countries, England being pictured as a much more powerful country as they will not “flag or fail” by comparison to the others. In this part of the speech, a very clear distinction between ‘friends and foes’ is established by speaking about the Nazi as “the menace of tyranny” and describing the allies, the French Republic as a nation ready to “defend to the death their native soil, aiding each other like good comrades” therefore creating another antithesis between these two nations. Lastly, one of the most powerful devices used in this speech, the anaphora, is used again through the repetition of the structure “we shall fight”. This structure is being used in front of successive phrases containing numerous situations in which the British could find themselves during a fight. By doing so, Churchill aims to convince the audience of their power and convince them to be united and fight for the cause. From the point of view of structure, we can notice that Churchill opens the speech with his own position in this situation, describing himself as highly confident and creating a general mind-set for everyone else. Next, he continues by describing all the reasons why he believes that the Nazi will not succeed in their attempt of conquering England and ends with a very brief description of the eventuality of England losing the fight. This tells us that little importance is given to this possibility.

                In conclusion, this speech of Winston Churchill from 1940 was a very efficient way of creating an optimistic view towards the outcome of the Second World War for the British people. It is important for such an image to be created in a situation as such since a positive attitude is more likely to lead towards a positive outcome of any given situation. All of this has been achieved through the use of the rhetoric and stylistic devices, as well as the appeals such as ethos and pathos which unified lead to a highly stimulating content, able to reach to the hearts and minds of the audience.

Characterization of Coriolanus

Hi,

For today's blog post, I will be discussing the larger purpose of William Shakespeare in his characterization of Coriolanus.

            Throughout the act one of the play Coriolanus, William Shakespeare gradually builds up the portrayal of the main character, Coriolanus, in two different worlds, the one of war and the one of the city and capitol.

The first example is the one of the citizens opening the play highlighting traits of Coriolanus, some saying “he’s a very dog to the community” and that “he pays himself being proud” whereas others bring to our knowledge “what services he has done for his country”. One of the main purposes of this indirect characterization is to introduce the character of Coriolanus as seen by different individuals, members of the lower class of Rome. However, considering that this literary text is a political play, a secondary purpose of this characterization could be to suggest that in a society there will always be different opinions towards the rulers or people with big authority in the state.  Another character used by Shakespeare for the indirect characterization of Coriolanus is Aufidius, his greatest enemy, stating that he would fight Caius Marcius Coriolanus “till one can do no more”. By saying this, he is revealing that he considers two possible alternatives, the victory or the failure, meaning that he sees Marcius as a powerful warrior who could potentially defeat him, therefore bearing him respect.

More positive traits of Coriolanus are being as well presented by his mother Volumnia, while she talks about how all men should be warriors, courageous and brave. She describes Marcius as being mature saying “he had proved himself a man”, while the certitude in her voice when saying that Marcius will “beat Aufidius’ head bellow his knee” is again highlighting his power. Coriolanus, however, is not only characterized through the eyes of the other characters but also through his own speech and actions. One strong example of this can be found during the war in Corioli. It is easy to notice his toughness and his rough attitude towards his men when he says “he that retires I’ll make him for a Volsce, and he shall feel mine edge” as well as notice how he despises cowards. This rough attitude is one of the reasons the citizens can’t see Coriolanus as a good leader. There is a definite difference between Coriolanus’ perception of the ideal man and the perception that the citizens have. All these, could be considered Shakespeare’s attempt of balancing the opinion of the readers towards Coriolanus since the first act is mainly composed out of characterization that would make them see him as a negative character. Yet, this characterization could be perceived as a suggestion or a criticism of Shakespeare, of how the way the people with high authority see something is not necessarily agreed to or accepted by the common people.

The contrast between the two worlds created, the one of war in which Coriolanus is highly appreciated and the one of the city where he is despised by the majority of the citizens is evident in this play. Looking back in the first scene of act I, Coriolanus is the one who calls the citizens “dissentious rogues” and says “where he should find you lions, finds you hares” being the type of person having difficulties differentiating between the attitude he is expected to have towards the people from the city and the ones on the battlefield. By using Coriolanus, Shakespeare could potentially criticize and highlight the way in which a person of a high position in the state should have two attitudes one strong or tough and one more soothing and more importantly be able to use the two appropriately. Another message that could be sent would be that no matter how many good traits a person has, if the attitude towards the others is negative, the consequences can be severe. From the play, this could be exemplified using the easily angered Coriolanus, who despite of his bravery, courage and determination on the battleground, is unable to respect the members of the lower class of Rome, attitude which later in the play causes him only difficulties and eventually death.