Things Fall Apart

By Chinua Achebe

Chapter 1:
In this first chapter we are introduced to the main character Okonkwo, a tall and huge man, with bushy eyebrows and a wide nose. One of his biggest achievements came at the age of eighteen when he brought honor to his village by defeated an undefeated man at wrestling. He has a stammer with words, which causes him to get angry and sometimes pounce on people. One of the things he is very inpatient with are unsuccessful men, or the lazy men of the village, like his own father Unoka. Okonkwos father, Unoka, was an irresponsible lazy drunk, a failure. Not only was Unoka improvident but also a debtor, he owed money to all his neighbors from small to substantial amounts. Apart from all the bad characteristics, Ukona loved music, he enjoyed playing the flute. Okonkwo felt ashamed of his father, who died in debt, but it made him a better person. He was a wealthy farmer, had two barns full of yams, had taken two titles, and was in the process of marrying his third wife, in other words, the complete opposite of his father. My first impressions of the African society are that they pride themselves on power based on the Ibo receiving titles, have a well-organized society having a main food supply, and are brought together by religious beliefs.

Chapter 2:
In the beginning of the chapter Okonkwo is woken by a boom of hollow metal and the town crier giving a message to the men of the village. A crisis broke out between Umuofia and the neighboring village of Mbaino. A young Umuofian woman had been killed at the market of the neighboring village, which angered the whole village and caused Mbaino to receive an Ultimatum, either war or Mbaino making an offer of a young man and a virgin as compensation. Mbaino agrees to an amiable agreement by offering a young lad of fifteen named Ikemefuna and a virgin. Further into the chapter we learn that Okonkwos whole life was dominated by fear, the fear of becoming like his father, it was an inner fear of himself. Even as a little boy Okonkwo resented his fathers failure and weakness. He was ruled by one passion, to hate everything his father had loved, which included gentleness and idleness.

Chapter 3: Unoka visited the Oracle because he wanted answers to why his crops weren't as successful as others'. While telling his story he was interrupted by the priestess, a woman who held the power of her god, and was feared by many. Chika, the priestess, told Unoka that his failure came from laziness, instead of being a hardworking man like the others who endured much for their crops. Thanks to his father's lack of prosperity, Okonkwo had to begin his own farming at a young age. Moreover, he has to work even harder to make up for his fathers negative strikes against him. Okonkwo was able to exceed all the other clansmen as a warrior, a farmer, and a family provider. To begin his own farming Okonkwo asks a wealthy clansman, Nwakibie to lend him 400 seed yams. Since he was admired for his hard working skills, Nwakibie decided to give him eight hundred seed yams instead. That year there were horrible droughts and relentless downpours, causing Okonkwo as well as other farmers a devastating harvest. But Okonkwo decided to look

on the bright side of the situation and for the rest of his life he considered his survival during that difficult period proof of his fortitude and inner mettle. Chapter 4: Okonkwo thinks of men who are less successful than him as women, he believes that a man with no title has no right to be a man, he thinks to become a man one must first struggle on their own. You learn that he at first was there by force and had to do as told, later on he learned to care for Okonkwos family he even called him father Ikemefuna became part of the family. Ikemefuna becomes popular with Okonkwos children, he knows many stories that the children do not recognize and possesses many impressive skills, like making flutes out of bamboo sticks and setting traps for little bush rodents. To Nwoye, Ikemefuna becomes like a big brother, which causes delight in Okonkwo. Eventually, Okonkwo himself grows quite fond of Ikemefuna, but lacks to show any affection as he considers doing so a sign of weakness, which is something he refuses to tolerate in himself or others. After a while Ikemefuna even begins calling Okonkwo "father", which depicts how much he has grown into the family. During the Week of Peace, Okonkwo beats his youngest wife, Ojiugo for leaving her hut to go braid her hair without having cooked dinner. He beats his wife for negligence, but by doing so he breaks the peace of the sacred week. As punishment for his actions Okonkwo has to sacrifice a nanny goat, a hen and pay a fine of one length of cloth and one hundred cowries (shells used as currency). Okonkwo who is truly repented for his sin does exactly what he was asked. The Ibo community saw the Week of Peace as a week to live in peace with their fellows to honor the great goddess of the earth who has to bless the crops of the community so they could grow. Chapter 7:
Ikemefuna has been living with Okonkwo's family for three years and has managed to become part of the family. He played a big role helping Nwoye find his masculinity, which pleased his father greatly. Ogbuefi Ezeudu pays Okonkwo a visit, but he does not enter the hut to share the meal. Outside, he informs Okonkwo in private that the Oracle has decreed that Ikemefuna must be killed, and he does not want him to have anything to do with the killing of a boy who calls him "father." I think Okonkwo should have shown more compassion and love to his son and Ikemefuna but he was following his beliefs and persona. When Okonkwo returns home, Nwoye intuits that his friend is dead. Something breaks inside him for the second time in his life; the first time was when he heard an infant crying in the Evil Forest, where newborn twins are left to die. Extract essay. The writer creates tremendous amount of tension in the death of Ikemefuna. At the preparation of the journey the men are fully dressed and bring with them wine as if they were going to visit a neighboring village. He lets us know how they are talking and laughing in the beginning of the journey as if they were not going to do any harm to Ikemefuna. The way he expresses Ikemefunas thoughts and feelings how he was feeling uneasy at first but then he was not afraid. The writer makes me picture how Ikemefuna was more worried about the thought that came to his head about his mother being dead. He makes us forget about him getting killed and makes us focus on his thoughts and how killing him has not even crossed his mind. The death of Ikemefuna is even more suspense when suddenly he came back to sense hearing a man in the back clearing his throat. How he got a cold fear feeling down his back when he tried to look back and the men growled at him to go on and not stand looking back. At this point he was afraid to even look back when he suddenly notices the man that cleared his throat drew up and raised his machete. Okonkwo looked away he just heard the blow. When Ikemefuna ran to him saying My father, they have killed me! the writer really makes you visualize the sentimentality Ikemefuna feels.

Chapter 8:
After the death of Ikemefuna, Okonkwo sinks into a depression, begins to feel weak and cannot sleep or eat. Three days later when Ezinma brings him his evening meal, she tells him that he must finish all of his meal. He repeatedly wishes that she were a boy, and he berates himself for acting like a shivering old woman, which once again shows his hatred towards femininity. Obierika feels that Okonkwo should have stayed at home instead of part- taking in the murder of Ikemefuna. Obierika himself decided not to go with the men at the time of the murder, he believes that the goddess of the earth would not be pleased with such actions. To prepare a wedding with the customs of the Ibo people, the suitor's family must bargain the bride-price with the father.

Chapter 9:
In the beginning of this chapter we learn that Ezinma has a bad fever, and her mother Ekwefi believes she is dying. Ekwefi is worried sick for her daughters life because she is the "center of her world" her only surviving child, all of her other children died in infancy. Okonkwo consulted a medicine man who told him that an ogbanje was tormenting them. An ogbanje is a wicked child who continually re-enters its mothers womb only to die again and again, causing its parents grief. Ekwefis third child was mutilated by a medicine man to discourage the Ogbanjes return. When Ezinma was born, like most ogbanje children, she suffered many illnesses, but she managed to recover from all of them. A year before the start of the novel, when Ezinma was nine, a medicine man named Okagbue Uyanwa found her iyi-uwa, the small, buried pebble that is the Ogbanjes physical link to the spirit world. Although the discovery of the iyi-uwa should have solved Ezinmas problems, every illness that she catches still brings terror and anxiety to Ekwefi. Ezinma's story helps depict that the Ibo society relies a lot on their ancestral beliefs.

Chapter 11:
The story about the tortoise and the birds that Ekwefi tells her daughter Ezinma, is one example of the folktales told in the Ibo community. The moral of this story is never to be sure of what you have achieved, it can fall apart just as easily as it was for you to gain it. The message Ekwefi has for her daughter is never be selfish or cunning, be a better person to others. The storytelling is interrupted as the voice of Chielo, the priestess of Agbala is heard prophesying. In this chapter we learn that Okonkwo does indeed have feelings for his wives, atleast for Ekwefi, he comforts her and even sleeps with her. This chapter depicts a different side of Okonkwo, it shows what he would call his "feminine" side. Most of his tough, manly feelings are hid away in this chapter, he is opened up a lot and in some way he puts himself in his wife's place because he understands how Ekwefi feels.

Chapter 13:
During the proceeding of Euzedu's funeral, Okonkwo's gun goes off and a metal piece kills Euzedu's sixteen year old son, accidentally. The crime was considered of two kinds, male and female. Okonkwo had committed the woman, because it had been inadvertent (accidental). As punishment Okonkwo and his family must go into exile for seven years. The only choice he had was to flee from the clan as it was a crime against the earth goddess to kill a clansman. Okonkwos punishment emphasizes the importance of strong, harmonious relations within the community.