It has been a week since my AP Lit class has
finished reading the novel, ‘Things Fall Apart,’ written by Chinua Achebe and
unlike any other novel, this one refuses to leave my head. I have never
questioned my identity as an American. Weirdly enough, after 16 years I am not
so sure about who I am.
My name is Lucy, I am 16 years old and I live
in Katy (Texas). Oh and not to forget that I am a white- African child.
Confusing, right? Well my mom’s side of the family is from Europe, Sweden and
Germany, and my dad’s side of the family is from Africa. Three days ago, I
asked my mom where in Africa my dad’s family is from, and she was speechless. I
could say that she should feel ashamed but that would be just a tad bit
hypocritical since I didn’t know the roots of my dad’s family either. Then, I
asked dad the same question and he told me that his great grandparents are from
former Igboland, which is current day Nigeria. I was surprised, excited and
shocked because that is where the story of Things Fall Apart is set and I told
him everything I learnt about the Igbo culture; from the importance of the gods
and the harvesting season to the whole system of ranks based on personal hard
work rather than the family one belongs to. That night, his smile stretched
across his face and his eyes were twinkling like I’d never seen before. I think
it’s pretty cool that I’m related to Things Fall Apart in this way, but I’m not
sure what to feel about this.
Christmas, Easter and Halloween are festivals
I’ve always celebrated. I was never exposed to any of the Igbo traditions and I
don’t think my dad was either. I feel like I was given an identity rather than
deciding for myself. I feel like I was a math problem that was too hard to be
solved. I feel like I was betrayed because even though I wasn’t lied to, a part
of the truth was kept hidden from me- intentional or unintentional. Simultaneously,
I think that maybe not knowing about my African background was beneficial. I
didn’t have to think too hard about what I believed in because the American
culture and African culture really do clash so it would’ve been a hard thought
process- I wouldn’t know.
Fate was a prominent theme in the novel. I am
a believer of action and consequence- if I don’t do my homework I go to
detention- pretty simple. A supernatural power can’t control anyone’s future.
Okonkwo’s downfall was when the faulty gun fired at the boy. Achebe showed that
scene as the reason for him being exiled but I think it would’ve been more
appropriate if Okonkwo suffered harsh consequences for his misdeeds such as
beating his wife. This belief in fate depicts superstition within their
community and this brings me to the second theme of the nove- religion. I can’t
imagine myself choosing to worship many gods over the one God because I can
only see myself as a Christian and I believe that we all only have one God and
idolizing an object as god is ridiculous; nevertheless Achebe did mention that
they didn’t believe god existed in objects as the objects symbolized the gods
but that’s too much of deep thinking for me. Another theme that stood out to me
is embracing change. Many people, such as Okonkwo, were against the European
colonization and missionaries but there were also many people who were
eventually accepting of the Europeans, such as Nwoye. He was into Christianity
because they appreciated the male involvement in the arts unlike the Igbo
community. What the Europeans did was wrong but once the invasion happened, I
think it was best to embrace change because that’s the best way forward for
oneself and the whole society. Resistance won’t help- it will just lead to
self-harm like it did with Okonkwo committing suicide. Also, I wouldn’t be here
if the Europeans wouldn’t have colonized Igboland and exposed them to the outer
world!
So, do you see my problem here? The two
cultures that I historically belong to are so different that maybe my life
would’ve been harder than it is now if I was given the option to embrace one. I
love the fact that in Umuofia, status was solely dependent on hard work unlike
here, where your social status is dependent on which country club you are a
member of. In Things Fall Apart, the society was an example of communism done
right- almost. On the other hand, I’d hate to be associated with a community
where women are dehumanized. In Umuofia ‘agbala’ meant woman; however it was
also a term used to classify men who died titleless. I was ENRAGED with how the
term ‘agbala’ was used and I feel like nobody else cared about it as much as I
did. The nonchalance of my class towards this made me question whether America is
progressing towards equality. At least Umuofia had societies for women and
around hundred years has passed since then and we barely have any female
politicians in our country- how progressive!
I don’t
know if living in this country has constricted my mind or not but I do know
that reading this book has definitely brought about a paradigm shift for me.
The thing is, this novel only intrigued me because I knew that I had some sort
of African history. If the story were set in Asia or some other place, I
wouldn't spend a single waking minute thinking about it. This makes me wonder,
how many people are yet to open eyes? How many people cruise through their
entire life without ever finding out who they truly are?
