Chinua Achebe s Things Fall Apart - 1033 Words

Introduction Chinua Achebe is a famous Nigerian novelist in worldwide. Things fall apart is Chinua Achebe’s first novel published in 1958, the year after Ghana became the first African nation to gain independence. And this novel is one of the first African novels to gain worldwide recognition. (Phil Mongredien, 2010) This novel presents people a story of an African Igbo tribal hero, Okonkwo, from his growth to death. The fate of Okonkwo also indicates the fate of Africa caused by the colonization from Europe. Chinua Achebe devoted a large segment of this novel to describe Igbo’s traditions, and because he grew up in a missionary teachers’ family, this novel focuses on the conflicts between Igbo’s traditional customs and Christianity instead of weapons and wars, and show how religion separate and destroy the clan. After reading this novel, the most impressive thing I would like to talk about is the reasons of why the tribe had fallen apart. Summary The story happened around 1900 in Umuofia, a village near lower Niger. Okonkwo is a respectable leader in his clan. He is strong, brave and doesn’t like to show emotions, because he thinks emotions represent weakness. His personality is affected by his father Unoka, who is a lazy, improvident man. Okonkwo is ashamed of him, so he always tries to be strong. He already had two titles when he is young, and his goal is to achieve the highest title. So it is him to look after Ikemefuna, the boy sacrificed to the village by theirShow MoreRelatedChinua Achebe s Things Fall Apart1719 Words   |  7 PagesThings fall apart is a classic novel written around the turn of the century, the novel focuses on the protagonist who we can also call a hero, Okonkwo. Okonkwo is a wealthy and respected leader within the Igbo tribe of Umuofia in eastern Nigeria. Strong individual with a passionate belief in all the values and traditions of his people. Chinua Achebe presents Okonkwo as a particular kind of tragic protagonist, a great man who carries the fate of his people. Okonkwo is a man who is inflexible andRead MoreChinua Achebe s Things Fall Apart883 Words   |  4 Pagesdehumanize the native population and convince themselves that they are helping. Chinua Achebe’s book Things Fall Apart attempts to correct these misguided views of African societies by portraying a more complex culture that values peace, and the art of conversation. Achebe also tries to portray the idea that not all European people they come in contact with are aggressive, and misconstrued in their view of the African societies. Achebe tries to show us the value of his society through repeated views into conversationsRead MoreChinua Achebe s Things Fall Apart1410 Words   |  6 PagesTeddy Manfre Ms. Blass ENG 209-001 April 24, 2017 Things Fall Apart In 1958, Chinua Achebe a famous Nigerian author publishes one of his most famous novels Things Fall Apart. The novel takes place in a Nigerian village called Umuofia. During the time that this novel is published Nigeria is being criticized by the Europeans for being uncivilized. In response, Achebe uses his brilliance in this novel to express the valued history of his people to his audience. His focus in the novel is on the pre-colonizedRead MoreChinua Achebe s Things Fall Apart1015 Words   |  5 PagesIn his novel Things Fall Apart, author Chinua Achebe utilizes his distinctive writing style in order to accurately capture the culture and customs of the Igbo people despite writing his story in a foreign language. Five aspects of Achebe’s style that make his writing unique is the straightforward diction present in dialogue, the inclusion of native parables convey Igbo life authentically, the inclusion of native Igbo words and phrases, detailed descriptions of nature and the usage of figurative languageRead MoreChinua Achebe s Things Fall Apart1702 Words   |  7 PagesTitle: Things Fall Apart Biographical information about the author: Chinua Achebe was born in Nigeria in 1930. He had an early career as a radio host, and later became the Senior Research Fellow at the University of Nigeria. After moving to America, he became an English professor at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst. Achebe has won numerous awards for his poetry and fiction, including the Man Booker prize and Commonwealth Poetry Price. He currently teaches at Bard College. Author: Chinua AchebeRead MoreChinua Achebe s Things Fall Apart Essay1347 Words   |  6 PagesCulture is an Important Element of Society Chinua Achebe is the author of when Things Fall Apart while Joseph Conrad authored Heart of Darkness. Conrad and Achebe set their individual titles in Africa; Achebe is an African writer whereas Conrad is Polish-British. The authors draw strength from their backgrounds to validity the authenticity of their fictional novels. Conrad writes from his experiences in the British and French navies while Achebe uses his African heritage. The theme of culture isRead MoreChinua Achebe s Things Fall Apart1248 Words   |  5 PagesChris Lowndes Ms. Cook A.P.L.C. 21 October 2015 We Are Family: Hardships in One s Family in Things Fall Apart Specific attributes correlate with each other to help create or not create the ideal strong family. However, through those attributes arise conflicts and major disputes. This issue of trying to achieve and create a strong family is of immense importance in one’s life, especially in Chinua Achebe’s, Things Fall Apart, a milestone in African literature. For instance, the father leaves his legacyRead MoreChinua Achebe s Things Fall Apart Essay1682 Words   |  7 Pagescertain degree of the priest class, libation, holidays, creation stories, divine systems of punishments and rewards. In the novel, Things Fall Apart, written by Chinua Achebe, is a story of tragic fall of a protagonist and the Igbo culture. Achebe demonstrates different examples and situations of where an African culture, in the instances of tribal religions, did certain things because of their tradition is and the way they developed into. African cultures pondered life mysteries and articulated theirRead Mo reChinua Achebe s Things Fall Apart1314 Words   |  6 PagesChinua Achebe masterpiece â€Å"Things Fall Apart† (1959) is the classic story of Okonkwo, a young man who strives to be revered by his village and family but because of his own internal character flaws meets his own demise. In the Igbo culture, family traditions are an important narrative throughout the novel. Okonkwo, the protagonist character of this story, begins with many attributes of what would be concluded as a hero with his cultural society. He is hard working, a material provider, feared andRead MoreChinua Achebe s Things Fall Apart Essay983 Words   |  4 Pages The author Chinua Achebe, in the novel, â€Å"Things Fall Apart,† shares extreme diversity between the female and male characters residing in Umofia. Okonkwo, the male leader of the tribe, carries qualities such as power and manliness, as all men are expected to. As for the females they are commonly referred to as being weaker for child bearing and more responsible because they are expected to cook, clean, and take care of their children. Although the traits of the Igbo culture vary in the determination

Mesopotamian Literature The Civilization - 1005 Words

Civilization came a long way since what it first was. Human creativity was the root of the evolution of civilization. The basics of human survival in the Stone Age were creating fire, heat, clothing, and food from the surrounding resources of the lands. There were also many different cultural aspects among people in this age. In early Mesopotamia, the Mesopotamians and the Egyptians had a communal outlook on religion. Although their religious outlook was the same, they viewed the world in many different ways that in fact affected their thoughts, art, and literature. The Mesopotamians had a very basic pessimistic belief on their world and viewed the gods as a way to win at life and to handle their desires. Mesopotamian literature was†¦show more content†¦To compare and contrast Mesopotamia and Egypt, Mesopotamia introduced more of a literacy value to the civilization including formal law codes, city planning, architecture, and many institutions. They became very advanced in i rrigation, farming, pottery, bronze and copper. Mesopotamia was becoming very complex in their ruling system and money systems. They were ruled by a king and used silver to trade and buy goods. On the other hand, a pharaoh whom was seen as god and worshipped had complete power over the entire country of Egypt. Due to their complex geographic structure along the Nile River, there was a lot of slave labor. Although both had many differences, they both enjoyed religion and art, relied on rivers for transportation, importation, and exportation. They each had slaves to do the labor from their complex civilizations and also had the same stratification of social contrasts between peasants on the bottom and landowners well above and beyond at the top. Other similarities included writing, law and communication (Comparison of Early Mesopotamia and Egypt). As civilization evolved, the classical Greek period was an age filled with questions, democracy, design, tragedies, and even a new found love, the Olympic games. Much of the basics of evolution began in the eye of the Western culture in Ancient Greece. The romans conquered the Greeks and their philosophies and concepts were spread almost throughout all of Europe. After the Roman Empire fell,

Argumentative and Persuasive Current State Essay Example For Students

Argumentative and Persuasive Current State Essay Laws on Human Cloning Cloning Argumentative Persuasive EssaysCurrent State Laws on Human Cloning California Cal. Health Safety Code, 24185 to 24189. Bans efforts to create a human being by utilizing somatic cell nuclear transfer for the purpose of, or to implant, the resulting product to initiate a pregnancy that could result in the birth of a human being. Ban is to expire January 1, 2003 unless extended by legislature. Louisiana La. Rev. Stat. Ann. tit. 40 1299.36 to 1299.36.6. Forbids any person to clone or attempt to clone a human being, and forbids a health facility or agency to allow any individual to clone or attempt to clone a human being in a facility owned or operated by the health facility or agency. Clone is defined as in California law, to involve an intent to initiate a pregnancy. However, a separate state law prohibits intentionally destroying a viable fertilized ovum, and requires that no in vitro fertilized human ovum will be farmed or cultured solely for research purposes or any other purposes. La. Rev. Stat. Ann. tit. 9, 129, 122. Whether this prohibits use of cloned embryos for research depends on how courts will interpret the phrase fertilized human ovum. Michigan Mich. Comp. Laws 333.16274, 333.16275, 750.430a. Forbids any individual to engage in or attempt to engage in human cloning, applying civil penalties (up to a $10 million fine) and criminal penalties ($10 million fine and up to ten years in prison). Human cloning means the use of human somatic cell nuclear transfer technology to produce a human embryo. 333.16274(5). This law clearly forbids creating a cloned human embryo for any purpose, including research. A separate state law also forbids using a live human embryo for nontherapeutic research if the research substantially jeopardizes the life or health of the embryo Performing such research is a felony. 333.2685 (1), 333.2691. Rhode Island R.I. Gen. Laws 23-16.4-2 to 23-16.4-4. Bans use of somatic cell nuclear transfer for the purpose of initiating or attempting to initiate a human pregnancy, as well as the creation of genetically identical human beings by dividing a blastocyst, zygote, or embryo. The law seems to ban cloning by nuclear transfer only if done to initiate a pregnancy. However, a separate law prohibits the use of any live human fetus, whether before or after expulsion from its mothers womb, for scientific, laboratory research, or other kind of experimentation. R.I. Gen. Laws 11-54-1(a). An analysis commissioned by the National Bioethics Advisory Commission interprets this law to ban research on in vitro embryos altogether, apparently including cloned embryos. NBAC, Ethical Issues in Human Stem Cell Research, Vol. II, pages A-4, A-10. South Dakota S.D. Codified Laws 34-14-16 to 34-14-20. Under this law it is a crime to conduct nontherapeutic research that destroys a human embryo or that subjects a human embryo to substantial risk of injury or death. Nontherapeutic research means researc h that is not intended to help preserve the life and health of the particular embryo subjected to risk. A person also may not use for research purposes cells or tissues that the person knows were obtained by performing such harmful nontherapeutic research. Human embryo is defined as a living organism of the species Homo sapiens at the earliest stages of development (including the single-celled stage) that is not located in a womans body. The law applies to human embryos regardless of whether they arose from fertilization, so it certainly bans experimental cloning in which human embryos are destroyed, as well as any use of cells or tissues obtained by destroying them. Given the current survival rate of human embryos created by cloning, it also has the effect at present of banning the basic research in human cloning designed to prepare the way for attempts at cloning for live birth. Virginia Va. Code Ann. 32.1-162.21, 32.1-162.22. The law forbids human cloning, defined as the creati on of or attempt to create a human being by transferring the nucleus from a human cell from whatever source into an oocyte from which the nucleus has been removed. It also forbids anyone to implant or .u31fc4c8c60081b631a067ae2946d7a87 , .u31fc4c8c60081b631a067ae2946d7a87 .postImageUrl , .u31fc4c8c60081b631a067ae2946d7a87 .centered-text-area { min-height: 80px; position: relative; } .u31fc4c8c60081b631a067ae2946d7a87 , .u31fc4c8c60081b631a067ae2946d7a87:hover , .u31fc4c8c60081b631a067ae2946d7a87:visited , .u31fc4c8c60081b631a067ae2946d7a87:active { border:0!important; } .u31fc4c8c60081b631a067ae2946d7a87 .clearfix:after { content: ""; display: table; clear: both; } .u31fc4c8c60081b631a067ae2946d7a87 { display: block; transition: background-color 250ms; webkit-transition: background-color 250ms; width: 100%; opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #95A5A6; } .u31fc4c8c60081b631a067ae2946d7a87:active , .u31fc4c8c60081b631a067ae2946d7a87:hover { opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #2C3E50; } .u31fc4c8c60081b631a067ae2946d7a87 .centered-text-area { width: 100%; position: relative ; } .u31fc4c8c60081b631a067ae2946d7a87 .ctaText { border-bottom: 0 solid #fff; color: #2980B9; font-size: 16px; font-weight: bold; margin: 0; padding: 0; text-decoration: underline; } .u31fc4c8c60081b631a067ae2946d7a87 .postTitle { color: #FFFFFF; font-size: 16px; font-weight: 600; margin: 0; padding: 0; width: 100%; } .u31fc4c8c60081b631a067ae2946d7a87 .ctaButton { background-color: #7F8C8D!important; color: #2980B9; border: none; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: none; font-size: 14px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 26px; moz-border-radius: 3px; text-align: center; text-decoration: none; text-shadow: none; width: 80px; min-height: 80px; background: url(https://artscolumbia.org/wp-content/plugins/intelly-related-posts/assets/images/simple-arrow.png)no-repeat; position: absolute; right: 0; top: 0; } .u31fc4c8c60081b631a067ae2946d7a87:hover .ctaButton { background-color: #34495E!important; } .u31fc4c8c60081b631a067ae2946d7a87 .centered-text { display: table; height: 80px; padding-left : 18px; top: 0; } .u31fc4c8c60081b631a067ae2946d7a87 .u31fc4c8c60081b631a067ae2946d7a87-content { display: table-cell; margin: 0; padding: 0; padding-right: 108px; position: relative; vertical-align: middle; width: 100%; } .u31fc4c8c60081b631a067ae2946d7a87:after { content: ""; display: block; clear: both; } READ: Styrofoam and Clam Shells as Tiles Essay

The Slave Dancer Essays - Racism, African Slave Trade, Slavery

The Slave Dancer The Slave Dancer It all began in the cold month of January, 1840, in New Orleans. Fog laid a heavy blanket on the streets and alleyways of the city. Rain steadily engulfed the seaside locality, and the sound of drunken riverboat men and the slaves celebrating their festivities surrounded the area. New Orleans was where Jessie Bollier lived, and was the place where he was captured on that dark January evening. Jessie then found himself aboard The Moonlight, the slaver with its towering sails and masts, cabins and storage space under the deck. These were places where Jessie had to'dance the slaves' and where the captain and crew would spend many weeks living in fear of the slaves, of each other, and of getting caught. In the Bight of Benin, on the rugged coasts of Africa, where the multitudes of slaves were captured and mistreated. The crew then made their way across the Atlantic once again to land in the Gulf of Mexico. The Moonlight was anchored there and stayed because it was here where the ship submerged. Two of the survivors washed up on the shores of Mississippi, who were Jessie and Ras meet Daniel, their soon to be friend. Ras was a slave Jessie befriended while on the ship. The Slave Dancer is written through Jessie's eyes, and projects a depressing, melancholy mood. It is the tragic song of the slaves and the mistreatment of Jessie and the slaves. The hero of the story is the thirteen year old boy, Jessie Bollier. "He's a fearful runt," comments Captain Cawthorne. He is brought on board the slaver to make the slaves dance, to keep them healthy. Jessie innocent and does not fully understand his purpose. "My life had turned upside down. My friend was a man who pressganged me. I disliked the man who befriended me." Jessie does not realize what is going on within him. He does not realize that these men, these women, and children are slaves...are owned. He does not perceive the cruel treatment of the slaves, but does not know why. Jessie himself puts it best, "My stomach rebelled." The antagonist is surprisingly Jessie, but after the voyage. He went through many changes after the excursion. "At first, I made a promise to myself: I would do nothing that was connected with the use of slaves...but everything I considered bore the imprint of black hands." In the war between the states Jessie fought for the Union. He moved to Rhode Island and began a new life. However, he could never forget his horrible past. He was in continual search for his slave friend, Ras, wherever he made his way. He had matured in a way all of us should look up to. He matured in the light of love, strength, wisdom, and loyalty to his heart and to peace. There were various secondary characters in The Slave Dancer because there were so many important roles. Captain Cawthorne, the captain of The Moonlight, was a short, very moody, very ambitious man. He was respected-a fine seaman. The captain's purpose was to guide the ship to Africa, and trade rum, tobacco, and other items in exchange for slaves. he was then to bring them to Mexico to sell to the Spanish and return to Charleston without getting caught. It is known that the captain must have a first mate. In this case it was the lucky Nicholas Spark. He kept to the captains side like a shadow. Spark was a very thin man with a "paper voice." Nicholas got into a fight with a black slave while aboard the ship and shot him. The captain was furious, so he dropped Spark into the deep waters below. There was Adolph Curry who's main reason for traveling on the ship was to cook. Jessie described him as,"...a terribly thin man. His skin was the color of suet except for uneven patches of salmon along the prominent ridges of his cheekbones." Another member of the crew was Ned Grime who was older than the other men. Ned was a carpenter and somewhat a doctor. Grime talked as if he had nothing to do with the trading of the slaves, yet he was paid the same amount as the rest of the men on the slaver. Ned once said, "My heart's not in it." Claudis Sharkey was the man who captured Jessie off the streets of New Orleans and wrapped him in a big sack. He was tall with a black beard. Claudis told Jessie the "illegal" truth