Things Fall Apart - response

I just finished Things Fall Apart and I was a bit astounded by the ending, but it does go along with much of what I felt while reading this book.

Achebe has a great way of blending words and images to create a beautiful picture of the village and the people in it.  It was interesting reading, not only in how he describes the places/people but his style of writing.  I felt lost sometimes as I was reading with how stop - start his writing became.  The images he used were powerful at times, but I didn't understand some of them because of the vast cultural differences.  I did like how long he took to set the scene because it gave a lot of background into the life of Okwenko and his tribesman.  This did help a lot when the white man came and showed how quickly things had changed around our characters.

Okwenko's life was full of trials and tribulations from the time he was born.  A father who he viewed as unworthy did not leave him the traditional compound and farm.  He had to earn things for himself from the start.  He was a great fighter and known throughout all his tribe as a man not to be trifled with.  This does not mean he was unloved by his wives and children, as they understood him to be a strong man with incorruptible principles.  His passion for hard-work and perseverance was tried mightily through his walk with Ikemefuna, his unintentional shooting of a clansman and 7 year exile, the betrayal of his son, and influence of the white man and church on his home land.  It is a lot for a man to deal with, and he felt very alone.  His loneliness led him to his final decision at the end, he could not stand to be part of his tribe any longer.

Okwenko wanted so badly to e a man of importance.  He tried to lead his people but none would follow and so he viewed everyone else as a coward.

This whole book is an interesting look into African culture and the influence European culture has had onto the planet as a whole.  As I finished the last few chapters, I could only think of what I know of the Native Americans and their similar struggles to cope and eventual capitulation to the white culture.