Imperialism is defined as “a policy of extending a country’s power and influence through diplomacy or military force”. Imperialism and the notion of being “civilized” are quite a popular topic when discussed by academics, especially when it comes to Africa and African Societies. In the modern world it is quite common to classify others as “the other side” or “the enemy”. This simple concept of de-humanizing other people causes severe problems in the modern world. One of the stereotypes that exists today is the concept of Africa being uncivilized. In Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe this topic is taken into consideration and shows the perspective of the African side of the argument. Achebe fights the stereotypes throughout the novel by providing the opposite side of the argument, he also explores the resistance that is held by the main character of the story, Okonkwo. Achebe also discusses how Britain, as a colonial power, started devaluing the Igbo traditions using political and religious forces.
Achebe begins the argument of how Imperialism may have shaped the stereotype of being “uncivilized” with introducing his main character Okonkwo. Okonkwo, who is a powerful warrior, a wealthy man, and had notoriety throughout multiple tribes in Africa. Okonkwo is known throughout the many tribes of Africa due to the fact that he wrestled all Amalinze the Cat in a contest and gained notoriety through that way. The notoriety gained is a good example of how as a society the Igbo have traditions and customs, which to outsiders may seem “uncivilized”, but they actually hold meaning and are part of a rule system. There are several powerful social, cultural, and religious practices in the Igno clan. For instance, Okonkwo also had to deal with his father, Unoka, being drunk, lazy, and improvident. Okonkwo’s father was also indebted to a lot of people; however, he would still follow customs in the clan. A good example of this occurs when Okoye comes to visit Unoka still breaks a Kola nut for his guest. Okonkwo viewed his father as a failure, and this sparked Okonkwo to become a hard worker to prevent him from turning into his father. Okonkwo has to take care of a young boy due to the fact of the mother being killed from a member of another tribe. This is also a good example of the customs in their tribe due to the fact Okonkwo is taking care of a boy who isn’t his own due to the tribe saying so. Okonkwo consults with an oracle about what to do with the young boy. The oracle says that Okonkwo must kill the child to avoid a war between the tribes. Okonkwo follows through on this and kills the child. During the funereal Okonkwo’s gun goes off and kills someone else due to this Okonkwo and his family must leave the village for seven years.
Britain shows up in the second half of the book. British Missionaries have been sighted in Okonkwo’s village. The British missionaries also begin to “civilize” the Igbo tribe through their own religious practices. This also gives rise to the idea that African tribes aren’t civilized, the idea that due to the fact the African tribes worship a different god then the missionaries perpetuate the idea of the “uncivilized” African continent. The “civilizing” that’s occurring through the missionaries is destroying the Igbo culture, which also gives rise to the concept of the uncivilized culture. Achebe discusses how this occurs through the story and the missionary’s discussion of the Holy Trinity. “The missionaries ignored him and went on to talk about the Holy Trinity. At the end of it Okonkwo was fully convinced that the man was mad. He shrugged his shoulders and went away to tap his afternoon palm wine. But there was a young lad who had been captivated.” This is a great example because Achebe shows how the takeover doesn’t happen all at once, it is a gradual occurrence through members of the Igbo. The missionaries had a built a church on the “Evil Forest.” Achebe discusses how it was well known by the Mbanta people that their gods and ancestors were long-suffering on occasion and would allow a man to go on defying them, but in cases their limits was seven market weeks or twenty-eight days. This began to cause a problem due to the fact the missionaries and their church hadn’t been punished. The also use believers from the Igbo people to say things such as “openly boasting about how all the gods were dead, impotent, and that they were prepared to defy them by burning all their shrines”.
Achebe provides the African perspective through lines such as “And he was riding an iron horse” This line can give rise to the idea that African society are “uncivilized”, but Achebe puts this line in to provide context that even though they don’t have the same technology it does not mean that they’re not civilized. Another factor that plays into the concept of being uncivilized is how the Igbo’s reacted to certain things. When the white man arrives on his iron horse, the people consulted the Oracle who told them the white man would cause pain and suffering. The response to the oracle’s prophecy caused them to kill him and tie him to the sacred tree. The killing of the white man when viewed through an outside perspective seems barbaric and uncivilized, but Achebe shows that they were following and believing a prominent member in their society.
In conclusion multiple factors play into the discussion of civilized versus uncivilized. Achebe discusses this through his main character Okonkwo. The British missionaries devalue the Igbo culture. Achebe also provides other perspectives through the legal, social, and cultural practices.
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