Things Fall Apart… a story of a leader, a legend, and a mentor. He is looked up to and praised for his strength, courage, and failure. This story is not of a great time for human civilization or a story of a great man splitting the Red Sea. It is about a man who is pushed above his limits to keep his village from white colonization.
Umuofia is a village of peace, strength, and original customs. Okonkwo is a great example of how successful these customs could apply to somewhat a modern day society with the men as the dominant race. Sadly, the book happens to take a turn on these customs with the effects of colonialism when “the foreigners” come to spread the word of the Christian spirituality and ways of the almighty god. According to the village of Umuofia, the missionaries were able to live even with the legends of the Evil Forest which is even more shocking than the fact that one of Okonkwo’s sons, Nwoye, followed the path of the new missionaries. This fact is shocking, because the Igbo culture is almost nothing like the Christian religion. The Christian religion is to be praised every sunday, be a loyal member of the church, and be a good member to the community and the only part that the Igbo culture has in common to it is being a good member of the community and serving your purpose.
In the end, Umuofia is a place for variety which is very close to our own community like Beaverton. We are all one, but we’re all different. Keeping our values the same and our purposes together and using them to gain and prosper off each other so that we stay strong with tradition. Just like Umuofia… they keep their customs and keep their faith in each other. They all stand together with little numbers, but big courage and prevailation.