Examples Of White Supremacy In Things Fall Apart

Aran Chakraborty

B Block English

Final Essay

Since White Supremacy was the philosophy that led to centuries of white dominance and exploitation over Black people worldwide, perhaps it follows that Black Supremacy would reverse this corruption and serve centuries worth of justice across the globe. This ideology drove the actions of Erik Killmonger from Ryan Coogler’s Black Panther. Essentially, his solution to the global black struggle was to use the advanced technology in his African country of origin to fuel and supply a worldwide African revolution against White people, retaliating against a long history of oppression. Despite his desire for justice, Coogler portrays him as a villain. Furthermore, multiple texts agree with Coogler’s viewpoint

But contrary to Killmonger, Okonkwo’s attitude towards tradition is conservative, due to the initial lack of European influence in his world. When the European missionaries arrive and settle into Umuofia, several Umuofians convert to Christianity, and the rest of the Umuofians hardly interfere. Thus, as Okonkwo sees his society changing, “he mourn[s] for the clan, which he [sees] breaking up and falling apart, and he mourn[s] for the warlike men of Umuofia, who [have] so unaccountably become soft like women”(183). Umuofia is an extreme patriarchy where men may marry and abuse multiple wives and where strength holds value in place of gentleness. As a result of this society’s masculine values, Okonwo displays traits of toxic masculinity, which he reveals in his mourning. He considers his clansmen weak for being too soft to uphold their tradition in the face of the Europeans. He believes his clan is “falling apart” because of its de-emphasis on war, viewing its pacifism as a weak feminine trait. Achebe reveals how strongly Okonkwo adheres to his tradition, to the point that he is unwilling to change with the society around him. He also emphasizes how Okonkwo’s toxic masculine nature drives his most deep-rooted beliefs,

In the final scene, Marjorie, the last member of the African line, takes Marcus to the Golden Coast in Ghana. When Marcus notices a black stone on her necklace, she puts it around his neck and exclaims “Welcome home”(300). Marjorie’s ancestor Effia was half-sister with Esi, and they both received their respective stones from the same mother. However, unlike Esi, Effia passes her stone down through her entire family line. The stone represents a sense of cultural identity, hence why the family that stays on the continent passes it down while the one that gets sent away loses it. When Marjorie declares “welcome home” she refers to Marcus’s heritage returning to him. Additionally, the black stone represents something else that Marjorie’s family has, having stayed on the continent. Since countries on the African continent had gained their independence by this point, the Black people in Africa had way more power than the Black people abroad. Thus, Marjorie’s black stone also represents the support of the continental Africans towards the black people abroad, which they can give because of their freedom. The home that Marjorie is welcoming Marcus to is not just the Gold Coast in Ghana; it is also the metaphorical connection between the whole Black community. With this final line, Gyasi presents the idea