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Themes of masculinity in things fall apart
Igbo s culture, tradition, values and norm
Themes of masculinity in things fall apart
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As Berkin explains, “the father took care to see that his sons learned to read and also write and do sums; for his daughter…it was enough that she could read and sew” (4). Additionally, there were many sacrifices required to wed. A single woman had rights to legal matters, work, property, and heirs to name a few. However, Berkin describes marriage as an, “exchange of her legal persona for the protection and support of her husband” (14). The women were stripped of all possessions and treated as children or criminals within the law (14).
The Montgomery Bus Boycott was not the first attempt to give African Americans equality, in fact there were a couple attempts to end segregation that were not so successful. Segregation in the early to mid 19th century was a "cultural norm" for African Americans. The Jim Crow laws were put into place in certain states that primarily served to downgrade or belittle African Americans. The Jim Crow laws showed just how segregated the United States was but primarily the southern states. The Jim Crow laws put into act segregated schools, train cars, water fountains, bus seating, restaurants, business, restrooms etc.
Women were not allowed to own land, keep any possessions they acquired from their lives with their parents or testify against rape. Women weren’t valued as much as men. Sometimes when they inherited land or belongings their husbands got to keep them in case of divorce, which rarely ever happened. The man in the relationship also got to keep any children born of the two. If a woman was ever raped by her husband she couldn’t testify against him because she would be accused of lying.
Women are no longer property of the men of the family. For instance, back in the earlier times women were traded off by their fathers to a male for some type of objects that was useful to the land. Now women are not traded as objects for things that will be useful
China Achebe demonstrates the disrespect the Ibo men had for woman in Things Fall Apart by depicting verbal and physical abuse within the community. The men have control over a woman through power of authority. This physical and verbal abuse lets the men of the society feel empowerment over the woman. “ Okonkwo ruled his household with a heavy hand. His wives, especially the youngest, lived in perpetual fear of his fiery temper” Achebe 12.
In most fairy tales and novels a humble male role is used to dictate the normality of writing. In “Things Fall Apart” by Chinua Achebe, Okonkwo, a strong male role is not only that, a lead character, but he is also cruel and prone to violent tendencies In the novel Okonkwo experiences harsh changes when the white men first came and at the beginning of colonialism. In “Things Fall Apart”, Achebe uses Okonkwo to display the negative change in everyday Igbo culture after colonialism. In this novel by Achebe, before colonialism was introduced, Okonkwo was a known masculine member of Umuofia.
The significance of social status in “Things Fall Apart” is huge in the characterization of key characters, and it provides insight into how the Ibo clan is structured. Achebe further uses the theme of social structure to guide his characters a certain way and to guide the readers through the plot of the novel. From the very beginning of the novel Achebe introduces “social status” to the readers as a very important aspect of the book. From the very first line- “Okonkwo was well known throughout the nine villages and even beyond” – us readers come to an understanding that the main character, Okonkwo, is of high social status and that this tale will most likely be about him and his personal achievements.
Throughout Chinua Achebe's Things Fall Apart, the authors' claim of "balance" within the Igbo tribe is invalid. Although one may view that women and men existing in this society as balanced due to the fact that both the men and women have a particular part in the general public; The men hunt for dinner, while the ladies prepare the meals and care after the kids. However, through close reading, the society is actually imbalance. While the women are living oppressed, the men are holding positions of high power. The women in the tribe not only being socially oppressed by men of high authority, but also physically and emotionally abused by men in their home who likewise holds power.
First, gender roles in a society have a huge cause and effect that affects the people in the society, in the novel things fall apart these roles greatly affect family life. An example of this is how Okonkwo, the main protagonist in things fall apart, leads his family. Okonkwo is very strict and expects his wives and children to obey his every command, this caused his young wives and children to be scared of him. “Okonkwo ruled his household with a heavy hand. His wives, especially the youngest, lived in perpetual fear of his fiery temper, and so did his little children”(13).
According to Okonkwo’s tribe, the Igbo, masculinity is being strong, aggressive, and nourishing. Femininity is being weak, loving, compassionate, and devotional. Achebe highlights the definitions of masculinity and femininity to show that Okonkwo’s hypermasculinity causes his downfall. Okonkwo is trying to act too masculine and by completely rejecting feminine qualities, he sets up his destiny to be his downfall. The first instance in which things fall apart for Okonkwo is when a tribute from another village has to stay with Okonkwo for three years.
Things Fall Apart written by Chinua Achebe was a novel based on the Ibo culture in the late 1950’s. The Ibo culture has it’s own customs and traditions like any other culture. In this culture things are done a bit differently. Men get respected by having titles in their culture, showing no weakness, being great planters in planting yams, and following the tradition of polygamy. The more wives a man has the more he is seen as a respectable guy in its village.
The novel, Things Fall Apart, tells the life story about Okonkwo, who is a clansmen of the Ibo tribe, which is located in Nigeria. Okonkwo is a famous wrestler, a skilled farmer and a respected leader, in spite of his modest upbringing. The novel is told through Okonkwo’s chauvinist point of view, where he accepts the theory that man is everything, and women is nothing (Bite & Bite, 2013). Okonkwo supports and encourages the traditional gender divisions, and regards women as weak, and powerless human beings. Okonkwo, like other clansmen, are known to call men, who are considered to be weak, worthless or those who carry no title, “Agbala”, which stands for, women-like.
In the Ibo hierarchal society, women are the subject of unequal treatment and patronization. They are considered weak and are not given any power. As the novel, Things Fall Apart unravels, the author, Chinua Achebe reveals the distinct attributes of femininity. Feminine traits are also viewed with disdain in Umuofian society, especially by the protagonist of the novel, Okonkwo. His past experiences shape his disposition and give rise to his stereotypical mentality; however, several events contradict the prevalent perspective of women, leading to Okonkwo facing conflicts within himself.
Feminist Theory In Chinua Achebe’s “Things Fall Apart”, they recognize the life of the Igbos which are a tribe in the village of Umuofia during European colonization. There are many topics brought up in this book like the effects of colonization, culture and tradition, religion, race, etc. It is relatively easy to read “Things Fall Apart” as an anti-feminist text due to the face that the Igbo clan’s customs and traditions seem to side towards masculine features, such as power and strength. The novel is told through a male protagonist’s point of view in nineteenth century Nigeria, while women there do not have much rights, they do wield heavy influence over the leaders of the clan.
TFA Essay Our lives are centered around our culture and beliefs, we are influenced by our peers about our beliefs to the point where it may cause things to fall apart, with many up and down situations. In Chinua Achebe’s Things Fall Apart, we learn about an Ibo culture that believe in male masculinity and dominance, expected from a very young age for boys to be very masculine and rule over women.
