Reviews with content warning for Xenophobia - Things Fall Apart

Reviews tagging 'Xenophobia'

Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe

11 reviews

asterixmj's review against another edition

dark inspiring reflective sad fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.5

I honestly think this is a very, very good book, and it got me thinking about my own culture before colonisation a lot. Its a curious thing, how Achebe depicts Christianity when not tied directly with colonialism, and I think you can tell that he grew up Christian. He doesn't describe the clan as a purely good clan, romanticising what once was before the arrival of the English, but instead he simply describes the Igbo culture from a neutral, outsider's perspectives. I would've loved to see more from Nwoye's perspective of things; it's really interesting to me how his struggles with his father reflected his struggles with the clan at large and let to him running away from them. Okonkwo is the personification of Umofia, I feel. When Okonkwo is great and strong (but stubborn, violent, and intimidating) so is Umofia, and when Okonkwo is weak, emancipated, and his previous strength turns into bash actions that lead nowhere, Umofia is about the same. His death makes a lot of sense to me; he's unable to cope with the death of his clan, with the death of "manliness" as he so calls it, I don't think its so much a stubbornness towards change, though that is definitely a factor, but more so an overwhelming grief of what he believes the White Man destroyed for him, although he, and by extent Umofia, by himself had shaky foundations that allowed the White Man to easily dismantle the community. A very good look to understand pre colonial Nigeria and the complexities that went into their colonisation

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queenofodas's review against another edition

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challenging dark informative reflective sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

2.75

Not my cup of tea, I think.

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doiread's review against another edition

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challenging emotional reflective tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.5

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abmochapman's review against another edition

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challenging dark informative mysterious tense slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes

5.0

“A man's life from birth to death, was a series of transition rites which brought him nearer and nearer to his ancestors.”

Things Fall Apart remains a literary masterpiece almost three decades since its release. At first slow and meandering, offering a survey of Igbo culture prior to the devastation of British forces, this novel shows just how quickly and suddenly a people can be made to fall apart when faced with colonial rule and violence.

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