iGCSE English literature
Things Fall Apart (this novel by Chinua Achebe depicts pre-
colonial life in the southerneastern part of Nigeria). The novel is
consideredto be the archetypal modern African novel in
English. The choice was made to writ the novel in English so as
to enlighten the Western world as to the heritage of Nigerians.
Achebe has retained some African vocabulary so as to illustrate
the complexity and uniqueness of the language as there are
many words that are not directly translatable into English (e.g.
agbala : it means woman but also a man who had no title). At
the end of the novel the District Commissioner refers to the
language as containing too many superfluous words; the irony
of this is the verbose title of the book that he proposes to write.
The protagonist OKONKWO
What makes him a tragic hero?
A tragic hero is a character of nobility and stature who encounters a downfall as a
result of a flaw in his own character. Okonkwo holds a position of power, chooses
a course of action, possesses a character flaw that leads to his downfall.
Okonkwo he has a fear of weakness that drives him to be excessively aggressive;
it is his fear of weakness that ultimately leads to his downfall. He is dominated by
his fear of weakness and failure.
Things Fall Apart (this novel by Chinua Achebe depicts pre-
colonial life in the southerneastern part of Nigeria). The novel is
consideredto be the archetypal modern African novel in
English. The choice was made to writ the novel in English so as
to enlighten the Western world as to the heritage of Nigerians.
Achebe has retained some African vocabulary so as to illustrate
the complexity and uniqueness of the language as there are
many words that are not directly translatable into English (e.g.
agbala : it means woman but also a man who had no title). At
the end of the novel the District Commissioner refers to the
language as containing too many superfluous words; the irony
of this is the verbose title of the book that he proposes to write.
The protagonist OKONKWO
What makes him a tragic hero?
A tragic hero is a character of nobility and stature who encounters a downfall as a
result of a flaw in his own character. Okonkwo holds a position of power, chooses
a course of action, possesses a character flaw that leads to his downfall.
Okonkwo he has a fear of weakness that drives him to be excessively aggressive;
it is his fear of weakness that ultimately leads to his downfall. He is dominated by
his fear of weakness and failure.
