Missionaries Are to Blame in Chinua Achebes Things Fall...

Missionaries Are to Blame in Chinua Achebes Things Fall Apart The burden and calling to reach out and help others, enfold many people in society throughout the world. Rich or poor, young or old, black, red or white, the motive is helping those with a need. As Chinua Achebe points out in his book, Things Fall Apart, though there is the aspiration to lend a hand, it can sometimes become deadly, and even fatal to the lives of people. Although the missionaries try help convert the Ibo village of Umuofia to Christianity, their presence in Africa is harmful to the lives and culture of the Ibo. The men that come to Umuofia destroy the cultural balance of faith and religion that encompasses the native people in Africa.†¦show more content†¦They assist in, ...[building] a trading store and for the first time palm-oil and kernel became things of great price, and much money flowed into Umuofia (146). Economically, the Ibo villages improve, and slowly schools and hospitals are erected. Education and knowledge from the outside world becomes accessible, as well as quality of the lives of many, both spiritually and physically. The missionaries rescue and, ...welcome twins and such abomination (130), and save them from cruel deaths. After that, the osu or outcasts also think that it is possible to be accepted into society. A new society, which saves twins from dying because of superstition from the tribes and receives outcasts with warm and loving hospitality. However, although the missionaries bring the start of advanced technology and education to Africa, their wish to im prove comes with a price that greatly outweighs the good. The strategy of the Europeans is to attack religion, the central factor that controls the lives of so many. Slowly, with that influence, they win many of the tribes brothers, and [their] clan can no longer act like one. (145) Anarchy reigns, when the two clans are torn apart with the superior white mans religion overcoming traditional beliefs. Following the example of religion, the government tags along, bringing with them new rules where, ...the DistrictShow MoreRelatedAchebe1599 Words   |  7 Pages Achebe’s Defense of The Ibo People in Things Fall Apart Option 1 The late Chinua Achebe is considered to be one of the most important voices in African literature. Born in colonial Nigeria in the 1930’s, Achebe joined the first wave of African writers who were determined to represent their country in a way that would truthfully depict the past and present. Before the arrival of the first wave writers, the history of pre-colonial Africa was portrayed as a place of barbarous activity. EuropeanRead MoreThings Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe Essay1064 Words   |  5 PagesIn Achebe’s book, â€Å"Things Fall Apart†, the life of a Nigerian man named Okowkwo is depicted. 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