Marisa Brown

THINGS FALL APART (1958) Study Guide: Reading & Study Questions
Chapters 1-10

1) Describe Okonkwo, the protagonist of Things Fall Apart. Consider him as an Igbo heroic character: how
does he work to achieve greatness as defined by his and culture? How does he differ from Western
heroes whom you are community familiar with? What are his strengths and weaknesses?

- Okonkwo is very determined, hardworking, and motivated. He desires great success. He is

haunted by the failures of his father, which fuels his pride and toxic masculinity. As strong as he
may appear, he still has many weaknesses. He is judgmental, critical, cold, harsh, fragile in his
masculinity, and disrespectful to women. He differs from western heroes who are normally more
charming and likeable.

2) Describe Unoka, Okonkwo’s father. Why is Unoka, who suffers from a swelling in the stomach, left to
die in the evil forest? How does Okonkwo differ from his father? What are Okonkwo’s feelings toward
Unoka, and why? How does the (negative) example of his father shape Okonkwo’s character and actions
as an adult male? What do the early descriptions of Okonkwo’s success and Unoka’s failure tell us about
Igbo society? How does one succeed in this cultural context? What do we learn from the system of the
taking of titles? Who seems to be excluded from opportunities to gain such success? Cite examples in
the attitude and actions of Okonkwo that show the Igbo division of what is considered manly and what is
considered womanly.
- Unoka did not care for great successes and titles like his son does. He had lots of debts and lived
a more modest and carefree life. His son resents him for this and looks at him like a failure.
These visions of his father heavily influence Okonkwo and make him obsessed with titles,
fortunes and strength.

3) Describe the setting (time, place, culture) of the novel. Attend to Achebe’s presentation of the details of
everyday village lifeways in Umuofia, the values and beliefs of the Igbo people, and the importance of
ritual, ceremony, social hierarchy, and personal achievement in Igbo culture. How is social life
organized?. What are the important celebrations? What is the role of war, of religion, and of the arts?
What is the role of the individual in relation to the community of Umuofia? Compare /contrast Igbo
lifeways, customs, perspectives, beliefs, and values to those of your own culture.
 - Tradition is valued greatly. Religion and spirituality are very valuable and present in everyday
life. Their morals and ways of life are shaped by their religious and spiritual beliefs. They have
lots of rituals like the sacrificing of animals that are very necessary to them to be successful.
They also portray very strong gender roles. Polygamy is practiced and the women are viewed
and treated as less than the men.

4) Consider the dual roles in the human and spiritual worlds played by the egwugwu and Chielo, the
priestess of Agbala. Chielo, the priestess of Agbala is introduced in Ch. 3. What does her power and
status in Umuofia suggest about women’s roles in Igbo culture and religious beliefs? Later in the novel,
note Chielo’s roles in the village (e.g., in Ch. 6). What are those roles?
- Chielo has more power and influence than the average woman in Umuofia. The gender roles are
very strict and straight forward. Women do not have a lot of say and are mainly viewed as wives
and mothers. Chielo is a caring woman who has dedicated herself to her role.

5) Examine family life and living arrangements in Okonkwo’s home. Describe Okonkwo’s relationships to
his wives and children, especially to Ekwefi, Ezinma, and Nwoye. Why is Okonkwo unhappy with his
son and heir? How do his feelings toward Nwoye compare with his feelings toward Ikemefuna? How do
Okonkwo’s feelings affect Nwoye? What differing roles and functions do men and women have in Igbo
society? What is Okonkwo’s attitude toward women? In this polygamous culture, men may take more
than one wife and each household is enclosed in a compound. Each wife lives in a hut with her children,
and the husband visits each wife in turn, though he has his own hut as well. Children are often cared for
more or less communally—another African proverb states, "It takes a village to raise a child."
Compare/contrast the advantages and disadvantages of this social structure to our own family
arrangements in the U.S.
- Ukonkwo is a very stern father and husband. He often beats his wives and children. He has the
best relationship with Ezinma, but she is a girl. Okonkwo constantly wishes that she was a boy
since she has the right spirit in his opinion. He does not have a great relationship with his son
Nwoye. He thinks Nwoye is weak and lazy. Nwoye wants to please his father but also does not
like him very much. He doesn’t want to be toxic in his masculinity like his father is.
- Children who were raised in this traditional African structure would be more disciplined than
those growing up in the US. These customs seem more harsh, strict, and designed to put children
into their designated roles. US structures might show more equality between sons and daughters.
6) What is the crime that causes Okonkwo's to be reprimanded in Ch. 4? What does it tell you about the
values of the culture? Why, according to Ezeani, is wife beating considered wrong even at times other
than Peace Week?
- Okonkwo gets angry and beats his wife during Peace Week. This is considered a crime. Wife
beating is a bit too normalized in the community/culture portrayed in this book, but that does not
make it right.

7) Briefly summarize the story of Ekwefi given in Ch. 5. What kind of a woman is she? What do you think
is the significance of women having to sit with their legs together? Ezinma is believed to be an ogbanje,
meaning those who "come and go" (see p. xxxvi). Child mortality rates were high, the majority of
children dying in early childhood. If a series of such deaths took place in a family, it was believed that
the same wicked spirit was being born and dying over and over again, spitefully grieving its parents.
What is done to break the cycle of birth and death (Ch. 9)? Why does Ekwefi prize her daughter Ezinma
so highly? Consider Okonkwo’s relationship to his daughter Ezinma and how he regards her compared
to how he regards Nwoye. What attitudes toward children does it reflect? How does the Igbo belief in
ogbanje and the efforts to break the cycle of birth and death contrast to the "enigma" of "throwing away"
of twins. Does Achebe seem to validate the belief in ogbanje?
- Ezinma’s mother was not able to successfully have a child for a long time. Ezinma is the product
of her ninth pregnancy. It was believed that the mother was being tormented by a spirit that
would be born only to die then be born again to die again. Ritualistic things were done in order to
cease this traumatic process. Thus, Ezinma was born. She was ill on and off throughout her
childhood. Every illness is a terrifying occurrence for them both. Ezinma is very precious to her
mother, and they have more of an equal relationship rather than a mother and child dynamic.
Their dynamic is very different from a typical relationship between a child and their mother.

8) Consider the case of Ikemefuna, what is the purpose of the taking of Ikemefuna? How does he come to
stay in Okonkwo’s home? What is Okonkwo's relationship with Ikemefuna? Compare Okonkwo’s
feelings to Nwoye’s affection for Ikemefuna? Why is Okonkwo disappointed with his son Nwoye?"
How has Nwoye begun to "act like a man" (Ch. 7)? What values does Okonkwo associate with
manliness? How does Nwoye relate to these values? What are the reasons and circumstances of
Ikemefuna’s death? Why does Okonkwo act as he does, despite the advice of others not to participate in
the killing of Ikemefuna (Ch. 7)? How does Nwoye feel and (re)act? Compare Okonkwo’s attitude
toward Nwoye to Okonkwo’s attitude toward his daughter Ezinma (presented in Ch. 8). In Chapter One,
how does Achebe foreshadow the presence (and ultimate fate) of Ikemefuna?
 - Ikemefuna comes to the village along with a woman as part of payment for a murder that took
place in Mbaino. The woman becomes another one of Okonkwo’s wives. It is decided that the
boy will stay with Nwoye and his mother. Nwoye and Ikemefuna become very close. All of
Okonkwo’s children become very fond of Ikemefuna and his stories. Okonkwo himself begins to
like having the boy around too. He has a good influence on Nwoye and makes him stronger,
which his father likes. The oracle declares that Ikemefuna must die one day. He is told that he is
returning to his home village. Nwoye is crushed and angered. On the journey home, Ikemefuna is
attacked by a man with a machete and Okonkwo takes part so he doesn’t appear as weak. This
has more of an effect on Okonkwo than he knows. Nwoye just knows that he is dead. He is very
angered and confused.

9) Even as Achebe works to educate his readers about African culture and to combat demeaning
stereotypes, he does not present Igbo society as ideal or perfect. The portrait of this culture on the eve of
its "falling apart" in Part I of Things Fall Apart is complex, sometimes contradictory, and critical. What
aspects of pre-colonial Igbo culture does Achebe seem to question or criticize? How does Achebe use
characters like Obierika, Okonkwo, and Nwoye to offer such social criticism of Igbo society? How do
the people of Umuofia react to change?
- The author uses Nwoye to embody the criticism and uncertainty in the traditional Igbo ways.
Nwoye feels like he has many unanswered questions about their ways of life. He does not
understand why they leave twin babies in the evil forest to die just because they are twins. He
doesn not understand why Ikemefuna had to die just because an oracle declared it. The author is
not afraid to show the flaws and controversy in the Igbo culture. The toxic masculine roles and
struggles are also portrayed in the story through Okonkwo.

10) Describe your initial reading experience and response(s) to Things Fall Apart Part I as a cross-cultural
encounter: how are you responding to this exposure to traditional Igbo culture and people? Why do you
think you are responding as you are? What seems most different and/or foreign to you? What seems
most similar and/or familiar to you?
- I have had a vague knowledge of Africa beforehand, but was ignorant of the specific cultural
elements that this book highlights. There are things I can admire about the culture, but also
things that I would not agree with. The toxic masculinity and gender roles is familiar and
expected. I have seen the portrayal of such in other depictions of African cultures. I have also
seen depictions of the same ideals in other traditional cultures. A lot of the spiritual and cultural
rituals and customs are foreign to me. I did not know much about what a traditional African
culture entails.