Cultural Similarities

As I began to read Achebe’s novel, Things Fall Apart, I was completely entranced by the Ibo (or better known today Igbo) culture. To me, this almost pastoral lifestyle is very picturesque, and extremely attractive. As I began to research different aspects of the Igbo culture online, something kept popping up that caught my attention every time. The most common search result on Google always had something to do with Achebe’s novel. It seems to me that the culture of the Igbo people was captured almost perfectly in his writing – especially if you consider that he was a member of an Igbo tribe himself. No matter what my search, whether it be on the people, food, religion, whatever, Things Fall Apart was constantly being sited.

The religion of the Igbo people is polycentric. There are many different gods, but the highest of them all would be Chukwu. There are three different levels of gods in the Igbo religion. For the most part, the gods in the lowest group are the trouble makers. This was really the only thing in my research that I found to be different from the novel. In Things Fall Apart, the most important gods include those of the earth, and the sky. I have a feeling that it was after the colonization that many things have also changed for the Igbos, and it is difficult to obtain proper information pre-colonization state.

Food was one of the closest related issues to Things Fall Apart, which is completely centered on the farming community of yams, and other tubers. I was very surprised to find out that fufu in fact has a more dough-like consistency than like that of a mashed potato. To eat fufu, the Igbos roll the fufu into a ball, then make an indentation in the fufu to scoop whatever stew or soup they are eating into the fufu. It serves as a utensil and a starch for the Igbos.

For me, the majority of customs in Things Fall Apart were not difficult to accept. I understood the difference between men and women because mostly of the time period. The people were farming to keep on surviving, there was no other point to life than to become a good farmer, and that was what made a man. The issue of polygamy does not really bother me in this situation either, because again it was in an effort to continue life, and for the most part, these large family groups did very well as they were. The only thing that really bothered me in the entire story was how the Igbo people discard twins. In my mind that is the single thing that I can not except. Though I understand it is the Igbo culture, I can not bring myself to be alright with abandoning babies in the woods to die, completely alone, cold, and most likely starving.

Things Fall Apart is an incredible story that opens the Western eye to a different point of view. It is interesting to see the variety in cultures that occur, and especially to see that even with as many differences between us, there is still one major goal. That is to raise a family, be prosperous, and above all to leave a legacy for yourself. (545)