Things Fall Apart (Audible Audio Edition) Chinua Achebe Peter Francis James Recorded Books Books
Download As PDF : Things Fall Apart (Audible Audio Edition) Chinua Achebe Peter Francis James Recorded Books Books
FOR USE IN SCHOOLS AND LIBRARIES ONLY. A classic novel about the confrontation of African tribal life with colonial rule tells the tragic story of a warrior whose manly, fearless exterior conceals bewilderment, fear, and anger at the breakdown of his society.
Things Fall Apart (Audible Audio Edition) Chinua Achebe Peter Francis James Recorded Books Books
One of the best books I've ever read, in my top five of all time, and I'm an English professor, so you know I've done some reading. I believe I read it in a matter of two or three hours the first time because I was desperate to know what was going to happen to Okonkwo and his kin with the invasion of European colonization. Do not be put off by what you may have heard about the violence and/or cruelty; there are a few parts where the content is a little rough, but the unflinching lack of sentimentalism - the matter-of-fact tone - makes the events tolerable. I teach a lot of folks who are older teens/early twenties, and honestly, I don't think this is a book that should be taught in high school or at the undergrad level because I think it actually helps to have some life behind you when you read it for the first time. If I knew in advance (which I never do) that I was going to have a class full of people over thirty, I would use it in a class without question. I would also say it's a must-read for men because of its powerful depictions of the conflicts between fathers, sons, and just male kinship relationships in general. Achebe also gives great insight into two strong powerful female characters, his second wife and one of his daughters, even though they have a minimal amount of page time.Product details
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Things Fall Apart (Audible Audio Edition) Chinua Achebe Peter Francis James Recorded Books Books Reviews
I used to teach a standard world history survey course. Its scope was so broad that it was jokingly labled the "Plato to NATO" course. The curriculum was set by the university, but I was able to choose the books I wanted to teach from. For the most part I used textbooks, but I could find no textbook that was anywhere near as effective as this novel, Things Fall Apart, in making the reality of colonialism in Africa comprehensible. Relatively few works of literature really merit the much-overused adjective "great," but this one certainly does. A few years ago the New York City Public Library put on display what it called the 100 Most Influential Books Ever Written. Alongside the Bible and the Koran, and works by Isaac Newton and Shakespeare, was Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe—a richly deserved honor. I want to also recommend a sequel to Things Fall Apart that Achebe wrote entitled No Longer At Ease. The sequel does a brilliant job of depicting the social reality of post-World War II neocolonialism, and does so as powerfully as its predecessor had depicted the earlier form of colonialism.
Purchased the version of this book after clicking on a google Doddle for the Author on the occasion of his birthday. Although I considered myself well read, I had never hear of the author or this particular book. Of course most of my insights into literature is based on the European centric literary bias that exist in the U.S. education system.
I am grateful for google for creating a doodle for a great writer that I was not previously exposed it. The book was an easy read, although the author is Nigerian, the book is narrated in British English. The book revolves around the life of local village leader in Nigeria inhabited by the Igbo people. The story dresses the effects and influence of British colonialism and Christian on the local population.
I enjoyed reading this book. Better late then never!!!
In this deceptively slim and elegantly written book there are at least three stories.
One is a story of traditional African village life and culture in full detail (including a glossary of African terms). This story begins late in the pre-colonial period, and occupies at least two-thirds of the book before moving almost imperceptibly into another story, that of the way in which the village people deal with the arrival of Christian missionaries and the eventual establishment of colonial authority (in this case, British).
It is also a life story of Okonkwo, a traditional African warrior of that time and culture. As Okonkwo matures and moves through early adulthood, the reader learns about the events in his life that shape the man he eventually becomes.
In one respect, this could be considered just another chapter in the tale of how Christianity served as seeming helpmate to European colonization of not only Africa but many natives of the New World. In this story, however, there are certain signs of early tolerance and attempts at mutual understanding. Later attitudes harden when the tolerant head of the local church is replaced by someone much more stiff-necked, setting in motion a train of events leading ultimately to tragedy.
For a story so simply told and without any real complicated plot twists, there are lots of interesting things to think about. Suggestions
- The story seems short on details concerning the way in which colonial power is established—one day the whites are barely worth mentioning in marketplace chatter, and almost overnight, their presence seems to have changed almost everything. But perhaps this is exactly the way in which that story would be told from a villager’s perspective.
- Tolerance is a major issue even today. Yet the villagers seemingly become victims of their own tolerant attitudes about the missionaries. If they had rejected them from the beginning, and had not allowed them to stay, things might have come out differently. By the time they recognized the destructive influence these beliefs had on their own lives, it was too late.
- After a church burning, the colonial district commissioner gives village leaders a speech about the justice system the British have brought them. However, this justice system is not in evidence at that time; instead, what is visited on those leaders is summary “justice” by the commissioner, followed by corruption on the part of his henchman as their penalty is raised even further.
An amazing little book with so much packed into it and so much to think about.
One of the best books I've ever read, in my top five of all time, and I'm an English professor, so you know I've done some reading. I believe I read it in a matter of two or three hours the first time because I was desperate to know what was going to happen to Okonkwo and his kin with the invasion of European colonization. Do not be put off by what you may have heard about the violence and/or cruelty; there are a few parts where the content is a little rough, but the unflinching lack of sentimentalism - the matter-of-fact tone - makes the events tolerable. I teach a lot of folks who are older teens/early twenties, and honestly, I don't think this is a book that should be taught in high school or at the undergrad level because I think it actually helps to have some life behind you when you read it for the first time. If I knew in advance (which I never do) that I was going to have a class full of people over thirty, I would use it in a class without question. I would also say it's a must-read for men because of its powerful depictions of the conflicts between fathers, sons, and just male kinship relationships in general. Achebe also gives great insight into two strong powerful female characters, his second wife and one of his daughters, even though they have a minimal amount of page time.
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