English language and literature blog

The article, 'This is Water', by David Wallace discusses the idea that we as people put ourselves as the center of our universe while disregarding how people around us are feeling where the 'lack of empathy' factor plays in suggesting that we don't allow ourselves to empathize with the people around us but instead we create stereotypes off of first impressions. This can also be seen in Their Eyes Were Watching God, when Janie is judged by the people of her town in the beginning of the novel as they assume that Tea Cake had left her for a younger women. However, when Janie tells her story to Pheoby, she explains how she feels that she has lived her life to the fullest and now understands the meaning of love which is another common theme between the article and the novel since Wallace explains the importance of living through a situation to fully understand it. This can be seen when Janie was young and wanted to understand the feeling of love and had her own assumpti...

Chinua Achebe's Things Fall Apart, written in 1958, is a novel about Nigeria's journey to independence through the perspective of Okonkwo who is a respected Igbo man representing the traditions and values of the Igbo tribe. His fear of becoming like his father and his inability to adapt to changes of colonization causes conflict between him and the tribe which later on highlights the complexities within the Igbo culture. Achebe's portrayal of the Igbo tribe shows both the highs and lows of their values and traditions in order to abstain readers from romanticizing life before colonization.

What is the  significance of Okonkwo’s character?  What does he   represent   or is   symbolic   of? Okonkwo is the protagonist of Things Fall Apart, where he is known for his fear of becoming his father whom he was embarrassed by because of his laziness and feminine characteristics. This fear made Okonkwo show no kindness or respect towards those with no title and made him treat his wife and children in an abusive way to ensure that no one considered him as weak or feminine. Additionally, Okonkow is known for winning a wrestling match against the cat which allowed him to earn his respect among the villagers, he is also known for his large yam harvest and having three wives. Achebe uses Okonkwo to explore and represent the different aspects of the Igbo culture, showing both the good and bad through the traditions and customs that they follow. Okonkwo's attitude towards life contributes to his fatal death which symbolizes the effects of colonization on the...

In my opinion, one of the most important events from things fall apart is the death of Okonkwo at the end of the novel and this is because the death of the protagonist symbolizes Achebe's main reason for writing the novel which is colonization from another point of view. This suicide shows how cultures and systems are taken over as it starts to fall apart and the effects it has on the people it is being inflicted upon. It also reflects Okonwo's weakness and failure and how it took over his pride as he was no longer the leader of his village so he decides to kill himself which creates a conflict within the novel. The second most important part would be Nwoye joining the church because this foreshadows the falling apart of the Umofia since it shows how Nwoye fell apart and decided to join the church which symbolizes the weakness of the tribe. This event is important to the conflict because it shows how Umofia is falling apart and characterizes Nwoye as a parallel to his father...

Why would Achebe choose to set his novel prior to and during the arrival of the colonial administration as opposed to during the context of production? The reason for Achebe choosing to set his novel prior to and during the arrival of the colonial administration  as opposed to during the context of production would be that he is part of the movement for an independent Nigeria. All stories about the colonization of Nigeria were told by the British who portrayed them as savages and living amongst each other and the British presented themselves as having a moral obligation  of civilizing the Africans because they would have not been able to do it themselves. Since Achebe's reasoning behind the book is to tell the story of the civilization and independence of Nigeria from his peoples perspective, it makes sense to set the novel back to the very beginning  of the colonization by the British which then gives  justice to the  existing  customs, and flaws o...

In the tempest, shakespeare communicates the theme of forgiveness through the protagonist's actions who in the beginning of the play shows the need to get revenge on his brother for taking his throne from him and on the nobles for not helping him through his hard times. However when Prospero gets a chance to complete this desire, he chooses to forgive them instead showing character growth and wisdom allowing the audience to understand the value of forgiveness. Additionally, Shakespeare presents themes of power as the play is revolved around the need to gain power as many characters are locked into a power struggles for their freedom and the need to have power and control over land.