Things Fall Apart

            In the history of human kind, the changes in political and economical grounds rarely win the favor of a community that enjoys its indigenous ways of living, even if the changes might improve its existence. In Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe, the author exemplifies the attitude of an indigenous people of Africa who face imperialist colonization. Primarily, the colonists search for converts to Christianity and, later on, establish institutions of government like the ones in their homeland. The uniqueness of Things Fall Apart lies in the author's tone, which stays neutral, not taking either side of the two conflicting societies, but stating the facts as they happen as an indifferent observer might. As the colonists conquer the African tribes, the reconstitution of the indigenous tribes" ways of living in the native lands favors not only the imperialists, but also the indigenous people.
             The change from a polytheistic to a monotheistic religion brings more unity to the indigenous people and values equality among all classes of social structure. The religious beliefs of one of the tribes, the Umuofians, are based on worshipping many gods and ancestral spirits. For example, Okonkwo, one of the Umuofians, believes in worshiping " the wooden symbols of his personal god and his ancestral spirits" (14), as do all his kinsmen. The polytheism of Ibo religion unconsciously separates the natives because of competition among various religious leaders and personal gods. The Umuofian society possesses religious deities who function as medicine men and oracles, and, on individual bases, every Umuofian associates his own personal god with variations in his or her destiny, luck, and misfortune. The indigenous people of Ibo society are divided by their own individualistic religious values, as the religious deities and their personal gods possess different faiths for every one on an individual basis; thus, separating the society from a unifying and inclusive principle.