babyosisi:

The essence of that whole novel was Obviously lost on you sonny boy
That is what tribalism can do to a young mind
Things fall apart showcased a people who had their own culture and beliefs systems and their ways of dealing with everything including illnesses
It showcased their sports and past times
It showed a powerful man that worked hard and provided for his family
It had romance
It talked about their celebrations and act of worship
Their revered customs
Their justice system
It showed a people that had a life and rich culture before the white man set his foot in their continent so much so that they resisted the white man and his new religion
That is why the book had the title it did
The white man came and things had fallen apart was a quote in the book
You obviously missed it all
Pele
Your post was nauseating

Dudu_Negro:

In a closed system when Things Fall Apart, it is followed by chaos and disorderliness....breakdown of order. They system is not self correcting and so you need an external and independent intervention to step in and re-order it.

Okonkwo is the main character. He hated his own father, direspected his son, showed no affection to his surrogate/adopted son....who he later slaughtered, violently beat his own wife, was outlawed from his own community......the list goes on.

Igbo is not the only tribe in Africa. Go and read books written by Africans about their culture and their people, you will appreciate how much damage Things Fall Apart did in its portrayal of the Igbos. If it wasnt white people who had an agenda, complemented by TFA, no one would know of Achebe in world literature.

Here is a summary for those interested in Achebe's glory, Things Fall Apart.

http://m.sparknotes.com/lit/things/summary.html

Wole Soyinkas most popular poem IMHO is Abiku
Does it show africans in the same light you speak because it is not talking about taking the Abiku to a hospital to be treated for sickle cell anemia

babyosisi:

*waka*

babyosisi:

You are talking like a broken record
All Africans agree that with Things fall apart for the first time they saw a book they could relate to
Oliver Twist and Huckleberry Finn were set in the ages and showcased abject poverty in old England and abuse of children

Things fall apart was also set back in the day before the white man came to Africa
Did you expect him to write that Africans were living in skyscrapers and sipping champagne?
See what tribalism can do

Dudu_Negro:

We must look into the character of Okonkwo against the background of Umuofia and compare with the stories written by your so called "All Africans" whose writings about their own people were grandeur and noble in character and setting. Media hype is one thing, comparative literature is another!

Listen to Prof. Wole Soyinka and drop your tribal crusade.

The Trials of Brother Jero ~ “Brother Jero is a self-styled ‘prophet,’
an evangelical con man who ministers to the gullible and struts with
self-importance over their dependence on him

The play follows him through a typical day: he acts as kind of tourist guide, displaying himself to the audience, explaining, demonstrating how he manages to live by his wits

He is pursued and cursed by his aged mentor, whose territory he has taken over. He is besieged by a woman creditor who turns out to be the tyrannical wife of his chief disciple

He converts a pompous, painfully timid Member of Parliament with prophecies of a ministerial post. And all day he tries to resist the endless temptation of beautiful women the play is delightfully picturesque and entertaining” ~ Michael Smith (M8,F6)

Wole Soyinkas most popular poem IMHO is AbikuDoes it show africans in the same light you speak because it is not talking about taking the Abiku to a hospital to be treated for sickle cell anemia 

Dudu_Negro:

Your opinion on this work is irrelevant. The opinion of his peers is what counts.

Beside, to understand and speak on abiku you first need to understand the cultural rites of the abiku phenomenon. Prof. Soyinka writes from spirit, not from his brain. His brain only give expression the apparitions formed in the spirit....and many critics have argued that if you read Wole Soyinka be prepared to go into the depths where mortals fear to go. Do you think he got Nobel Prize for writing about virulent social chaos?

babyosisi:


See this




So here Wole Soyinka has depicted Africans as 419ers?
Is that why he won the Nobel eventually? Because the white man agreed
Put Wole through the same silly lens you choose to look through and see how stewpid your argument looks

Crayola1:

And Soyinka protested this injustice of Achebe's by reprising a role in a film/play based on that same book by Achebe.

So you are saying Soyinka was too dumb to notice all these things you are claiming? Or maybe you are full of it?

Based on events that took place in Oyo, an ancient Yoruba city of Nigeria, in 1946, Wole Soyinka's powerful play concerns the intertwined lives of Elesin Oba, the king's chief horseman; his son, Olunde, now studying medicine in England; and Simon Pilkings, the colonial district officer. The king has died and Elesin, his chief horseman, is expected by law and custom to commit suicide and accompany his ruler to heaven. The stage is set for a dramatic climax when Pilkings learns of the ritual and decides to intervene and Elesin's son arrives home. "Soyinka both entertains and asks subtle questions about mass psychology, individual psychology, and universal human struggles of the will."—Chicago Tribune

babyosisi:

Hahahaha ha
Good one

And when in death and the Kings horsemen set in Yoruba culture depicting lust and ritual suicide,sorcery et al,what was he depicting to the world @ dudu negro.
Amazing the things we overlook and the things we choose to seen when blinded by tribalism

Oh dear
I am done here.

babyosisi:

I re-read the book some years ago,you cannot imagine the number of strangers that told me they read it
When I carried around his memoir and read,I had people tell me they read his things fall apart in high school
It s a great feeling to see Americans acknowledge a celebrated author from Nigeria rather than talk about the 419 gang on the evening news
And here people want to belittle the book because tribalism gets the better part of them
Most of them can't make a point coherent enough for an ordinary nairaland "thank you" from any intelligent poster , let alone write an acceptable article for a backyard newspaper

CHinua was 28 or 29 years old when he wrote Things fall apart as a hobby and thought to have it published
He didn't set out to be famous
But the book brought him fame and fortune and exposed the world to African literature like never before
That is a big deal
Anyone trying to downplay it is foolish

RIP to the father of African literature

percipi1:
The question that arises from this complement is this- what is modern African Literature? Are we talking of African literatures written in English or French, Portuguese, Arabic etc or are we talking of African literatures written in the indigenous languages like Swahili, Yoruba, Ashanti, creole, Igbo, etc.?

Soyinka both entertains and asks subtle questions about mass psychology, individual psychology, and universal human struggles of the will."—Chicago Tribune

CHinua was 28 or 29 years old when he wrote Things fall apart as a hobby and thought to have it publishedHe didn't set out to be famousBut the book brought him fame and fortune and exposed the world to African literature like never beforeThat is a big dealAnyone trying to downplay it is foolish

Afam4eva:
Africa is Africa. Literature is Literature. Whether you write in Igbo, Yoruba, English, Ewe or French, it doesn't matter.

Dudu_Negro:

The works of Soyinka is compared to the Greek classics. Myths and Rituals, Perversion and Force. Through his works the myths and rituals of Yoruba classical works and the role of the deities in Yoruba cosmology has gained global appreciation and understanding. Soyinka unveils what is noble and grandeur and forces the world, particularly Europe to study Yoruba Art comparatively.

percipi1:

Sir, I beg to disagree with you. Your view obfuscate the richness and broad ambience of the African literary world. You appears to be saying that Europe is Europe, whether you write in French, polish, Hungarian, English, German, Spanish, Italian or Dutch does not matter. That is why you can never have a "Father of Modern European literature"

Afam4eva:
It's funny that it's only now, that we're Diggin deep to find reasons why someone shouldn't be called the father of modern African literature yet we've been calling the likes of Micheal jackson, king of pop and James Brown, the king of rock and roll and no one bat an eyelid. When they were being given this title by popular knowledge no one considered those who sang in French, Spanish, Igbo, Yoruba, Hausa etc.

percipi1:

In all honesty, I do not follow you line of reasoning. I have not contested The title . I have only said that it should be construed within the context of Achebe's role as the first advisory editor to Heinemann. Through him, a lot of African writers were discovered and nurtured. Nadine Gordinmer who gave him the title was one of them and she later got a Nobel. Achebe did not nurture any Igbo, Ashanti, french , Swahili or Yoruba writer so he cannot not be accepted as influencing literatures in those languages.

Regarding Michael and James brown, they are considered such as pop and rock and roll originated from the US and both are considered as the biggest influence in those genres. None of them has been labelled the " father of American music" This logically gives a lie to the basis of your contention


HEY IS LIKE YOU CAN NOT UNDERSTAND A SIMPLE ENGLISH NOW READ CHINUA ACHEBE IS THE FATHER OF MODERN AFRICAN LITERATURE NOT FATHER OF AFRICAN LITERATURE

percipi1:

In all honesty, I do not follow you line of reasoning. I have not contested The title . I have only said that it should be construed within the context of Achebe's role as the first advisory editor to Heinemann. Through him, a lot of African writers were discovered and nurtured. Nadine Gordinmer who gave him the title was one of them and she later got a Nobel. Achebe did not nurture any Igbo, Ashanti, french , Swahili or Yoruba writer so he cannot not be accepted as influencing literatures in those languages.

Regarding Michael and James brown, they are considered such as pop and rock and roll originated from the US and both are considered as the biggest influence in those genres. None of them has been labelled the " father of American music" This logically gives a lie to the basis of your contention

Afam4eva:
But what majority of people like is the best in that clime.

thrugemaster:

you are right in a way........ But the main issue on ground is the un-necessary arguments based on triviality which has anchorage on the genre of tribalism and sentiments.

I personally prefer Achebe but that does not mean Achebe is better than Soyinka ( i cant give an answer on that).

That is left for literary critics and prima donnas to judge......... But all I can say is that i have a particular affinity towards Achebe's works

shymexx: Damn son!!! I had to read the interview again before I hit the sheet!!

This man is God's gift to Nigeria!!

Anyone who understands English language should be able to decipher those multi-syllable words in the context in which he used them without the aid of a dictionary. However, the most eye-catching thing about the interview, is the structure of the sentences, and the way he was able to intelligently answer the questions directly and succinctly.

I want to meet this man!

Afam4eva:
What's it with all these dimensions that you guys keep bringing. What has language got to do with being called the father of modern African literature? you guys don't seize to amaze me.

percipi1:

Afam, I will ask you one simple question. On what basis did you come to accept Chinua Achebe as the father of modern African literature? It's it on the basis of Nadine Gordimer's famous complement of your personal opinion?