Achebe's "Things Fall Apart"

As we can see from Part 1 of "Things Fall Apart", the centuries-old Ibo culture was well functioning and civilized before the white Europeans came. We can admire certain aspects of their culture including their marriage rituals, a cash crop to provide for their families, and a way to avoid war. The Ibo culture also had a system of titles, a council of elders, and a court system. This shows that they were self-sustaining and had a way of life that worked for them. However, things began to change from within the culture, even before the arrival of the white man. Some members of the clan started questioning why certain people had to be sacrificed or murdered. Also, some wondered why twins needed to be thrown into the Evil Forest. Even Okonkwo deviates from the expected practices of the clan when he kills the man's son, even though it was accidental. Because of it, he was exiled from his father's land for seven years. In addition, some may have been surprised when he killed Ikemefuna himself. All of these things led Nwoye, Okonkwo's son, to follow the missionaries upon their arrival. Nwoye questioned the actions of his father and the clan, and he saw Christianity as a better option.

So, why did the society fall apart?
1. Christianity
     -The church disproved many of the Igbo superstitions
     -Encouraged the Igbo to break traditions
2. Settlers
     -Killed the village of Abame
     -Attempted to convert the rest, while imposing their power on the land
3. Igbo Tribe
     -Lack of central structure made the tribes easy to separate and convert/conquer
     -Couldn't offer a consolidated defense against invaders and their customs