ENGLISH 740 Middle English Literature

Following insights from stylistic studies on European and American litera-ture, as well as a few earlier attempts on African literature, there has been a recent growing interest in the stylistic analysis of the African novel. The present study is meant to contribute to this growing literature by explor-ing Achebe's Anthills of the Savannah, primarily from a systemic functional linguistics perspective.

 

Critics of the novel have emphasized that it rep-resents Achebe's most articulate ideology on the sociopolitical situation of postcolonial Africa, in general, and Nigeria, in particular. The present study sheds new meaning on the thematic concern of the novel by explor-ing the interaction between narrative situation, transitivity patterning, and symbolism, on the one hand, and the characterization of Chris (one of the protagonists) and the themes of struggle and change, on the other hand.

 

The study demonstrates that the systematic variation in narrative situations and transitivity patterns in which Chris is cast across key passages in the plot of the narrative show a transformation in his character, from powerlessness and ineffectiveness through perplexity and fear to self-reformation and bravery. This narrative and linguistic configuration of Chris's character-ization, together with the symbolic intervention he makes in saving a girl from abuse towards the end of the novel, realizes the theme of struggle and change.

 

Through Chris, Achebe urges the enlightened but apathetic citizen to rise up and transform his society through struggle. The study has implications for studies on Anthills of the Savannah, stylistic analysis, and further research. It particularly shows that linguistic analysis and the tools of literary criticism can complement each other in the interpretation of literature. 

Introduction

Nigerian author Chinua Achebe is the author of the novel Things Fall Apart, which was published in 1958. It got fame as the modern African novel written in English. The novel is divided into three parts; the first part describes the protagonist Okonkwo’s life in the context of the customs of Igbo society. The second and third parts describe the influence of the Christian missionary and the British colonialism on Igbo community (Giltweasel.com, 2017).

Plot Summary

Okonkwo's Rise to Fame

The first part of the novel describes the rise of Okonkwo, the respected and the wealthy warriors of the Umufia. In contrast to the lazy and cowardly man Unoka, who was Okonkwo’s father, he became powerful warrior and clansman. In this section, the different rituals and beliefs of this ethnic community has been described (Giltweasel.com, 2017).

Okonkwo's Exile to Mbanta

In this section, when Okonkwo was in exile at Mbanta, the British empire started its colonization and the Christian missionaries started converting the religion of the village members to Christianity. Naturally, a confrontation occurred due to cultural clash and Okonkwo’s son had converted and was disowned by Okonkwo (Giltweasel.com, 2017).

Okonkwo's Return to Umuofia

In this section, Okonkwo returned to Umuofia with aspiration of reclaiming the position of power however, Umuofia had been changed drastically due to arrival of British. At the end of the novel, the British arrested the Umuofian leader (Giltweasel.com, 2017).

Themes

There are number of themes in this novel namely, cultural identity, warrior leader, violence and brutality and lastly masculinity (Kenalemang, 2013). The contradiction between the cultural identity and the new tradition has been presented by the reaction of many Africans presented in the novel. The character and actions of a warrior leader called Okonkwo and his passion for leading his clan has been presented by detailed analysis (Kenalemang, 2013). The writer depicted a world where violence and brutality are very common though have some limitations like, war is started with the permission of God always. The gender role and masculinity are deeply rooted in this novel (Kenalemang, 2013).

Historical Overview

The process of establishment of the colonial rule and its response are based on historical evidences. The Europeans came to Africa and established their colony destroying the culture of the African communities is an historical event that had been reflected in the novel (Kenalemang, 2013).

Critical Overview 

The novel introduced the African pre-colonial culture to the western readers in opposition to the justification of the Europeans that in Africa there is no history, civilization or government. This is the representation of a non-European point of view to the Europeans (Kenalemang, 2013). In Robert M. Wren's classic study of Achebe's writing, the author stated that Achebe portrayed an ordered society, which is based on a hierarchy of gods, ancestors, elders, and families.

Criticism 

Nnoromeleme has argued that the heroic status among Igbo community is based on the number of contradictions, which is presented, by Okonkwo’s social responsibility and the ambition for power presented in him. Thus, the hero’s downfall is related with the status, which he wanted to maintain as the heroic and warrior-type character (Kenalemang, 2013). 

References

Giltweasel.com. (2017). Retrieved 13 September 2017, from http://www.giltweasel.com/stuff/Things%20Fall%20Apart.pdf.

Kenalemang, L. M. (2013). Things Fall Apart: An Analysis of Pre and Post-Colonial Igbo Society.