Note #25

The personal history of an author can have a significant influence on the way meaning is constructed in his/her writing. 

Achebe has constructed Things Fall Apart to reflect his own beliefs and challenge the stereotypical view of Africans as savages. 

1. Achebe aimed to find the equilibrium between Igbo culture and Christianity, two aspects that had been been major spheres of influence in his life. His quest to depict a harmonious balance between the two was embodied by Nwoye and Mr. Brown, while Enoch and Mr. Smith represented the antithetical forces that obstructed this balance.  His association with both resulted in an almost laconic style of writing wherein he refused to justify, explain, or condemn the occurrences in the book.
   
2. He incorporates traditional Igbo customs and language into the novel in their unadulterated form to express an untampered depiction of Igbo society through an authentic lens. For example, the incorporation of proverbs provides a deeper insight into the thought process of the Igbo and allows the reader to approach the novel from a punctilious perspective.
   
3. His main objective in writing this book was to defy the unjust portrayal of Africans as primitive savages. He aimed to stand for those who had been stripped of their voices due to decades of colonialism that had resulted in a single story of Africa being popularised.