Gender Does Not Entirely Fall Apart
Admittedly, the novel necessarily brings to light the inherent sexism existent in Ibo ideology, particularly evident through the hyper-masculinization of the main character, Okonkwo, and his unquestioning adherence to the discriminatory nature of patriarchal traditions. In the beginning of the novel, Achebe presents the grounds for Okonkwo’s obsessive desire to embody all things masculine. Umuofia, the fictional Ibo village where the novel takes place, defines the worth of an individual based on a patriarchal value system. The ultimate honor and what is expected of all good “men,” is to take a title, work hard to produce crops, and to have and provide for multiple wives and children. According to these standards, Unoka, Okonkwo’s father, was not a man in the traditional sense. Not only was Unoka lazy and irresponsible, but perhaps more importantly “when Unoka died he had taken no title at all and he was heavily in debt. Any wonder then that his son Oknonkwo was ashamed of him” (Achebe 8). Since Unoka does not fulfill the expectations of his gender specific role, he is looked down upon and referred to as an “agbala” (13). In fact, “that was how Okonkwo first came to know that agbala was not only another name for a woman, it could also mean a man who had taken no title. And so Okonkwo was ruled by one passion – to hate everything that his father had loved. One of those things was gentleness and another was idleness” (13). In a patriarchal setting such as Umuofia, this feminization of Unoka, typical in Umofian discourse, is meant to demean his accomplishments as a “man” particularly by equating him to the inferior status, “woman.”
An amalgamation of Unoka’s deviant masculinity and the sexist discourse present and perpetuated in the traditions of Umuofia, coerces Okonkwo into an obsessive relationship with the masculine image. Accordingly, Okonkwo constructs his ideal masculine self in opposition to his more “feminine” father and in line with the patriarchal standards of Umuofia. It is within this framework that “Okonkwo's masculinity becomes a defensive resource and his adherence to a masculine philosophy will thenceforth order his world” (Osei-Nyame 151). In fact, Okonkwo even becomes one of the leaders of the clan, one of his only aspirations, but is always “dominated by fear, the fear of failure and of weakness” (Achebe 13). This fear is central to Okonkwo’s construction of masculinity as it dominates his perception of the world and the way he interacts within it.
In order to resist feminization, in any sense of the term, Okonkwo negatively constructs a hyper masculine identity. This masculinity to an exponential degree is detrimental to his character, and those who encounter him, as it opposes all things aligned with femininity. In fact, “Okonkwo never showed any emotion openly, unless it be the emotion of anger. To show affection was a sign of weakness; the only thing worth demonstrating was strength” (Achebe 28). As emotion, in patriarchal ideology, is essentially female and as a consequence considered ‘weak’, Okonkwo outwardly projects only ‘strength’ or masculinity.
Even in cases where Okonkwo is emotionally disturbed by the traditions of Umuofia, he adheres to this masculinist image that he has constructed for himself. One such instance can be explored through the murder of his “adopted” son, Ikemefuma. Although Okonkwo had grown emotionally attached to Ikemefuma, as he had become a son to him, when The Oracle of the Hills and Caves orders the destruction of his “adopted” son, Okonkwo adheres without resistance. In fact, not only does he fail to question the unfounded custom, but also “dazed with fear, Okonkwo drew his machete and cut him [Ikemefuma]. He was afraid of being weak” (Achebe 61). This fear of “weakness” and feminization in Okonkwo, propels the unwarranted murder of an innocent boy. Though Okonkwo is inwardly tormented by his act, perhaps only temporarily, it is more important to him to demonstrate his hyper masculinity than to risk the possibility of being called an “effeminate man” (58). Although this act in itself is presented as a criticism of Okonkwo’s self propelled hyper masculinization, Achebe emphasizes his critique through Obrieka, Okonkwo’s closest friend in the novel. Ashamed of Okonkwo, Obrieka declares, “if the Oracle said that my son should be killed I would neither dispute it nor be the one to do it” (67). According to Kwadwo Osei-Nyame’s “Chinua Achebe Writing Culture: Representations of Gender and Tradition in ‘Things Fall Apart'"
we can argue that the ideology of culture establishes a ‘structure of feeling’ and the selective tradition of a dominant culture when we trace the modes by which Okonkwo's adherence to certain values and ideals and Umuofia's validation of these values converge to generate the masculine nationalist tradition represented by Things Fall Apart. (152)
This, I believe, is exemplified through the murder of Ikemefuma and the aftermath of the event. Problematically, the only individual to reprimand Okonkwo for killing Ikemefuma is Obierka, while the rest of Umuofia remains silent. It is this silence and failure to punish, or even interrogate, this action that establishes Umuofia’s validation of Okonkwo’s hyper masculinity. Throughout the novel, Achebe critiques this “masculine nationalist tradition” inherent in Ibo ideology through Okonkwo’s construction of a destructive masculinity and his uncritical adherence to the patriarchal customs, no matter the sacrifice for himself and others.
Arguably, this hyper masculinization and subservience to nationalist ideology is the basis for Okonkwo’s suicide. Before the colonization of Umuofia, Okonkwo is exiled to his motherland for the accidental murder of another Umuofian. This banishment only functions to perpetuate Oknonkwo’s desire to attain an ultimate masculine image as “he was determined that his return should be marked by his people. He would return with a flourish, and regain the seven wasted years” (Achebe 172). When he cannot attain his goals of reestablishing himself as a leader in the clan, due to changes brought on by colonialism, Okonkwo is distraught. And though it was “not just a personal grief [as,] he mourned for the clan, which he saw breaking up and falling apart,” he equates the failure of his clan to resist colonial rule to “the warlike men of Umuofia, who had become soft like women” (183).
By the end of the novel, colonialism has infiltrated Umuofia to the extent that Okonkwo can no longer establish power through his masculinity. Though he murders a white man to liberate Umuofia from the colonialist powers, “he knew that Umuofia would not go to war. He knew because they had let the other messengers escape. They had broken into tumult instead of action” (205). In this moment, Okonkwo recognizes the limitations of his own masculinity and the inability of the others to fulfill his hyper masculine ideal. Instead of trying to resist colonialism in a “non-masculine” way (a way which does not involve exerting physical strength or force), Okonkwo chooses to end his life. As a consequence of his attachment to a hyper masculine identity and the nationalist traditions which, in his eyes, cannot be reconciled with any colonial traditions, Okonkwo can no longer function in society. Through his suicide, Achebe conveys that death is the only resolution for Okonkwo, who cannot let go of his idealized construction of masculinity or imagine a life beyond the nationalist traditions of his society, which are also flawed.
Furthermore, Achebe’s novel can be considered feminist for its portrayal of strong female characters in varying social roles. One such character is Chielo, the priestess of Agbala. As a priestess, Chielo is in a high position of power, a role usually reserved for men in patriarchal societies. Due to her position, Chielo has the potential to disrupt the inequality present in the Ibo community as both men and women must revere her and heed her authority. Interestingly, even the hyper masculine Okonkwo cannot deny her authority when she calls to take his daughter, Ezinma, to the Oracle of the Hills. Though he pleads to let Ezinma rest, Chielo screams in response, “Beware of exchanging words with Agbala. Does a man speak when a god speaks? Beware! [And] she walked through Okonkwo’s hut into the circular compound and went straight toward Ekwefi’s hut” (101). Her station in Umuofia affords Chielo a significant amount of power and allows her to speak to men in this way. She disregards his plea and demeans him as the men in Umuofia demean women, when she points out his insignificance in relation to a god. In her case, the god speaks through her and, therefore, she is closer to god then any of the Umuofian men. In addition, it is important to note that Achebe constructs Chielo’s character as a “widow with two children” (49). By depicting Chielo as a woman of power, as well as a widow, Achebe argues that strong women are often independent of men. Consequently, Chielo is capable of controlling her life, without the influence of traditional “men,” in both her role as a priestess as well as in her role as a “woman.”
Unlike Chielo, Ekwefi is both mother and wife, and it is through these roles that she challenges the patriarchal system that deems her “inferior.” Although Umuofia affords women little agency because of its elevation of the masculine identity, Ekwefi consistently defies the expectations of the subordination of her sex. In fact, Ekwefi “did not marry [Okonkwo] then because he was too poor to pay her bride-price. But a few years later she ran away from her husband and came to live with Okonkwo” (40). This act of defiance sets up the strength of Ekwefi’s character. Though the patriarchal system demands that she be faithful to the one who can “pay” enough money to essentially own her, she rejects submission to this oppressive system by choosing her own husband. Another depiction of Ekwefi’s strength as a character and arguably her defiance of the masculine tradition is evident in her pursuit of Chielo, who takes Enizma hostage to Agbala . According to Osei-Nyame, “Ekwefi's pursuit of Chielo actually disregards the masculine traditions of the clan, for Chielo is merely the messenger of Agbala, the male deity” (157). Contrary to Okonkwo, Ekwefi is capable of recognizing and then confronting the masculinist traditions of her society in her refusal to stay at home and await the fate of Enizma. Her love for her daughter holds more strength then the patriarchal system that attempts to chain her to her subordination.
In my opinion, the most prominent female character of the text is Enizma, a young girl who, in the beginning of the novel, resists the expected submission of her age and sex. In fact, Achebe characterizes her in opposition to other Umuofian children. Enzinma, ‘unlike most children, called her mother by her name” (Achebe 40). According to patriarchal tradition, it is inappropriate to refer to one’s parents by their first names. Though she is a child, Enzinma establishes herself on the same level as the adults. Instead of internalizing a sense of inferiority because of her sex and her youth, Enzinma projects a sense of strength and confidence. It is also important to note that Enzinma neither fears her father, Okonkwo, nor his hyper masculinity. As a result, she is consistently questioning Okonkwo and often in these questions reveals to her father and the reader, the limitations of the sex/gender binaries. This is best articulated when Ezinma asks her father if she can bring his chair to the wrestling match. While he responds, “no, that is a boy’s job” (44), he cannot help but wish that Ezinma was a boy because unlike his actual son, “she has the right spirit” (63). Significantly, this calls into question the way in which gender is constructed in Umuofia and problematizes the assignment of roles based on sex/gender categories. Although Okonkwo does nothing to challenge these categories, neither for himself nor his daughter, the inquiry is a challenge in itself.
While this may seem sufficient enough to consider this text feminist, the novel functions to perpetuate a sexist ideology, perhaps unintentionally, in its treatment of the female characters. In a patriarchal society, the woman experience is considered subordinate or inferior to the male experience. And though the male experience is depicted thoroughly in Things Fall Apart, the female experience is only partially developed. In the beginning of the novel, Achebe establishes strong female characters only to later erase their identity and/or their resilience from the text. According to Kenneth Harrow’s article, “‘I'm not a (Western) feminist but...’: A Review of Recent Critical Writings on AfricanWomen's LiteratureAuthor(s)”, this trend is seen in much of African literature written by men. It is Harrow’s belief that sexism is perpetuated in texts due to “the radical failings of the men to come to terms with their patriarchal assumptions, even when, in the most recent period, they consciously attempted to adopt a feminist critique” (172). It can be argued that although Achebe adopts and in many ways communicates a feminist critique, he fails to overcome his own “patriarchal assumptions” by erasing the identity and experience of the three most prominent female characters from the text.
Although Achebe establishes Chielo in a position of power, problematically the potential influence of her character never comes to fruition. While Chielo has the ability to disrupt the masculinist tradition when she takes Enzinma to Agabala, there is no evidence of any actual challenge to the patriarchal system. If indeed she was indoctrinating Enzinma into the life of a priestess and instilling in her a resistance to the patriarchy, there is no evidence of this in the text. In fact, once Ezinma is returned home, neither she nor Chielo speaks “a word to anybody” (Achebe 111). If that is not problematic enough, the incident is completely ignored by all the other characters in the novel and then seems to be completely erased, as it is never again mentioned. In lieu of this, if we take into consideration that “Chielo is merely the messenger of Agbala, the male deity” (Osei-Nyame 157), then it may be that her resistance to the patriarchal system in which she exists is always limited. Perhaps then, Chielo is in a position of “power” because she is widowed so that the patriarchy can enforce her submission to masculinity and restrict her deviance to a controllable extent. And though it can be argued that she is a strong female character regardless of her subservience to the male deity, Achebe erases her identity from the text altogether after this episode, with the exception of a brief mention or two. Without further development of her character or this potentially disruptive occurrence, Achebe fails to solidify a feminist message through Chielo.
Ekwefi suffers a similar fate in the novel once the Chielo/Enzimna episode comes to an end. Although Osei-Nyame asserts that “Ekwefi's defiance of Agbala constitutes an important statement on her challenge of Umuofia's sacrosanct masculine traditions” (158), it is necessary to recognize the limitations of this interpretation. While Ekwefi admittedly defies the masculinist tradition in her pursuit of Chielo, as is mentioned above, she never actually enters the cave of Agbala. Instead, Chielo comes out with Ezinma on her back, finding Ekwefi and Okonkwo “at the mouth of the cave” (Achebe 111). In this sense, Ekwefi only partially challenges the masculinist traditions, as she journeys to the cave only to wait outside, for fear of the consequences of completely disregarding the tradition. Perhaps this problem would have been remedied if Ekwefi had been critical of the incident and questioned Enzimna as to what had occurred when she returned from the cave. Instead, Ekwefi continues to go along with status quo, only happy to have her daughter safe at home. Once Enzimna is home and order is restored, Achebe seems to erase Ekwefi’s character from the text. Like Chielo, any mention of her afterwards is both minor and insignificant. With further development, Ekwefi’s potential for subversion could have been fully realized, but instead an ambiguity surrounds her character and this incident.
Like the other two women in the novel, even the most prominent female character is full of disruptive potential in the beginning, but exists only in moments throughout the remainder of the text. While Aji and Ellworth argue that “Enzinma loses her prominence partly because the culture that validates her identity is seriously challenged by the introduction of the alien values of Christianity” (173), I would argue that this is not sufficient enough to explain her erasure from the text. In fact, the culture has never fully validated her identity to begin with because she always exists in an inferior position, due to the imbalanced nature of the patriarchal system. In addition, the validation of Okonkwo’s identity is challenged by the Christian values introduced by the colonizers, and Achebe does not remove his character from the text. Problematically, Achebe establishes her strength, only to depict her blindly accepting her role as a Umuofian “woman” in the end to appease her father. In fact, “Many young men and prosperous middle-aged men of Mbanta came to marry [Eniznma]. But she refused them all, because her father had called her one evening and said to her: ‘There are many good and prosperous people here, but I shall be happy if you marry in Umuofia when we return home’” (Achebe 173). The motivation for Enzinma to wait for marriage until their return to Umuofia is Okonkwo’s desire to reestablish his hyper masculine identity within his original clan. And in line with his request, she marries once they return to Umuofia, thereby functioning to further develop and perpetuate Okonkwo’s masculine identity.
According to feminist theory and criticism, “to be excluded from a literature that claims to define one’s identity is to experience a peculiar form of powerlessness” (Fetterley 444). This powerlessness is manifested in Achebe’s erasure of the three prominent female characters, who never reach their full disruptive potential. Similarly, the woman identified reader may experience a sense of powerless when realizing that the “woman” identity has been established only to be erased. Though the novel relates feminist sentiments, it ultimately fails to portray a feminist message through its female characters. Perhaps Things Fall Apart is instead “registering the tragedy of sexism through its cost to men” (Fetterley 445), therefore, portraying a subconsciously sexist message.
Ultimatley, Achebe’s novel Things Fall Apart contains contradictory messages in its relation to the female identity. While the female characters are portrayed as strong individuals, upon closer reading they seem to challenge the system only to later reinforce it. Perhaps Achebe simply did not know how to approach the female’s disruption of the patriarchal system while simultaneously portraying the effects of colonialism upon the male identity. Or perhaps, the simple solution was to erase the “woman” identity from the text when it was no longer needed to establish the male’s. Although it cannot be denied that Achebe adopts a feminist critique through Okonkwo’s hyper masculinity and respective downfall, there are serious flaws in the novel. These flaws seem to communicate a sexist perspective, reproducing the erasure of female resistance and identity conducted by the patriarchy for hundreds of years.
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| Chinua Achebe |
Achebe, Chinua. Things Fall Apart. New York: Anchor, 1994. Print.
Aji, Aron, and Kirsten L. Ellsworth. “Ezinma: The 'Ogbjanje' Child in Achebe's 'Things Fall Apart'” College Literature 19/20.3 (1992): 170-75. JSTOR. Web. 24 Nov. 2010.
Fetterley, Judith. “The Resisting Reader.” Feminist Literary Theory and Criticism: a Norton Reader. By Sandra M. Gilbert and Susan Gubar. New York: W.W. Norton, 2007. 443-47. Print.
Harrow, Kenneth W. ""I'm Not a (Western) Feminist But...": A Review of Recent Critical Writings on African Women's Literature." Research in African Literatures 29.3 (1998): 171-90. JSTOR. Web. 27 Nov. 2010.
Osei-Nyame, Kwadwo. “Chinua Achebe Writing Culture: Representations of Gender and Tradition in ‘Things Fall Apart’.” Research in African Literatures 30.2 (1999): 148-64. Print.
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