Global Journal of Human-Social Science, A: Arts and Humanities, Volume 22 Issue 4

for purposes they do not have proper tools for. Important events in Things Fall Apart are never accurately dated. The narrator, regardless of his omniscience and his strong grasp of all events past and present, only provides approximate dates, even for the most important events in the novel. For example, Ikemefuna, we read, “came to Umuofia at the end of the care-free season between harvest and planting” (p. 24). The reader cannot tell exactly when Ikemefuna actually joined Umuofia, but he/she gains an inside knowledge of the activities the Igbo consider of importance. This rather unorthodox way of situating important events in relation to farming seasons is very indicative of a community where orature is the norm. All throughout the novel, Achebe provides ample evidence attesting to the oral nature of the Igbo society. In Things Fall Apart , Igbo imagery, onomatopoeias, songs, proverbs as well as short stories are extensively used to capture the tone and rhythm in the village of Umuofia and to give a greater sense of authenticity to Achebe’s narrative. As early as the opening pages of the novel, the reader gauges the all- important role that drums play in this traditionally oral community. With the Igbo indeed, drums, just like humans, do speak and have a language of their own. Be it at wrestling contests (p. 1), to convene important meetings (p. 7), or simply to announce big events (p. 78), the Igbo people learn how to listen to the sounding of the drums in order to interpret messages and respond to calls for community meetings. While expressions like “Gome, gome, gome, gome” (p. 7), and “Diim! Diim! Diim!” (p. 106) obviously imitate the sounds of drums, phrases like “Aru oyim de de de dei!” (78), “Oji odu achu ijiji-o-o!” (p. 100) and “Umuofia obodo dike” (p. 106), for which Achebe provides no translation or definition, capture the esoteric language of the spirits English could not capture, but Igbo could. With drums and other musical instruments like “ekwe,” “udu,” or “ogene” (p. 4), Achebe describes a community for whom hearing is of paramount importance. With phrases such as “the story was told,” (p. 23) Achebe makes an overt nod to his African oral traditions and reaffirms the importance of storytelling in Igboland. On various instances, animal images are used not only to tell stories, but also to teach important lessons to audiences in attendance. Throughout Things Fall Apart , Achebe saturates his narrative voice with characteristics of spoken discourse indicative of an initial Igbo utterance in a deliberate gesture to reinforce the validity of his native culture. More than just characteristics of orature, Achebe also incorporates songs, litanies and incantations to speak to his people’s religious beliefs. The populations of Umuofia, the reader learns from Achebe’s language, are deeply rooted in their traditions and culture. Throughout the novel, the narrator recounts in detail how the spirits and deities of this polytheist society influence the lives of people in Umuofia. Extensive descriptions of sacrifices and rituals to appease and please supernatural entities are provided (p. 91). Ani, the Goddess of the Earth, principally, is the object of much veneration for the land needs to be blessed, in part, because of the all- importance of agriculture mentioned earlier. The Igbo, we remember, allotted the evil forest, a haunted piece of land to the White man, to build their church on. People from Umuofia did not take any concrete action to prevent the British from settling in their village. They had faith in the spirits and left it up to the power of their gods to drive the White man out. The Igbo are also depicted as a very superstitious community who believe in supernatural powers. The existence of the “chi” (p. 14) attests more than anything else to the “irrational” belief system in Umuofia. The “chi” is thought of as some kind of personal spirit that everyone carries about him/herself and which requires appeasement in order to avoid causing ill fortune. One among many examples provided by Achebe, and which speaks to the reality of “irrational” belief among the Igbo, is the phenomenon of the “Ogbanje” (p. 68). The narrator goes into detail to explain not only what an “Ogbanje” means, but also how to stop its vicious cycle. While these pieces of information might sound surreal or even laughable to a Western (rationale) audience, they remain nonetheless an essential aspect of the social fabric of people in Umuofia; a system of belief that cannot be understood within Western paradigms. Another characteristic of the Igbo society that Achebe describes in detail is the traditional system of kinship and a strong emphasis on community. In Umuofia, indeed, community was the rule. The political organization in place in the village prior to the arrival of the British finds its relevance in the Igbo notions of kinship, a concept at the opposite of more typical organizations like the government the British would later import. Though lacking what is commonly considered a more traditional political system, the people in Umuofia still have structure as they obey authority and are very respectful of their traditional ruling body. Umuofia is run not by a typical Western government, but by a council of elders called “ndichie” (p. 10) who are assisted in their tasks by an eclectic number of priestesses and deities. As early as the opening scene of the novel, the narrator depicts the tight relations between the individual and the rest of the community he belongs to. By defeating Amalinze the Cat, Okonkwo does not just achieve a personal prowess; he makes the whole community proud. With a concept like the “egwewu,” Achebe demonstrates the validity of the local political system in place prior to colonization. By specifically naming these structures in their original Igbo terms, Achebe uses language to further make his point about the relevance of traditional practises. © 2022 Global Journals Volume XXII Issue IV Version I 21 ( ) Global Journal of Human Social Science - Year 2022 A 43 From Local Fabulation to Worldwide Celebration: Foregrounding Indigeneity in Chinua Achebe’s Things Fall Apart