While manliness is considered a virtue, women and agbala are for the most part delegated to being subordinate to men, showing once more that sexism is the prevalent mind-set in Igbo society. A case in point is during the wedding of the son of Okonkwo’s friend Obierika, where a cow escapes from a farm, distracting the women working on the farm and causing Chielo the Oracle priestess to yell, “We cannot all rush out like that, leaving what we are cooking to burn in the fire. Three or four of us should stay behind” (114). A cow escaping from a farm is an extremely distracting thing, and it is in a human’s nature to stop what they are doing and focus their attention on the cow. But when Chielo reminds the women that it is their primary duty to cook food, she shows just how powerful the sexism in Umuofia is. Powerful enough that women are not allowed basic human rights like the ability to take a little break from work, whereas men can get distracted and stop all they want. Also, when Ekwefi, Okonkwo’s second wife, thinks back to the history of Okonkwo’s past, she thinks about how one morning, “She went in and knocked at his door and he came out... He just carried her into his bed and in the darkness began to feel around her waist for the loose end of her cloth,” (109). It is customary that in Igbo culture, if one person visits another, there is a ceremonial drink from a kola nut and some talk. When Okonkwo skips these nice-ties and immediately starts to make love to Ekwefi, he shows that women are viewed more as sex objects than as real people. For several women like Ekwefi, the misfortune of having the role of mere mates and mothers drives them to strive for something better.
On extremely rare occasions in the novel, femininity is shown in a positive light, illustrating that centuries of struggle within the Igbo society have brought women a few rights and a little respect, but not too much. For example, when Ekwefi, Okonkwo’s second wife, is outside the cave of the Oracle of the Hills and the Caves, she is worried about her daughter Ezinma who has been taken into the cave, and, ‘”…she swore within her that if she heard Ezinma cry she would rush into the cave to defend her against all the gods in the world” (Achebe 108). The gods of Umuofia are feared and respected throughout the entire clan. The fact that Ekwefi is willing to take on them alone shows that she is very determined and courageous. It exemplifies that, although they have been subject to the delegation of being mere homemakers, women have been independent from time to time, and have gained credence along the way. In another instance, Chielo, a rather simple woman from Umuofia, is talking with Ekwefi in the market, and it is written that, “Anyone seeing Chielo in ordinary life would hardly believe that she was the same person who prophesied when the spirit of Agbala [the Oracle, not the feminine man] was upon her,” (49). The Oracle of the Hills and the Caves is one of the most revered and sacred places in all of Umuofia. To be the person to deliver Agbala’s prophesies is an honor that many would undoubtedly fight for. As Chielo, a widowed mother who is a simpleton like all women in the clan, is the one who is bestowed with the role, she serves as living proof that it is possible for a female of Umuofia to hold a position of power. But she is one of a rare few women that have been able to obtain authority or respect, and so the overwhelming majority of females are easy bait to an opportunity for something more.
Because the Christian religion is seen as a sign of righteousness and hope for a better life for the effeminate males and women, it is no coincidence that they become some of the first new converts. Specifically, after the church of Mr. Kiaga survives on the Evil Forest for over twenty-eight days, they, “…won a handful more converts. And for the first time they had a woman. Her name was Nneka, the wife of Amadi….Nneka had had four previous pregnancies and childbirths. But each time she had borne twins and they had immediately been thrown away” (151). Nneka has suffered a lot of misfortune by constantly bearing twins, as well as a lot of sorrow as a mother by having to throw them into the Evil Forest. Christianity is seen a way for her to keep her children, and be happier than she has been with her husband, so she embraces it. Additionally, after a Christian missionary has preached the Holy Trinity to Okonkwo and his family in Mbanta, Nwoye, “…had been captivated…It was the poetry of the new religion…The hymn about brothers who sat in darkness and in fear seemed to answer a …question that haunted his young soul…twins crying in the bush…Ikemefuna who was killed….Nwoye’s callow mind was greatly puzzled” (147). Nwoye’s so-called feminine curiosity has caused him to wonder and doubt about many things in Igbo culture that his father would not dwell on for long. These include the death of his stepbrother Ikemefuna and the throwing of twins into the Evil Forest. He sees Christianity as an answer to his problems. Consequently, he becomes one of the first converts, along with Nneka, and together, they are among the most important and hated pioneers of a religious reformation.
The transfer to Christianity that is begun by the womanly characters serves as a model for the osu, or outcasts, who follow their lead and help the Christian population expand drastically. To illustrate, once the church in Mbanta has proven itself capable of surviving on the Evil Forest and has won its first few converts, some “…outcasts…seeing that the new religion welcomed twins and such abominations, thought it was possible that they would also be received” (155). A woman like Nneka or an agbala like Nwoye can be accepted into the Christian society without any problem. Therefore, two random osu see in it a sign of hope that they can have some merit in society and not be pariahs. Soon thereafter, once Mr. Kiaga has allowed the osu to join the new faith, “The two outcasts shaved off their hair, and soon they were the strongest adherents of the new faith. And what was more, nearly all of the osu in Mbanta followed their example” (157). As the Christian culture is much more liberty-like to the osu, treating them as equally as a lord of the clan, they accept it and adhere to it far easier than to Igbo culture. And just as the women and agbala persuade the two original osu to convert to Christianity, the two osu persuade all the other osu to convert. The sparked transfer to Christianity is especially significant, as it increases the Christian population at a gargantuan rate and makes it an extremely powerful political and economic unit.
As women are also the primary source of how a child gets his or her upbringing and respect for traditional values, the loss of them to the new religion leads to a whole new generation of men and children being lost as well. To emphasize, when Uchendu, Okonkwo’s uncle, is welcoming him to his motherland of Mbanta, he tells him, “…a…child…seeks sympathy in its mother’s hut. A man belongs to his fatherland…but when there is sorrow and bitterness he finds refuge in his motherland. Your mother is there to protect you” (134). In the Nigerian culture, although the father is the parent whom the child fears and respects the most, the mother is the one that he or she spends more time with. As a result, the mother is also the one who has the greatest influence on the shaping of the child’s personality. Seven years later, when Okonkwo is about to leave Mbanta and return back to Umuofia, one of the oldest members of the umunna, or kinsmen, orates at his leaving feast, “…I fear for you young people because you do not understand how strong is the bond of kinship…And what is the result? An abominable religion has settled among you…I fear for the clan” (167). The umunna is afraid because Christianity has taken its place among the clan and started to tear apart the society. When he speaks of the strength of the “bond of kinship” he is referring to the connection of family. From this it is shown that because Christianity has influenced mother-child relationships, the new generation of children has grown into exactly the opposite of the ideal clansmen.
The internal conflict within the clan is so great that it leads Okonkwo to thoughts of war and violence, which eventually result in the final destruction of his society. Evidence of this is seen when Obierika and Okonkwo are discussing how the white man has destroyed Abame, and how he is now doing so to Umuofia, prompting Okonkwo to say, “…Abame people were weak and foolish. Why did they not fight back?…We would be cowards to compare ourselves to the men of Abame…We must fight these men and drive them from our land” (175). The division within the clan among those favoring the traditional and the new has built an animosity. When Okonkwo has thoughts of destroying the white man, it foreshadows coming conflict, and illustrates how much power hatred and division can cause. Towards the end of the novel, Okonkwo kills a court messenger out of rage, and Obierika explains to the District Commissioner that this, “…drove him to kill himself; and now he will be buried like a dog…” (208). After he kills the court messenger, a combination of Okonkwo’s guilt and shame drives him to commit suicide. The moment he hangs himself, he throws away everything he has worked for in his life. In doing so, he also shows the reader just how much danger hatred and anger can cause. Finally, as the District Commissioner is having his messengers take down and bury Okonkwo’s body, he reflects on his experience with the Nigerian tribes, and decides upon, “the title of the book: The Pacification of the Primitive Tribes of the Lower Niger” (209). The power of internal separation is seen in its greatest advent at the very end. Observing what the hatred has brought Okonkwo to, the rest of the clan surrenders to the white man and allows itself to be conquered, or ‘pacified,’ as the white man claims. Now, not only has one man’s entire legacy been eliminated, an entire culture and society’s has as well.
In conclusion, the story of Things Fall Apart teaches the reader about the importance of fairness and equality, and how a lack of either can destroy a person, a group of people, or even an entire culture. The lack of respect for women and feminine agbala drives several of them to join Christianity, which in turn ignites many more outcasts to join. With the separation within the clan of those sticking to tradition and those favoring the new religion comes a powerful internal conflict that starts to break apart the society, finally taking its toll in the end when the colonization is complete. The tragic story of Okonkwo, while unfortunate, is a valuable reminder about exactly why liberty is so powerful and so cherished by people of all colors, ages, genders, or religions throughout the world.
