Melissa Roxburgh
CHINAU ACHEBE: THE IMPORTANCE OF TITLES
Chinua Achebe’s acclaimed novel, Things Fall Apart, tells the tale of Okonkwo, a powerful clan leader in his Nigerian village, Umuofia. Although Okonkwo is a man of importance, he finds himself dismissed from the tribe as he clashes with the laws of his people. The titles he procured throughout his lifetime are taken away as he temporarily seeks refuge in Mbanta, his motherland. However, the strong warrior plans the return to Umuofia with high esteem as he hopes to gain the most supreme title. This motif introduces readers to the cultural emphasis on titles of the men of the Igbo clan. Through the events of the story and Okonkwo’s desire to contrast the lifestyle of his dilatory father, we see the significant impact of titles in the society.
Achebe prepares the issue of status through the African perspectives of their society. The social system of the tribe significantly centers around the roles and titles of each individual. The importance of these titles is so prominent to the Igbo people that the word “agbala” was incorporated from their language into the novel. The term describes women, who were considered weak, but it also describes a class of title-less men. This same distinction is classified by the word “efulefu”, the title less men who where undesired by the clan. Unlike strength, wealth, and family, weakness was not a sign of status. After a man who was agbala retorts to him at a kindred meeting, Okonkwo displays his pride in having a title by saying, “this meeting is for men” (22). In order to avoid being agbala as his father was before dying , Okonkwo seeks help from Nwakibie, who had “taken the highest but one title which a man could take in the clan” (15). Nwakibie had collected extensive amounts of wealth, as well as the thirty children his nine wives had bore. As Okonkwo strives to become more like this man, the necessity for wealth is reflected in his work. It was important in the fact that those who represented the community had taken up the ozo title. Only those who could afford to would take up this title. The “anklet of title” symbolized this status (167). With it came respect and honor, tied to the issue of being identified in the clan. Each title associated a man to a dignified lifestyle in which he received extended courtesy.
