What elements of Ibo culture from the article have you seen reflected in Things Fall Apart so far?
Try to discuss Ibo culture in an objective way, not in an evaluative way. (Discuss the elements of their culture without passing judgment.)
You need one post of 4-6 sentences. This post can be your own or a response to a classmate, but you need to include your own idea (don’t just agree with someone else).
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I have noticed a reoccurring theme of how important yams are. Yams mean masculinity and masculinity is everything in the Ibo culture. Everyone tries their best to make the Yams grow and if the Yams for some reason are not grown properly, then the man is looked down upon. Also, Ukonkwo really wants his sons to be able to harvest Yams correctly so they will be successful men when they grow up.
Also, the Week of Peace is very important to the Ibo culture. No one is allowed to fight or grow crops. If someone fights, Ukonkwo for example, then they are shunned and have to go to Ani, the god of earth, and pay for his/her sins. Someone disrupting Week of Peace doesn’t happen often and it is a very serious celebration for the Ibo culture.
I have seen yams reflected a lot. Yams are the staple food for Ibo. It is usually the food that is served on special occasions. Men do most of the work in the field planting yams. but the women and children help sometimes. Ononkwo wants his sons to succeed in life and wants them to know how to properly grow yams.
Yams are very important to the Ibo culture. Yams are a sign of manliness. If a man who could feed his family yams from the harvest was a great man. Okonkwo wants his sons to successfully learn how to grow yams so they can be great men when they grow up. Week of Peace is also important to the Ibo culture. There is supposed to be no fighting, but Okonkwo’s anger gets the best of him.
People of the Ibo culture have a history of growing yams. The are the most important crops for them. If a man can’t grow yams correctly, he is looked down upon as if not so much of a man. Yams are grown for special events and parties.
In chapter 4 there are many examples shown that portray the culture. One example is when Okonkwo’s wife, Ojiugo, leaves the family while she was supposed to be making dinner. She went to go have her hair done. Because she left, she neglected cooking dinner. Okonwo later beats his wife for not cooking dinner. This is because of the property in the culture that the women is less significant and respected than the man in a relationship. Beating wives was considered a normal custom in the culture. However, this case is abnormal. This incident took place during the Week of Peace. Nothing bad is supposed to happen during this week. People have to be kind to everyone at all times. The way okonkwo beat Oijugo is normal and considered acceptable in the Igbo culture, but not during the Week of Peace.
The most important crop that Ibo culture values are yams. They are signs of masculinity and every man wants to have success when growing these crops. Men want to teach their sons how to grow yams the proper way and in the story Okonkwo brings Nwoye and Ikemefuna with him to plant their crops but notices they aren’t doing it the completely right way. He says something only to make them better and hopes that are will be good men and farmers when they grow up. The Week of Peace is a week where there is no arguing and no growing crops. Okonkwo disrespects the Week of Peace by fighting with his third wife. Since he fights, Okonkwo, sacrifices a nanny goat, a hen and one hundred cowries. Week of Peace is very important to the Ibo culture because it brings peace.
An element that is important to the Ibo culture is their relationship with their different gods. They have one supreem god whome they would never make a sacrifice instead they give sacrifies to other minor gods and goddesses like seen in the story durning Pease Week. The earth godess punished Okonkwo for being violent during the week of peace.
Crime rate in Igbo society tends to be high, with civil wars and military coups. This is seen in the story, where the Mbaino village attacked a woman from the Umofia village. The violence in Igbo society is also seen in the fact that Okonkwo has taken 5 human heads in war. He also drinks wine from the first head on important occasions. This kind of brutality shows the violent nature of Igbo society.
So far I’ve noticed that the yams have quite some value to the Igbo people. Yams basically define a mans masculinity in the community depending if it grown right. The majority of the villagers strive to produce successful growing yams, but if failure is amongst them in he process they are looked down upon from their elders and society. Also in the ibo culture the ” the week of peace” is very important to them because no one is permitted to harvest crops or participate in fights. If someone was to fight then they would be shunned and have to go to the god of earth and recompense for their wrong-doings.
The Week of Peace is easily the most important in this book. The Week of Peace is that they must live in peace with their neighbors for a week to honor Ani, who they believe is the God of Earth. It is ordained that if this peace is broken than they will not receive a blessing from Ani and their crops will not grow. The tradition is broken when Okonkwo’s beats his wife, Ojiugo. “The evil you have done can ruin the whole clan,” says the Priest. (Achebe 30). It was a shocking moment for Ibo people when they heard of Okonkwo’s actions because “it was the first time for many years that a man had broken the sacred peace (31).
Respect for elders seems to be a huge thing in Ibo culture. However, it also seems just as important that these elders be respectable. For example, Unoka, Okonkwo’s father, did nothing for anyone in the village to ever respect him. On the other hand, children respect elders, not even necessarily people who are aged, but just anyone like their parents. Okonkwo also tries to discipline Ikemefuna and Nwoye by showing them little affection, as to not show weakness. Okonkwo was a respectable man because of all the things he’d done, such as help his family, all the people in his village, and never being in debt.
Respect is given to males and to older persons. Children are always required to offer the first greeting to their elders. Social status is based on wealth, regardless of occupation. Even though his father was poor and in debt but was still well liked because he used the money he owed to make it look like he had money. Also Wrestling is the most popular sport among boys and young men, with great annual contests in every part of Igbo country. Okonkwo was a wrestler which gave him a lot of respect.
In Things Fall Apart, there is a lot of elements of the story that are surrounded by worshiping gods and goddesses. There are a lot of different rituals that the Ibo people must do in order to please the gods. If the gods are upset then they must repent in the temples. You also see a lot of social status based on wealth. The wealth in the book isn’t money, but yams. If you have a lot of yams then you are very wealthy and powerful and manly. Lastly, everyone respects their elders and the men. The men are the ones who run the tribe and the ones who run the family. The men are allowed to have many wives and children, but women are only allowed to have one husband. The book seems very accurate with its Ibo culture.
Yams are very important to the Igbo people and are seen a lot in the story so far. Yams are a sign of manliness and power. If a man is able to feed his family with a yam harvest, he is well-respected. Okonkwo hopes his sons can be good farmers and grow yams like he can. Respect is very important in Igbo culture as well. Okonkwo is respected for his wealth and bravery and honor, unlike his father. He tries very hatd to make sure his sons are like him.
The yams seem to play a large roll in the society of the Igbo people. The respect of the elders also has a huge part in society. what you own and what you have usually determines how much respect you get as a person. The aggression in the Igbo culture is looked upon as a positive chacterisitc.
Yams are important because they show masculinity in society. In ibo culture, these characteristics mean everything. The men need the yams to grow in order for their strength in society but if they do not grow then it shows that the man is useless and are not respected. Everyone, especially Ukonkwo, wants their sons to grow yams in order to be successful men.
A part of their culture that I have noticed is the roles of people in families. Men of the household are expected to support their family with food and a place to live. All of the wives are expected to support the household, leading to my next topic being polygamy, being the practice of having more than one wife. In this culture I feel like it works for them because it leads to more support in the family. It also helps the people be able to support their husband’s farm growth.
One of the major components of Ibo culture is their role and social status. This is also portrayed through what the members of the family do throughout their daily lives. The man is expected to bring home yams and support their families with a place to live and food to eat. The Yam is also an important piece of their culture because it shows the mans masculinity and ability to provide for his family– the more yams he has, the more successful he is. The role of the wife in Ibo culture is to provide food for the husband, in most cases the man gets several meals from his several wives.