Things Fall Apart : Colonization & the Effects

ME: CATHERINE JANET

• Based on your reading on “Things Fall Apart”, what aspects of the Igbo culture allow the British to take over?
• Since Sarawak has undergone colonization, how has this affected aspects of culture in our society?
• Are there any changes brought about in the life after the indigenous in Africa and Sarawak?

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COLONIZATION & THE EFFECTS

“Things Fall Apart” is a story of transformation; how the colonization by the British has affected the native society and the wounds and bleeds of the action changed our views on colonization (Sickels, 2010). Generally, the story that takes place in Africa (Nigeria) affects the native tribe there, the Igbo. Their mindset and belief on the tradition are still tightly held and they condemned people who go against it. Thus, that is my point on why it allowed the British to conquer them – the Igbo’s mindset and belief. Though people are running towards modernization, they are still they themselves. They still practice their customs, for example the killing of the twins and the “tyranny” husband and wife relationship. The arrival of the British there sees the customs as uncivilized and therefore they take action in such a way to civilize the tribe. One of the actions is through the introduction of new faith, Christian. The religion practices equality in life and that makes it able to attract the lower class people in the society to follow it. Without realizing it, they are colonized indirectly!

Sarawak has experienced the colonization too when the British came and take over since the Brooke era. Our culture is affected when the British introduced their English language in our state. They communicated by using that foreign language and that made the local people learnt that language in order to communicate well with each other. Nowadays, such assimilation of language that we still can detect in our state is the used of the word “book” (pronounced as “buk”) by the Bidayuh and “tyre” (pronounced as “taya”) by the Iban. Besides that, the introduction of the new curriculum design by the English affected the traditional education system. Before, the practice of the religion teaching either in “surau” or “madrasah” took place. When the British introduced English schools, many parents sent their children there so that they received formal education and then they can apply for jobs offered by the British government.

In conclusion, colonization really brings changes to the life of the Igbo people and the tribes in Sarawak. To put them up together, three great influences by the British towards the colonized people are in the form of new faith, new language and also the education system. In Sarawak, the British also introduced the new faith, Christianity. And in Umuofia, the British exposed the native to their English language and that results in the born of the interpreter (Mr. Kiaga). The introduction of the education system in Sarawak is still continued today and the set-up of schools in Umuofia gives opportunity to the younger generation there to experience education.