Things Fall Apart, a novel, follows the life of African man Okonkwo, who lives in the village of Umuofia. As a young man, Okonkwo seeks to distinguish himself, and through hard work becomes a leader in his village. When white men invade his village, Okonkwo wants to fight and drive them out. He soon realizes that the old values and customs he has lived by are disappearing, driving him to despair in this classic exploration of masculinity and the conflict between tradition and change.
Two years later Obierika brings cowries to Okonkwo: he is selling Okonkwo’s yams until he returns to his village. He also tells a story about a destructed village, Abame. A white man appeared recently in Abame on an ‘iron horse’ (bicycle), and out of fear of the Oracle’s warning that more would come and destroy the village, the villagers killed the white man –despite the fact that he didn’t do anything but speak to the villagers in a foreign language. Once the other white men found their mate’s bicycle and guessed his fate, they murdered the entire village. Uchendu and Okonkwo call Abame’s people fools because they should have been prepared for theattack and otherwise, they shouldn’t have killed a man who did nothing but talk.
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