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Fear is roused when the conflict develops between Awoken and Annoy over the argument of Noose’s desire to be a Christian V. Conclusion A. Restatement of Thesis B. Concluding Remarks Things Fall Apart: A Tragedy Things Fall Apart, by China Achebe, is book about a man named Awoken, who is part of the Bio culture of the mid-first millennium of AD. Aristotle defines a tragedy as a work that provides catharsis by the use of a tragic hero who is within a tragic setting or environment. Achebe reveals Things Falls Apart as a tragedy through his tragic hero, Awoken, and by the pity and fear aroused in the reader.
Awoken is a tragic hero, in every since of the definition. Aristotle defines a tragedy as a work that is meant to provide catharsis, or “arouse pity and fear in the audience so that we may be purged, or cleansed, of unsettling emotions” (Aristotle 796). This is done with “serious, important events, in which the main character comes to an unhappy end” (796). This character’s downfall results from “a tragic flaw, a character weakness, or events beyond the character’s control” (796). To conclude Aristotle definition of a tragedy, it states that the tragic hero usually “gains some self-knowledge or wisdom in petite of defeat” (796).
Achebe tells the reader that some of the women of the tribe noticed that the second pep. N. Tug. Our had the “springy” walk of Awoken (89), revealing his high rank in society. It goes on to say that he was not among the “titled” men (90), further proving his high rank, in that he was the second gewgaws. As a dignified character he “brought honor to the clan” by throwing ‘Emailing the Cat” (3). When Awoken was younger, he courageously went into battles and “stalked his victim”, eventually killing him to obtain his ‘first human head” (54).
Ginkgo’s tragic flaw was his inability to adapt to the changes of his culture, stubbornly seeking to stick to the old ways he once new. When a messenger came to stop one of the tribe’s meetings, Awoken rose up and killed him, because of his hate, his pride, and his inability to adapt, which proved to be his downfall (204). His downfall was also due to the uncontrollable events of the missionaries who came to Mafia. Lastly, Breaks states that the missionaries “drove him [Awoken] to kill himself’ (208). This quote shows how he realized he could not adapt or survive in his culture.
With that in mind, he felt he could not live any longer. The reader likely feels pity when Achebe tells the reader of this through the eyes and mouth of Breaks. Achebe aroused pity, one of things Aristotle says must be in a tragedy, in his readers through the events he placed in his book. In the very beginning chapter four, an “old man” who “bore no ill will” toward Awoken, and “respected” him for his good fortune was “struck” by the “brusqueness” Awoken had when dealing with “less successful men” (26).
In the previous week, an unsuccessful man had “contradicted” him at a “kindred” meeting, led to discuss important matters (27). “Without looking” at whoever this man was, Awoken called out to him: “This meeting is for men” because the man “had no titles” (26), reveling Ginkgo’s harsh behavior. Awoken “knew how to kill a man’s spirit”, which was, perhaps, foreshadowing of how he killed Shameful (61 This was another deeply pitying event, on behalf of not only Shameful, because he dies, of course, but also on behalf of Awoken, whose pride causes him to kill his own son arousing pity for the man.
Further inflicting pity is the fact that not only did Awoken commit the act of killing is adopted son, but also that it was done because Awoken has so much prideful fear of looking week. Near the middle of chapter seventeen Soon learns that Annoy, his son, is attracted to Christianity. This angers Awoken, causing him to “strike… Savage blows” (151-152), arousing even more pity in the reader. The “savage blows”, as well as other things, aroused fear in Achebe’s readers. One of these other things was the fact that the reader learns through Ginkgo’s ears that the elders of Loggia have declared that Shameful must die (57).