TFA 1-7

In the novel Things Fall Apart by Chinuah Achebe, Achebe tells the "One Story" of Nigeria in a casual tone assuming that the reader already knows all the background information and is already used to the norm, and also makes sure that the reader knows important themes. After Okonkwo finds the banana tree that he thinks is dead, Achebe writes, "Okonkwo's second wife had merely cut a few leaves off it to wrap some food and she said so. Without further argument Okonkwo gave her a sound beating and left her and her only daughter weeping,"(38). Achebe writes this as if the reader already knows it is the norm for a man to beat her wife for doing something he doesn't approve of. This adds a sort of casual sense that the story is told by, it also doesn't leave time for someone to dwell on that incident. After the beating is finished, Achebe adds, "Neither of the other wives dared to interfere beyond an occasional and tentative, 'It is enough Okonkwo', pleaded from a reasonable distance,"(38). It is simply not enough for Achebe to leave the story when Okonkwo is finished beating his wife, it is also important to note that the other wives also fear him. This is an important theme in the story and Achebe makes sure to let the reader know this. Achebe successfully tells the story in a way that the reader is sure to remember using these strategies.