Chinua Achebe
Chinua Achebe (/ˈtʃɪnwɑː əˈtʃɛbeɪ/; born Albert Chinụalụmọgụ Achebe, 16 November 1930 – 21 March 2013) was a Nigerian novelist, poet, and critic[1] who is regarded as the most dominant figure in modern African literature.[2] His first novel and magnum opus, Things Fall Apart (1958), occupies a pivotal place in African literature and remains the most widely studied, taught and read African novel.[3] A titled Igbo chief himself, Achebe sought to escape the colonial perspective that predominated African literature, and drew from the traditions of the Igbo people, Christian influences, and the clash of Western and African values to create a uniquely African voice.
His style relies heavily on the Igbo oral tradition, and combines straightforward narration with representations of folk stories, proverbs, and oratory. Along with Things Fall Apart, his No Longer at Ease (1960) and Arrow of God (1964) complete the so called “African Trilogy”; later novels include A Man of the People (1966) and Anthills of the Savannah (1987). In addition to his seminal novels, Achebe’s oeuvre includes numerous short stories, poetry, essay collections and children’s books.
Raised by his parents in the Igbo town of Ogidi in southeastern British Nigeria, Achebe excelled at Government College Umuahia and won a scholarship to study medicine, but changed his studies to English literature at University College (now the University of Ibadan). He became fascinated with world religions and traditional African cultures, and began writing stories as a university student. After graduation, he worked for the Nigerian Broadcasting Service (NBS) and soon moved to the metropolis of Lagos.
He gained worldwide attention for his novel Things Fall Apart in the late 1950s which exerted a significant influence on subsequent literature. Achebe wrote his novels in English and defended the use of English, a “language of colonisers,” in African literature. In 1975, his lecture “An Image of Africa: Racism in Conrad’s Heart of Darkness” featured a criticism of Joseph Conrad as “a thoroughgoing racist;” it was later published in The Massachusetts Review amid controversy.
When the region of Biafra broke away from Nigeria in 1967, Achebe became a supporter of Biafran independence and acted as ambassador for the people of the new nation.[4][5] The civil war that took place over the territory, commonly known as the Nigerian Civil War, ravaged the populace, and as starvation and violence took its toll, he appealed to the people of Europe and the Americas for aid. When the Nigerian government retook the region in 1970, he involved himself in political parties but soon became disillusioned by his frustration over the corruption and elitism he witnessed.[6] He lived in the United States for several years in the 1970s, and returned to the U.S. in 1990, after a car crash left him partially disabled.
Upon Achebe’s return to the United States in 1990, he began an nineteen-year tenure at Bard College as the Charles P. Stevenson Professor of Languages and Literature. From 2009 until his death, he served as the David and Marianna Fisher University Professor and Professor of Africana Studies at Brown University.
Achebe’s work has been widely analyzed, and a massive body of scholarly work discussing it has arisen. Some of the themes he touched are politics, history, culture and colonialism as well as masculinity and femininity. To date, his total influence remains unmatched in African literature. His legacy is celebrated annually at the Chinua Achebe Literary Festival.
