DISSERTATION ON THE TOPIC:

CHINUA ACHEBE’S ARROW OF GOD AS A NOVEL DEPICTINGIGBO COMMUNITY

WRITTEN BY:

AKSHAY A. YARDI

1

INTRODUCTION

African Postcolonial Literature:

A Brief Review

2

INTRODUCTION

AFRICAN POSTCOLONIAL LITERATURE:

A BRIEF REIVIEW

Literature has several purposes. It

enlightens the people along with giving pleasure

and entertainment. Novel is one of the major

genres in creative writing. It is one of the most

prominent forms in Postcolonial literature.

3

Postcolonial fiction is well-known for

exploring the identity, crisis, problems,

political and social upheavals and situations of

the countries that were colonised by the European

empires. The struggling situation of the

countries during and after the conquest is noted

by various authors of Postcolonial writings.

African literature is one of the largest

branches of Postcolonial literature. Among the

African writers, Chinua Achebe, Wole Soyinka,

Ngugi wa Thiong’o, Okot P’Bitek, etc. are very

famous and popular. They all have set a new

tradition in the Postcolonial writings.

Chinua Achebe’s works are especially famous

because of the cultural aspects that he focuses

in his novels. Chinua Achebe’s writings tend to

imply that Africa can boast of a great tradition

and culture of its own. He tries to condemn the

4

thoughts (or rather misconceptions) of the

Western colonisers that the Africans have no

culture and that they are uncivilised. The

western minds thought that Africans are barbarous

people living like animals in forests and are

ignorant. They proclaimed that African tribal

peoples have no culture at all. They exploited

the native Africans under the pretext of

modernizing and civilizing them. The postcolonial

African writer wanted to prove and show to the

world that they too have wisdom, civilization and

culture of their own.

The novels of Achebe particularly speak about

the life in Nigeria, the Igbo people, their

tradition, culture and other aspects of their

routine life. His novels also try to indicate the

status and position of a primitive African man

torn between the two worlds; one that of

5

modernity and the other one of ancient

traditions. His novels and stories try to show

the impact of the western civilization on the

rural and primitive world of the Nigerians. His

heroes are shown as very stubborn and headstrong

as in the novels Things Fall Apart (Okonkwo) and Arrow

of God (Ezeulu). There is a kind of conflict,

trouble, psychological disturbance in the minds

of his heroes due to the severe impacts of the

Western culture on their primitive lifestyle. The

people of the younger generation of the Igbos

shown by the author are seen to have been more

influenced by the modern world.

Chinua Achebe’s masterpiece Things Fall Apart is a

great manifesto of the life and culture of the

Igbos of Nigeria. In this work he has extensively

spoken about several rituals, food habits,

ceremonies, cultural, social, economic and

6

religious aspects of these tribal people. One can

refer to this novel if one wants to analyse and

study the people of Nigeria.

Arrow of God is another famous novel in which

Achebe has spoken more about the religious

aspects and rituals of the Igbo people. This

dissertation work proposes to study the aspects

of the life of Igbos that are depicted in the

novel Arrow of God. I have tried analysing various

episodes, incidents and anecdotes from this novel

for my study in this dissertation work.

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CHAPTER ONE:

The Nigerian Igbo Community

8

CHAPTER ONE

THE NIGERIAN IGBO COMMUNITY

The Igbo tribe is one of the largest ethnic

groups in Africa. This tribe is found in south-

eastern Nigeria. The population of the Igbos is

estimated to be thirty two millions. Before

colonization by the British people, the Igbos

were a fragmented and politically independent

community. The Igbo community before the colonial

period was one of the primitive societies as they

lived very close to nature and as a part of

nature in forests. The Igbo community was chiefly

agricultural. They were mostly craftsmen, farmers

9

and traders. The Igbos had followed their own

traditional religion with their own cultural

beliefs, customs and traditions before the impact

of Christianity. Their ancient religion is termed

as Odinani. During the colonial rule, the British

missionaries successfully converted several of

the Igbo people into Christianity. The powerful

invasion of the Christian religion into the

Igboland can be seen in the famous novel Things Fall

Apart by the great Nigerian Postcolonial writer

Chinua Achebe.[a]

Society:

Coming to the social aspects of Igbo

community, we can say that they followed a quasi-

democratic republican system of government. There

was no one king as such, but the villages of the

Igbos were governed by a council of elderly10

people and a few men of titles. The people of

this community had respect for their elders and

always stood by their decisions for the village.

The society of Igbos was patriarchal and

patrilineal. The male heirs of the family

inherited the property and wealth of the father.

The patrilineal social system which was followed

by the Igbos was known as Umunna. The Igbo

community practised polygamy. The polygamity

among Igbos was mainly because of economic

factors. One needed human labour force to

cultivate and maintain the fields and crops and

so one man married multiple wives. The marriages

among Igbos were of special type. Young man who

had attained adulthood was allowed to marry the

girl of his choice with the consent of the girl.

Once the marriage was fixed, the groom had to pay

11

bride-price to bride’s family and take home his

new wife.

The Igbo tribe had its own banking system for

loans and savings. This unique economic system is

still in practice.

Life-style of these people was very much in

synchronization with the nature and their

surroundings. They were culturally a very rich

community before the occupation by the English

colonisers.

Architecture and Housing Patterns:

Let us now see how the traditional Igbo

architecture and housing pattern was. The Igbos

preferred constructing huts of mud-walls which

they called Obi. Every family man had his own

compound built around the huts under his

ownership. The Obi of the owner of the household

12

(i. e., the father) used to be the biggest in his

compound. It was located at the centre of the

compound. Each of his wives had her own small Obi

in which she used to stay with her children. The

huts of all his wives used to be situated in such

a way that they formed half circle around their

husband’s Obi. There used to be a special place

of worship in every hut where everyone kept the

idol of one’s personal God- the Chi and worship

it. Chinua Achebe writes about this in his novel

Things Fall Apart.

Architecture of the Igbos was very unique and

it was named Mbari architecture. It was a style of

building their huts and houses. Their Obis were

made of mudwalls and thatched roofs with carved

design doors. Nsude pyramids are the famous and

special structures in their architecture.

Culture:

13

Igbo people had a rich cultural heritage of

their own since centuries. It was one of the

richest primitive cultures in Africa. Everywhere

in this world, culture is the way of life for

human beings. Similarly, the culture of the Igbos

was very much in coordination with their life in

the natural settings. Igbo people had a variety

of cultural expressions which included their

music, unique but strange rituals, ceremonies,

superstitions, festivals, dressing and also their

calendar system.

Igbo Calendar:

Igbo people had devised their own calendar in

order to regulate their agricultural and also

business activities. Their traditional calendar

was based on their deep-rooted symbolism and

ritualism. Their indigenous calendar had the

following features:

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Igbos called a year as Aro, a month as Onwa

and a week as Izu. There are four days in a week

corresponding to the four cardinal positions

East, West, North and South. The names of these

four days are: Eke, Orie, Afo and Nkwo. These are the

names of four spirits to whom each of these days

is dedicated. A year in the Igbo calendar

consists of thirteen months of seven weeks each.

[b]

We have already spoken about their calendar

system. Let us now try to look into other

cultural aspects and elements of Igbos.

Language:

Igbos speak Igbo language. It is a tonal

language, written in Roman script and also in

Nsibidi formalized ideograms which were used by the

Ekpe society and Okonko fraternity. Their language

has hundreds of dialects such as Ikwerre and Ekpeye.15

Several of their names and words begin with ‘O’

and ‘N’ sounds. The language of Igbos is rich

with their traditional verses and songs which

they sing during their ceremonies. The folklore

of Igboland is diverse and very rich because of

this language. Almost every ceremony has its own

set of songs and folk verses.[i]

Music and Dance:

The Igbo culture was very rich not only in

the language, but also in its performing arts and

dances. The performing arts of the Igbos were of

several types. They used several percussion

instruments to accompany the verses and the songs

sung during ceremonies. Their music was thus very

rich with the primitive musical instruments such

as Udu and Ikwe (drums), Ogene (a hand bell), Ikolo,

Opi (a wind instrument similar to flute), Igba and

Achaka. These instruments were also used by the

16

village-criers to announce something throughout

the village and give a message.

Igbo music included singing of traditional

folk verses. They had developed their own styles

of dance. Their dance styles such as Atilogwu were

set to the rhythm of the indigenous instruments

by some dance troops. Thus dancing and singing

were an integral part of the culture and

lifestyle of the Igbos.

Mask Dances:

Masquerade or Mask dance was the most

important of all the performing arts of the

Igbos. The Igbos wore masks symbolising their

Gods and ancestral spirits and danced in a

certain way. This mask dancing was considered

holy because it was dedicated to the spirits.

These masquerades took place in the village

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ground (called as Ilo). Women were earlier

prohibited to watch these mask dances. This mask

dance was also linked with the traditional Igbo

music. The masks were named after some deities

and spirits. The famous masks Agbogho Mnuo used in

the northern Igboland represented the spirits of

the deceased maidens and their mothers who

symbolised beauty. Ijele was one more famous mask

used by the Igbos in the masquerades.

All the music, dance and the masquerades of

the Igbos were practised as rituals during

ceremonies and it is because of this reason that

these folk arts have remained intact even to this

day in Nigeria.

Craftsmanship and Art:

Igbo people had their own visual arts and

architecture. They were efficient artisans. There

18

were many professional craftsmen in the Igbo

community. They prepared various kinds of masks

and outfits symbolising spirits, animals or

abstract concepts. They used to design bronze

castings. Their Uli design is famous.

Religious Faith and Deities:

It is well-known that human being, since the

beginning of civilizations, has been afraid of

various invisible forces of nature. This fear of

the immense powers in the nature originated such

concepts as God, Religion and faith and so on.

Almost every human being believes in some kind of

religion or faith. This religion becomes his way

of life. It also becomes a way in which he can

live to his best adjusting himself with his

surroundings. Igbo community was no exception for

this. Igbos believed in their traditional

religion by the name Odinani.[c] Odinani was a

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monotheistic faith. Their faith was based on the

fear of the invisible natural powers and the fear

of their ancestors. They believed that their dead

ancestors have inhabited the underground world

and are taking care of their clan.

They considered that there is one undefinable

and invisible divine power in this world which

has a control over everything. They called this

supreme deity as Chukwu. This supreme deity was

considered to be male and was represented by the

Sun. All the other gods were said to be various

forms of Chukwu.[d] This is similar to the Indians’

conception of incarnations.

Chineke is the name of the creator of the

world and of trees, rain and plants.

Chukwu was said to have five aspects which

were represented by five deities. Chukwu was the

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first source and force for everything. Anyanwu

represented the Sun God. Agbala was the deity of

fertility of earth and its people. Everyone had

one’s own personal deity called Chi. Okike was the

creator of laws that governed the visible and the

invisible. Igbos considered that there are

incarnations of Chukwu in the world and they

named them together as Alusi. Some of the

incarnations were Ala (the earth), Amadioha (free

will of the peoplle, often represented in the

form of thunder and lightning), Igwe (the sky, the

husband of Ala; considered to be responsible for

rain.) Other incarnations such as Ikenga and

Ekwensu were also their deities. If we observe

keenly, we can see that the Igbos respected

nature in all its aspects. Their religion was

based on the concept of the presence of God in

the form of nature. This concept is seen in

21

several other primitive religions and faiths

practised by the tribal people in various other

parts of the world too.

Apart from these deities representing various

elements and powers in nature, the Igbos had some

other deities too whom they considered to be

their ancestral spirits. The deities which

represented their dead ancestors were Njoku Ji, Agwu

Nsi, Ogwugwu, Ndebunze. They called these deities

together as Ndichie.

The community of Igbos believed in both good

as well as evil spirits and also their

reincarnations. This is similar to the belief of

Indians in the concept of rebirth. Ogbanje was

considered as an evil spirit. They believed that

Agbala deliberately troubled family with

misfortunes. Upon being born by the mother, under

a certain period of time, the Ogbanje would die

22

deliberately and then come back and repeat the

birth cycle causing great grief to the family.[e]

Achebe has written about Ogbanje in detail in his

novel Things Fall Apart.

Food and Clothing:

Cuisine and clothing are also the major

factors in the culture of a community. Yam was

and is the most important food crop of the

Nigerians. Igbos considered yam as the king of

crops and so, only the male members were allowed

to cultivate yams. Several dishes and delicacies

were prepared by the Igbos during usual days as

well as on various special occasions. Yam foofoo is

one such popular and common delicacy for Igbos.

Along with yam, the Igbos ate a nut called Kola

nut. Kola nut was not only a food item but it was

also a sacred item. They used to celebrate a

festival specially meant for consuming Kola nut,

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thus indicating its religious significance. Kola

nut had thus acquired great prominence in the Igbo

lifestyle and cuisine. Nigeria is still famous

for its palm products due to sufficient growth of

palm trees. Igbos were the consumers of local

palm wine which they used to tap from the palm

trees. Palm wine was a prominent drink during

ceremonies too. It was a custom among the Igbos

to offer a horn full of palm wine after offering

Kola nuts to the guests who came to one’s home.

“Nigerian chophouses typically list a number

of soups with meat or fish ingredients,

served with either pounded yam, eba (steamed

garri), semovita or jollof rice. Pounding yam

is an effort on its own, and after observing

its pounding, you probably value your food a

lot more. The soups are mostly palm oil based

and the most popular ones in Igboland are:

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Bitter leaf soup, with bitter leaf not very

distant from spinach;

ora and ogri soup, a vegetable-based soup,

most commonly eaten in villages;

egusi soup, yellowish soup based on melon

seeds;

okro soup, sticky, viscous ‘draw’ soup made

out of sliced okro pods;

ogbono soup, another ‘draw’ soup based on

ogbono pods and

Vegetable soup, the most exclusive soup,

because of its ingredients.”[f]

Clothing and attire of the Igbos was of the

primitive style. They wore very less clothes. The

primary reason for wearing fewer clothes was

that, Nigeria is situated in the tropical zone

where heat and humidity are very high. Their

25

clothing was meant only to hide their private

body parts. Children did not usually wear any

clothes until they reached the age of puberty.

After acquiring physical maturity the men and

women used to wear simple long clothes that could

cover only their private parts. Igbo women wore

ornaments made out of ivory which were the things

of luxury for them. They wore strings of beads

around their waist which they called Jigida. Beads

of several kind were there in their set of

ornaments.

Ceremonies and Festivals:

Igbo people were the celebrators of life with

great fervour. They had lots of festivities and

religious ceremonies on various occasions. New

Yam Festival and the Masquerades were the major

festivals of Igbo community. The New Yam feast

was very important one because that marked the

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beginning of the cultivation of yams in their

fields.

Birth, marriage and death of a person have

their own unique importance due to various

rituals in every culture. Igbo society was no

exception for this. They had their unique

ceremonies for every occasion. The naming

ceremony included several rituals such as

offering thanksgiving sacrifices to the family

deities along with folk music. Male childbirth

was considered auspicious because they believed

that the boy would be of help to the family by

taking over the ancestral property after the

death of his father. The Igbo people had a

special practice of naming the new-born child in

the name of the day on which the child was born.

27

Puberty was another phase when the Igbos

celebrated the occasion by arranging for mask

dances.

Title-taking Ceremonies were very common in

the Igbo community. Various titles were awarded

to men with different merits and qualities. A

warrior was given a separate title, an orator was

awarded another title and such other titles were

awarded. Men of title were very much respected

throughout a clan in Igbos. The title-taking

ceremonies were celebrated with great fervour

because of this reason. Some of the titles in

Igbo community were: Ozo, Ici, Ndichie, etc.

The Igbo people were lovers of ceremonies and

celebrations. They had some prominent festivals

such as Ifejoku – the harvest festival, Odo – the

festival of the masks which was very popular and

the Feast of the New Yam, the festival of pumpkin

28

leaves and many others. Their festivals had a

close connection with their agricultural

activities. Sacrifices and offerings were the

prime rituals in almost all the festivals. The

period of festivals was the time of merriment,

relaxation and meeting the relatives.

Moonlight play was one of the important

festive activities of the Igbos. It attracted

children and young adults who would then involve

in several kinds of games and entertainment

activities on a moonlit night. Moonlight play

symbolised freedom as the Igbos used to enjoy

freely dancing, singing, reciting verses and

playing with riddles. Singers were allowed to

satirize the social malpractices openly during

the moonlight play events. Often the moonlight

plays were the occasions when obscenity was

openly exposed and sex- inclined adults got

29

involved in fleshly games. Thus moonlight play

enabled them the freedom of their expression.

Funeral ceremonies were considered very

important among Igbos as these would indicate the

journey of the man from this world to the world

of ancestors, underground. Funeral ceremonies

included sacrifices to the ancestors with a

belief that if they are made happy with

sacrifices, they would accept the spirit of the

dead person in their company. Usually a man of

title had a special and more respectable funeral.

He was buried with a ram and a cock hung around

his neck, after his death. Songs of lamentation

and mourning were sung during this kind of

ritual. Guns were fired by the young men to bid

farewell to the dead person.

Magicians and Medicine men:

30

Magic and medicine were considered as

powerful weapons by Igbos. Magicians and

medicine-men were highly feared for and highly

respected. Magic was believed to be a

communication between man and the super-powers of

nature. Magicians were thought to interpret those

powers and intervene between man and those forces

in order to avoid evils and bring good fortunes.

There were several kinds of magical practices

among the Igbos and those were based on their

purposes and functions.

According to Delafosse, There were various

categories of magicians. There were exorcists or

healers who performed magic to expel the evils;

fetishers who made amulets and talismans;

fortune-tellers, who could predict the future and

discover the secrets; spell binders, who could

cast spell upon people and infect them with

31

diseases and prestidigitators, who could conjure

by force of word only.

Another researcher, Godfrey Wilson has

classified the magic of Igbos into different sets

based upon their purpose and functions. They are:

1. Ceremonial magic

2. Magic of Private Ambition

3. Sorcery or destructive magic

4. Magic for the cure of sickness and trouble

5. Magic of Appeal

Some Unique Customs of the Igbo Community:

Igbo people not only celebrated festivals and

rituals, but they also followed their own unique

customs. The customs followed by the Igbos in

their daily life are described in Achebe’s Things

Fall Apart extensively. These customs were primarily

based on their religious beliefs.

32

One of the most important and very frequently

found customs of the Igbo people was the breaking

of Kolanut. Whenever a guest came home, it was

their custom to welcome the guest by offering him

Kolanuts. The guest was usually asked to break the

Kolanut and it was considered an honour to break

it. The guest felt privileged by this offer. The

custom of breaking the Kolanut was often

accompanied by a prayer, wishing good for all.

Another unique custom of the Igbo people was

the use of some pieces of white chalk. Even this

custom was accompanied with the breaking of

kolanut when the guests came home. The host offered

the pieces of white chalk to the guest. The guest

then drew some horizontal and vertical lines on

the floor, painted his biggest toe with it and

then on some occasions the guest used to paint

33

his face near his eyes too. This custom was also

a kind of welcoming the guests to home.

There were several customs among the Igbos

which were very inhuman. The birth of twins was

considered inauspicious and so the twins were

left to die. They were cast away into the evil

forest to die. For Igbos death was a very

important occurence and it was considered good if

the person dies at an old age without any

disease. But if a person had a disease and died

because of it, he was thrown away in the evil

forest, where they believed that evil spirits

would come and consume them.[ii]

The once culture-rich Igbo community, got

distorted and disorganised by the invasion and

impacts of the Christian missionaries brought

into Nigeria by the British people. The

conversion of the native Igbos into Christianity

34

brought drastic changes in the ethos of primitive

Nigeria.

There were several other customs and

traditional practices followed by the Igbo tribe

since the primitive days. Authors like Chinua

Achebe have tried their best to show the roots of

the African cultures to the world. They tried to

prove that even Africa had its own cultural

heritage which was looked down upon by the

European colonisers.

Chinua Achebe: A Voice of Igbo Community

Chinua Achebe (1930–2013) was a

Nigerian novelist, poet, professor

and critic. His first novel Things Fall Apart (1958)

is considered his magnum opus, and is the most

widely read book in modern African literature.[g]

35

Achebe was born in the Igbo village of

Ogidi in Eastern Nigeria (which is now in the

state of Anambra), on 16 November 1930. His

father Isaiah Okafor Achebe and his mother Jaet

Anaenechi Iloegbunam got converted into the new

religion which had then been introduced into

Nigeria by the European colonisers. They were at

the crossroads of old Igbo tradition and modern

Christian religion. This had a great influence on

their growing children.

During his childhood days, Achebe was

greatly influenced by the traditional folk tales

told by his mother and sister. He also eagerly

anticipated traditional village events, like the

frequent masquerade ceremonies, which he

recreated later in his novels and stories.

He went to the local public schools and

was among the first students to graduate from the

36

University of Ibadan.[h] Achebe gained an

appreciation for Mbari, a traditional art form

which seeks to invoke the gods' protection

through symbolic sacrifices in the form of

sculpture and collage. In 1944, for his secondary

schooling, Achebe was accepted at both the

prestigious Dennis Memorial Grammar School

in Onitsha and the even more

prestigious Government College in Umuahia. He got

influenced by great authors and writers during

his school education.

He later went to the University of

Ibadan in the year 1948, for higher education.

It was during his studies at Ibadan that Achebe

began to become critical of European literature

about Africa.

In 1950, Achebe wrote a piece for

the University Herald entitled "Polar Undergraduate",

37

his debut as an author. While at the university,

Achebe wrote his first short story, "In a Village

Church", which combines details of life in rural

Nigeria with Christian institutions and icons, a

style which appears in many of his later works.

After his graduation from the

University of Ibadan, he became a teacher of

English in a school at Oba.  He taught there for

four months, but when an opportunity arose in

1954 to work for the Nigerian Broadcasting

Service (NBS), he left the school and moved

to Lagos. The city of Lagos also made a

significant impression on him. A

huge conurbation, the city teemed with recent

migrants from the rural villages. Achebe revelled

in the social and political activity around him

and later drew upon his experiences when

38

describing the city in his 1960 novel No Longer at

Ease.

Then he dedicated his life to

writing. He wrote several famous novels that

depicted the life in Nigerain Ibgo community. He

is fondly addressed as the “Grandfather of

Nigerian Literature” and is one of the major

protagonists of the African Postcolonial

Literature. His novels have themes based on the

primitive African societies, their cultural

heritage, the impact of colonisation on the

ancient communities of Africa, socio-political

changes in Nigeria due to the European

colonisation and so on.

Things Fall Apart, published in the year

1958 is known as his Magnum Opus. It is

considered one among the world classic novels of

modern times. This novel is all about the Igbo

39

community of Nigeria. Through vivid details and

descriptions about lifestyle, various customs,

traditions, rituals, superstitions and religious

beliefs of the Igbo people, Chinua Achebe has

tried to assert powerfully in his anti-colonial

voice that Africa too has its own culture and

they too have a heritage of being human. Apart

from the descriptions of life and society of the

Igbo people, Achebe has also shown in this novel

how the colonisation by the Englishmen disrupted

and disintegrated the culture and life of the

folks in Nigeria.

His other famous novels are No

Longer at Ease (1960), Arrow of God (1964), A Man of the

People (1966) and Anthills of Savannah (1987).

The novels Things Fall Apart, No Longer at

Ease and Arrow of God are considered as a trilogy and

are in a sequential order. These novels portray

40

how the colonisation changed the life of the

Igbos in Nigeria.

Chinua Achebe not only wrote

novels, but also wrote short stories and critical

essays. An Image of Africa: Racism in Conrad's "Heart of

Darkness" (1975) is a very famous critical essay

written by Chinua Achebe in which he strongly

condemns the ideas of racism put forth by Joseph

Conrad in his novel Heart of Darkness.

The style of Achebe's fiction

draws heavily on the oral tradition of the Igbo

people. He weaves folk tales into the fabric of

his stories, illuminating community values in

both the content and the form of the

storytelling. The tale about the Earth and Sky

in Things Fall Apart, for example, emphasises the

interdependency of the masculine and the

feminine. Although Nwoye enjoys hearing his

41

mother tell the tale, Okonkwo's dislike for it is

evidence of his imbalance. Later, Nwoye avoids

beatings from his father by pretending to dislike

such "women's stories".

Another hallmark of Achebe's

style is the use of proverbs, which often

illustrate the values of the rural Igbo

tradition. He sprinkles them throughout the

narratives, repeating points made in

conversation. Critic Anjali Gera notes that the

use of proverbs in Arrow of God "serves to create

through an echo effect the judgement of a

community upon an individual violation." The use

of such repetition in Achebe's urban novels, No

Longer at Ease and A Man of the People, is less

pronounced.

When the region of Biafra broke

away from Nigeria in 1967, Achebe became a

42

supporter of Biafran independence and acted as

ambassador for the people of the new nation. The

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

resigned due to frustration over the corruption

and elitism he witnessed.

Chinua Achebe lived in the

United States of America for some period during

1970s. He settled down in the United States

permanently after an accident in the 1990s. He

was awarded the Man Booker International Prize in

the year 2007.

Chinua Achebe, the hero of the

African Postcolonial literature died recently in

the year 2013 at the age of 83 due to old age and

43

long illness. He left the world with greatest

contribution to the Postcolonial literature. He

thus played a great role in bringing African

culture and lifestyle to the front.

44

CHAPTER TWO

IGBO COMMUNITY AS DEPICTED IN CHINUA

ACHEBE’S ARROW OF GOD

45

CHAPTER TWO

IGBO COMMUNITY AS DEPICTED IN CHINUA ACHEBE’S

ARROW OF GOD

Plot:

Arrow of God is a novel which tells the story

of a Chief Priest Ezeulu of Umuachala in

Igboland. Ezeulu is the Chief Priest in the whole

region of Umuaro. He is an authority over all the

six villages of Umuaro because of his divine

powers. He is a man of high respect in the whole

region and has an authority over the religious

ceremonies and rituals. Ezeulu has a prosperous

and rich household with three wives and eight

46

children. Being a man of religious authority, he

takes up several responsibilities for his

villagers. Counting the New Moons and declaring

the day of the New Yam Feast is one of his

important responsibilities.

The author then goes on to tell about the war

between Umuaro and Okperi, the two neighbouring

villages. The war is finally settled by the

Englishmen who ultimately become the rulers over

both these villages.

The story of the village of Umuaro has a

parallel story in this novel. The impact of the

Christian Missionaries on the lives of the Igbo

people is shown in this novel. Interestingly, the

chief priest has sent one of his sons, Oduche, to

learn the ways of the Christians and keep an eye

over their activities. Unfortunately, Oduche is

brainwashed and trapped into the Christian

47

religious ways. Once, Oduche captures a python

which is considered sacred by Igbos and this

event creates a lot of chaos in the whole

village. Ezeulu is blamed by all the villagers

for sending his son to the Church.

Meanwhile, there are many ceremonies, feasts

and festivals held in the village of Umuaro. The

story has sub-stories of what happens in the

lives of Ezeulu’s sons like Obika and Edogo and

his other family members. In these sub stories,

the author gives descriptions about several

customs, rituals, traditions and lifestyle of the

Igbo people.

As the story proceeds, we see the

intereference of the Englishmen in the political

scenario of Igbo villages. One Mr. Winterbottom,

who happens to know Ezeulu, plans of offering a

powerful administrative position to Ezeulu so

48

that Ezeulu would have control over the villages

on behalf of the Englishmen. Ezeulu rejects the

invitation of Winterbottom in the beginning

because of his headstrong nature. He is then

arrested by the people of Winterbottom and held

captive for several days. He denies the offer of

the Englishman very confidently. The subordinates

of Winterbottom wait to see if Ezeulu changes his

mind, but to no avail. Ezeulu is released after a

few days and sent back to Umuaro.

The return of Ezeulu becomes the talk of

Umuachala for a few days and then everything is

quietened as the days pass on. After some more

days, people come and ask Ezeulu about the New

Yam Feast. The New Yam Feast is one of the most

important festivals on which the life and

activities of Igbos are very much dependent. The

Chief Priest is reluctant to announce the day of

49

the New Yam Feast because he is too much obsessed

with the traditional ways of counting the new

moons and declaring the day of the New Yam Feast.

When the village is on the verge of starvation,

Ezeulu does not come to the help of his

villagers. He does not announce the day of the

New Yam Feast when it is required. This brings

severe challenges before the people of Umuaro.

Many villagers suffer and die of starvation and

lack of food. All the lands which had been kept

ready for sowing the new yams become barren and

thus agricultural activities and naturally their

lives also are severely affected. Ezeulu’s one

wrong obsession becomes responsible for the

damage to the whole village. Ultimately, the

Christian missionaries take advantage of this

opportunity and help out the people of Umuaro

duing their trouble. They provide them yams to

50

sow and eat. Naturally they win their hearts and

become more powerful in that region.

Days pass on and life comes to normal in

Umuaro. But all the villagers start hating and

cursing Ezeulu who apparently did not come to

their help when they were in need. They started

looking at Ezeulu as their villain. When the

entire village had kept hopes and faith in Ezeulu

as their saviour, Ezeulu turned out to be their

enemy due to his authoritative position and lack

of concern for his people. Further one day,

Amalu, an old man of the village dies and Obika

is asked to carry out the ritual of the mask

during the funeral of that old man. Obika who is

sick at that particular time, goes on to carry

the mask and run during the funeral. Due to the

heavy weight of the mask and due to excess of

physical strain and exhaustion, Obika meets

51

sudden end of his life. The death of Obika is a

huge shock to the whole of Umuaro. It becomes a

severe trauma for Ezeulu. He feels that the death

of Obika came as a punishment for his

headstrongness and his pride due to his position

of priesthood. Ezeulu thinks that he has been

used as an arrow by his God Ulu. The novel thus

ends in tragic death of Obika, and despair on the

part of Ezeulu.

Cultural Aspects of Igbo Community as Depicted in

Arrow of God:

As in the great novel Things Fall Apart, the

author Chinua Achebe has given vivid descriptions

of various cultural aspects of the Igbo people in

this novel too.

Arrow of God is one more famous novel which

tells about the impacts of the Christian

52

missionaries on the culture, society and politics

of the Igbo people. In the novel Things Fall Apart,

the impact of the Christian missionaries is seen

in the second part of the story, whereas in the

novel Arrow of God, the impact of the missionaries

on Igbo people is seen from the beginning itself.

The author has used the technique of parallel

stories very effectively to depict the Igbo

community on one side and the impact of the new

religion on the other.

In Arrow of God, there are numerous episodes

which tell us about the culture and society of

the Igbo people. Various customs, traditions,

rituals, superstitious beliefs, religious

practices, ceremonies and art of the Igbos are

explained with great skill by the author in this

novel.

53

Let us have a glance over these aspects

depicted in the novel Arrow of God.

Religious Beliefs and Rituals of the Igbo

Community:

We have already seen that Igbo people are

very religious and God fearing. They follow their

own traditional religion called Odinani. Their

religion has some unique beliefs and rituals.

In the novel, the concept of God, deities and

the Chief Priest are explained very well. The

villagers need an authoritative person to tell

them about the rituals and traditional ceremonies

since these rituals are very much in

synchronization with their agriculture and

livelihood. We see in the story of the novel that

there is a reference to how the six villages of

Umuaro chose their common deity and named it Ulu

54

and appointed a chief priest whom they called

Ezeulu. The story is as follows:

“In the very distant past, when lizards were

still few and far between, the six villages –

Umuachala, Umunneora, Umuagu, Umuezeani,

Umuogwugwu and Umuisiuzo – lived as different

peoples, and each worshipped its own deity.

Then the hired soldiers of Abam used to

strike in the dead of night, set fire to the

houses and carry men, women and children into

slavery. Things were so bad for the villages

that their leaders came together to save

themselves. They hired a team of medicine-men

to install a common deity for them. This

deity which the fathers of the six villages

made was called Ulu. Half of the medicine was

buried at a place which became Nkwo market

and the other half thrown into the stream

55

which became Mili Ulu. The six villages then

took the name of Umuaro, and the priest of

Ulu became their Chief Priest...”1 (p. 15)

Thus the villagers of Umuaro feel very secure

and safe when they establish a deity for

themselves. They believe that their common deity

protects them from all kinds of dangers.

The Igbo community practise many

superstitions and religious beliefs. They not

only have their deities, but also believe in

ghosts, good and evil spirits. They also

associate several things with these spirits and

deities. These associations seem to emerge out of

fear as well as a rule or system for a

disciplined life in the society. This is similar

to the associations that Indians have made with

Gods. The fear of God keeps people away from

vices and doing bad things. We have several

56

references in this novel that speak about such

beliefs.

In order to avoid accident at a certain

stream, there is a religious belief which is

referred to in the novel as follows:

“...the nearer stream, Ota had been abandoned

since the oracle announced yesterday that the

enormous boulder resting on two other rocks

at its source was about to fall and would

take a softer pillow for its head. Until the

alusi who owned the stream, and whose name it

bore and had been placated no one would go

near it.”1 (p. 7)

During a brief conversation between Obika and

Ezeulu we come

across a reference to the spirits like Eru, Idemili

and Ogwugwu. This is followed by the description

57

of the spirits which we can see in the following

lines from the text:

“...was dressed like a wealthy man... had an

eagle’s feather in red cap... carried a big

tusk across his shoulder... Then it is Eru,

the Magnificent... When he likes a man,

wealth flows like a river into his house; his

yams grow as big as human beings, his goats

produce threes and his hens hatch nines...”1

(p. 8, 9)

Through references like this we come to know

the characteristic

features of the spirits that are believed by the

Igbos.

The people of Umuaro also believe that even

their market place is governed by some deity.

This belief is very strange one. They believe

58

that there is a powerful deity made by the people

of Okperi to control the market place.

“... This deity called Nwanyieke is an old

woman... beckoning with her broom in all

directions of the earth and drawing folk from

every land...”1 (p. 20)

This shows us that the Igbo people considered

spirits and deities in

male and female categories. We can see a kind of

affinity between the deity and the people when we

see that the deity in the market places dances

with a broom, only that the deities possess

supernatural powers.

Idemili which is considered one of the deities

by the people of Umuaro has been described by the

author through the mouth of Ezidemili, (the

priest of Idemili) thus:

59

“Idemili means Pillar of Water. As the pillar

of this households roof so does Idemili hold up

the Raincloud in the sky so that it does not

fall down. Idemili belongs to the sky...”1

(p. 43)

There is an episode in this novel where

Oduche, a son of Ezeulu

once brings a python and captures it in a wooden

box. This creates a great chaos in the whole

village and people start blaming Ezeulu for

letting his son go to the Church. In Igboland the

python is considered as sacred. Python is

considered as a symbol of their ancestors and is

so worshipped. It is considered that Idemili is the

owner of the royal python. Further in the story

we see that Ezeulu performs special rituals in

order to cast away the abomination done by his

son. This conception is similar to the belief of

60

Indians in considering the Cobra as a sacred

animal. Indians worship the Cobra as Naagadevate.

They too believe the concept of abomination and

purification like Indians.

The people of Umuaro believe that Ezeulu is

not an ordinary man and that he is half man and

half spirit. Ezeulu’s friend Akuebue mentions

about this during a conversation with Ezeulu.

Even Ezeulu is sometimes heard speaking to

himself that he is sometimes being used by God as

His arrow and as a whip.

“... This is not my doing. The Gods sometimes

use as a whip”1

(p. 210)

Like in any other religion, prayer has its

own unique significance in the religion of the

Igbo people. They pray to their deities on

several occasions. The Chief Priest and elders

61

pray for the well being of the whole clan. They

pray for good health, wealth and prosperity.

Ezeulu prays for the wellbeing of the whole

of Umuaro people, when he sees a new moon:

“Ulu, I thank you for making me see another

new moon... This household, may it be healthy

and prosperous... We may increase in numbers

at the next counting ... May children put

their fathers into the earth and not fathers

their children...”1 (p. 6)

At many other instances in the novel we see

the people praying for the welfare of all the

people while breaking the Kolanut. Indians break

coconut while beginning any good work and pray.

Thus, there is this one more similarity between

these two cultures. All the prayers seem to

suggest only the welfare of the whole community

62

and whole world. Prayers indicate that Igbo

people are religious and God-fearing.

Igbo people are known to follow several

unique rituals according to their traditional and

primitive religion. In this novel Arrow of God

there are in detail descriptions of some of the

rituals practised by the Igbo people in Umuaro.

Most of the times, people follow rituals

which have been started by the ancestors. The

rituals have their own reasons behind them. But

often they are followed blindly by the

generations which come next. Here also, we can

see that there are some rituals whose reasons are

unknown to the people of Umuaro, but still they

follow them.

“...He knew that when an Ezeulu or an

Ezidemili died their heads were separated

from their body and placed in their shrine.

63

But no one had ever told him why this

happened.”1 (p. 42)

Marriages:

Marriage is a very prominent ceremony among

Igbo community as in all other communities in the

world. The marriage ceremony and the rituals that

are followed after the marriage are described in

this novel. It is a custom among the Igbos to

carry out the ritual of the “sacrifice at the

crossroads” after marriage.

In the story, after the marriage of Obika

with Okuata, a medicine-man called Aniegboka

performs this sacrifice. The sacrifice has

certain procedures that are described thus in the

novel:

64

“... The bride had a bowl of fired clay in

one hand and a hen in the other... On his

left hand Obika held a very small pot of

water by the neck. His half-brother had a

bunch of tender palm frond cut from the

pinnacle of the tree... medicine-man chose a

spot in the middle of the way and asked Obika

to dig a hole there and make it wider...”1

then a bunch of cowries was given to the

medicine-man. The medicine-man then asked

Okuata, the new bride to put the cowries, the

palm leaves, and the hen into the hole and

cover it with the fired clay. This sacrifice

is performed in order to bring security and

prosperity in the life of the newlywed

couple. (p. 120,121)

Funeral rites are also considered very

important among the rituals of Igbo people. In

65

the story, there is a description of what follows

during and after the funeral. The funeral of an

old man called Amalu in the village is detailed

in the last chapter of the novel. Funeral

includes burial of the deceased person’s body and

also sacrifices. Amalu tells certain things to

his son before he dies. He tells him that his

burial must not be delayed beyond four moons

after death. He also decrees his son to slaughter

a bull as a sacrifice during the burial.

The burial is followed by the great run of

the spirit called Ogbazulobodo. Obika carries the

spirit Ogbazulobodo during the second burial of

Amalu. The mask of the spirit is worn by a person

who runs throughout the village, continuously

uttering several sayings and proverbs. This is a

ritual that Igbo people follow after the death of

a person.

66

Superstitions that are popular in the Igbo

Community:

Igbo people are stuck in several meaningless

superstitious beliefs which do not have any base

or rational thought behind them. The

superstitious beliefs are carried from one

generation to the other hereditarily. As there

are numerous religious beliefs in the Igbo

community, there are many superstitions too.

Achebe has given examples of certain

superstitions and blind beliefs that are very

popular among the Igbos.

There is a blind belief that if the broken

Kolanut has six lobes in it, the spirits want to

eat it. We can see an exchange of dialogues

between Akuebue and Ezeulu when they break a

Kolanut and find that there are six lobes in it;

67

wherein they both speak about the five and six

lobed Kolanuts and their uniqueness.

There is an episode in the novel wherein a

black magician comes and performs it near a man

who is very sick and about to die. The medicine-

man orders the sick man to shout and send away

the evil spirits which is again a blind belief.

The belief that the spirits who are coming to

take away a dying man’s soul can be frightened by

gunshots is also a baseless superstition followed

by them.

Most of the superstitions among the Igbos

revolve around the medicine-men and magicians

because they are known to cast their spells upon

people and use their supernatural powers to harm

others. In Arrow of God, Okeke Onenyi, Otakekpeli

are those two such medicine-men who are always

68

thought to bring evils in the village of Umuaro.

But these beliefs are without any valid proofs.

There is a beautiful example given by the

author to show how the Christian Missionaries

used the weakness of the Igbo superstitions to

have a control and rule over them. The Python

which is considered sacred among the Igbos is

considered evil according to the Bible, in

Christianity. The Missionaries brainwash the

young minds about the python and their blind

beliefs about it. We can see this when Nwafo, the

youngest son of Ezeulu sings a song to send away

the python. Nwafo is made to believe blindly that

the python runs away after hearing the name of a

Christian. It is a common sense that snakes

cannot hear but even then the blind beliefs about

the python continue to dwell in the young minds

of the community.

69

Folklore of the Igbo Community:

Igbo community is rich in its local art and

folklore. The tribe which is in the affinity of

nature and wilderness has developed its unique

folk arts. The author has picturised several

illustrations in the novel Arrow of God where we get

to know that Igbo folklore has been carried on

from generation to generation. It is very much

popular among children too.

The Igbo culture is rich with stories

narrated or told by one generation to the next.

In the novel there are some folk stories which

have been narrated by the characters in the

novel.

During a village meeting, Ezeulu goes on to

the stage and narrates a folk tale which is

didactic in tone. Usually we see that the folk

70

stories have morality and didacticism as their

themes. The story is narrated by Ezeulu in order

to advise his people of Umuaro not to fight a war

of blame.

“Once there was a great wrestler whose back

had never known the ground... He went and

beat every spirit that came forward. Some had

seven heads, some ten; but he beat them

all... He then gave a challenge to his

personal god, a little wiry spirit who seized

him with one hand and smashed him on the

stony earth.”1 (p. 27)

Mask-carving is considered one of the major

folk occupations (community art) of the Igbos. In

this novel we have the example of Edogo, the

eldest son of Ezeulu, who is a mask artist and an

expert in making idols of deities.

71

Village crier becomes one of the chief

exponents of the folk arts. In Igbo culture,

communication is given great importance. The one

who has a good speaking skill and skill of

convincing is more respected. Oratory is

considered as a great art among the Igbos.

The village crier comes and announces if

there is something important going to take place

in the village. He often carries the message of

the important person in the village. In the

beginning chapters we see that the village crier

goes and announces about the festival of the New

Pumpkin leaves as has been told by Ezeulu, the

Chief Priest.

Village crier always carries an Ogene (an

indigenous drum) with him and beats it to catch

the attention of all the villagers and this is an

72

important element of their folk art. Such kind of

a thing cannot be seen in city life.

Igbo people adore the art of public speaking.

The village meetings are the events where many of

the great speakers show the power of their speech

and convey their thoughts to the people of the

whole village. Such orators are even sent to

other villages as emissaries. In this novel we

can see that during various occasions the village

meetings take place at the Nkwo market place.

During these meetings, leaders like Ezeulu and

Nwaka speak up their opinions. The speaker comes

in front of the people and addresses the

gathering as shown in the following lines:

“‘Umuaro Kwenu!’ Nwaka roared.

‘Hem!’ replied the men of Umuaro.

‘Kwenu!’

‘Hem!’

73

‘Kwezuenu!’

‘Hem!’............”1 (p. 16)

Further speech follows this formal greeting.

Then the speaker articulates all his ideas and

thoughts to the audience. If there is any other

speaker wishing to put forth an opinion, he is

allowed to speak after the first speech is over.

Igbos consider oratory as an art of great

importance in their society. A great speaker uses

plenty of proverbs in his speech and influences

his people. It is considered as a persuasive art

of the folks of Nigeria. Usually the important

decisions about wars, celebrations and about

judicial matters are taken in such kinds of

village meetings. Thus oratory is a folk art

among the Igbos which binds their community

together.

74

Igbo folklore is rich not only with lots of

stories but also with great variety of

traditional songs and verses which are sung

during their ceremonies. The folk songs are so

popular among the Igbos that even children sing

them by heart and very efficiently. Children’s

games and fun activities are filled with such

traditional folk verses. We see Obiageli, a

daughter of Ezeulu sing a song:

“And who will punish this water for me?

E-e Nwaka Dimkpolo

Earth will dry up this water for me

E-e Nwaka Dimkpolo

Who will punish this Earth for me?...”1 (p.

67)

The folk art of the Igbos is exhibited during

various ceremonies and festivals when the whole

village comes together. We see Ezeulu narrating a

75

story during his sacrificial offering during the

Festival of the Pumpkin Leaves. Ezeulu narrates

the story of how he met four days of the week and

finally met Ulu, the deity.

Their marriage ceremones are full of joyous

songs and dances. We have the episode of Obika’s

marriage with Okuata wherein the author shows how

the marriage songs are a part of their folk music

and art.

“Whenever a particularly impressive item of

food was set before the women their song-

leader raised the old chant of thanks:

Kwo-kwo-kwo-kwo-kwo!

Kwo-o-o-oh!

We are going to eat again as we are wont

to do!

Who provides?

Who is it?

76

Who provides?

Who is it?

Obika Ezeulu he provides

Ayo-o-o-o-o-oh!...”1 (p. 118)

Much of these folk songs are in the form of

conversations and dialogues.

There are even lullabies which are very

popular among the children. We see Obiageli

singing a lullaby for her step-brother Amechi:

“Tell the mother her child is crying......

Ja-ja, ja kulo kulo!”1 (p. 125)

The Igbo folklore is full of music and dance.

There are several details and descriptions of

various primitive musical instruments in this

novel. These instruments are used during various

occasions. Ogene is a primitive drum beat by the

village crier while making an announcement

throughout the village. There is another larger

77

drum Ikolo, about which the author writes in

detail while speaking about the Festival of New

Pumpkin Leaves.

“The Ikolo was fashioned in the olden days

from a giant iroko tree at the very spot

where it was felled. The Ikolo was as old as

Ulu himself at whose order the tree was cut

down and its trunk hollowed out into a drum.

Its body was carved with men and pythons and

little steps were cut on one side; without

these the drummer could not climb to the top

to beat it. When the Ikolo was beaten for war

it was decorated with skulls won in past

wars...”1 (p. 71)

Mask dance is the most famous and most

popular folk art of

Igbos. It is considered holy and devotional form

of art. The ancestral spirits are remembered

78

during the presentation of the masks. Various

deities and spirits are symbolically presented by

the Igbos by carving out and wearing the masks,

and performing the dances along with musical

instruments. The mask dances take place in a

grand scale. The whole village gathers in the Ilo

where the masks are presented. Usually women are

not allowed to watch these masks on various

accounts. But we see in this novel that even

women come and witness the dance of the masks.

These are usually carried out by groups of

youngsters. There are various occasions on which

mask dances are performed. Akwu-Nro is one of the

occasions on which the mask dance is performed,

as portrayed in the novel Arrow of God. The Mask

during the Akwu-Nro festival is described in the

following manner:

79

“The approach of the mask caused a massive

stampede... The metal gong and voices became

louder and louder and the crowd looked around

them to be sure that the line of flight was

clear. .. These young men wore raffia and

their matchets caught the light as they threw

them up or clashed them in salute of each

other from left to right and then back from

right to left... The mask arrived

appropriately on the crest of the

excitement... It approached a few steps at a

time, each one accompanied by the sounds of

bells and rattles on its waist and ankles.

Its body was covered in bright new cloths

mostly red and yellow. The face held power

and terror; each exposed tooth was the size

of a big man’s thumb, the eyes were large

sockets as big as a fist, two gnarled horns

80

pointed upwards and inwards above its head

nearly touching at the tip. It carried a

shield of skin in the left hand and a huge

matchet in the right.”1 (p. 199,200)

The mask also has its own long speeches and

songs which it presents during the dance.

Customs of the Igbo People:

The customs and traditions of a particular

community depend on the religious beliefs,

availability of resources, their lifestyle and

the practices followed by their ancestors. Igbo

people have been practising several unique

customs. Some of them have been repeatedly

depicted in Arrow of God.

Reference to the custom of breaking the

Kolanut while welcoming the guest into home, is

given several times in the novel Arrow of God by

81

the author. The following conversation between

Ezeulu and his friend Akuebue will make us

understand the custom of breaking the Kolanut.

“... ‘Then break it.’

‘No. The king’s Kolanut returns to his hand.’

..... Ezeulu picked up the kolanut in his

right hand and offered a prayer. He jerked

the hand forward as he said each sentence,

his palm open upwards and the thumb holding

down the kolanut on the four fingers...

‘Ogbuefi Akuebue, may you live, and all your

people. I too will live with all my people...

May we have the things with which to live

well... May good come to the land of

Igbo...’...”

(p. 96).

82

Thus the custom of breaking the Kolanut when a

guest comes is very important custom among the

Igbos. It is suggestive of goodwill for all.

There is one more prominent custom followed

by the Igbo people when any guest arrives at

home. The host offers some pieces of white chalk

to the guest who paints his toe with it after

drawing some lines on the floor with it. This is

described several times in Arrow of God. Akuebue

who comes to Ezeulu’s house is greeted in the

same fashion.

Sometimes, even the custom of offering palm

wine to the guest is followed by the Igbos.

Akuebue who comes to meet Ezeulu is offered palm

wine by the host and he drinks it in a cow’s

horn. (p. 98)

83

These are the prominent customs followed by

the Igbo community and are shown in the novel

Arrow of God by Achebe.

Festivals and Ceremonies of the Igbo People:

The author has given extensive details of

some of the major festivals and ceremonies of the

people of Umuaro. Igbo people are lovers of

ceremonies. They celebrate every aspect of life.

The celebrations of the festivals are with great

pomp. Out of numerous festivities of Igbo

people, the author has tried to focus on only

some in this novel, festivals such as: The

Festival of the New Pumpkin Leaves, Akwu-Nro

festival and the New Yam Feast.

The author has dedicated a whole chapter for

clear and vivid description of the Festival of

the New Pumpkin Leaves. This festival is

84

considered as a special festival of women. Women

wear their finest of jewelleries made out of

ivory on this occasion. As the name of the

festival itself suggests, this is a festival of

the new pumpkin leaves. Women carry some fresh

leaves of pumpkin and gather at the Nkwo market

place. The big drum Ikolo is beaten by Obiozo

Ezikolo. It creates a huge noise throughout the

village. All the women of Umuaro encircle and

then the rituals are carried out by the Chief

Priest Ezeulu, for his village. The Chief Priest

runs throughout the market place and finally goes

to the shrine of Ulu to perform sacrifices.

During all this, Ezeulu narrates the story of how

he came to meet Ulu along with the four days of

the week. The women carrying the pumpkin leaves

make huge noise in appreciation and encouragement

for Ezeulu. Thus the festival of the New Pumpkin

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Leaves is celebrated by the people of Umuaro in

great fervour. These festivals are accompanied

with prayers by the elderly people in the

village.

In a further chapter, Achebe has described in

detail about a minor festival called Akwu-Nro.

“The minor feasts and festivals of the year

took place in their proper season. Some of

them were observed by all six villages

together and some belonged to individual

ones. Umuaga celebrated their Mbga Agbogho or

the wrestling of the maidens; Umunneora

observed their annual feast in honour of

Idemili, Owner of the python... There was one

minor feast which Ezeulu’s village,

Umuachala, celebrated towards the end of the

wet season and before the big festival of the

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year – the New Yam Feast. This minor

celebration was called Akwu-Nro...”1 (p. 196)

This festival does not include many rituals

like the other festivals but it includes

offerings by the widows to their departed

husbands. A similar kind of ritual is seen even

in Indian society. It is during this Akwu-Nro

festival that the group of youngsters including

Obika perform the mask dance in the ilo of

Umuachala. Thus the author has given very vivid

picture of this festival in one of the chapters

in Arrow of God.

The New Yam Feast is the biggest and the most

important celebration of the Igbo people. This

festival is connected to their agricultural

activities and thus shows how the Igbo culture is

basically linked to primitive agriculture. The

New Yam Feast is the beginning of the New Year

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for the Igbos. The Chief Priest who keeps the

count of thirteen months by looking at the

thirteen new moons declares the day for the

celebration of the New Yam Feast. This festival

is very important for the people because it is

the festival when they start cultivating new yams

for the New Year. Yam, which is considered as the

king of crops in Nigeria is given great

prominence. The New Yam Feast marks the end of

the old harvest season. The Igbos keep their

lands ready for cultivating the seed yams for the

next season. As soon as the chief priest declares

the day, they start sowing seed yams into the

soil.

The episode of the New Yam Feast is of high

significance in the novel because it almost

changes the life of Ezeulu. Due to his delay in

declaring the day of the New Yam Feast, Ezeulu

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attracts the rage of all his villagers and

finally all the village is made to suffer because

of the delay in sowing new crop for the next

season. People die of starvation.

The significance and importance of the

festivals is seen clearly through the episode

related to the New Yam Feast depicted in the

novel.

Food and Lifestyle of the Igbo People:

Although the author has given a few details

about the food and lifestyle of the Igbo people,

those are not as extensive as in the novel Things

Fall Apart.

We can see that there are some references,

although not in detail, to the food they eat. The

Igbo people are both vegetarians and non-

vegetarians. Yam, being the major food crop,

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there are several dishes prepared from Yam such

as Yam foofoo. We see Ezeulu eating roasted Yam on

every new moon day. The pounded cassava and

bitter leaf soup are the other food items that

the Igbos consume. They also eat chicken and meat

of the animals such as goats. Igbo people are

lovers of palm wine, the main reason being the

large scale cultivation of palm trees in the

region.

The lifestyle of the Igbos is very primitive.

The materials and articles they use in their day-

to-day life are very simple. The author has given

some references to their equipments such as

goatskin bag- which they use to carry their

necessary things; goatskin- which they use as a

seat while sitting on the floor; wooden vessels

used in their kitchens like ladel and calabash

and such other things. Igbo people use carved out

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cow horns to drink palm wine. The snuff powder is

one among their regularly used items. Apart from

these, Kolanuts, white chalk pieces, camwood oil,

etc., are some of the items that the Igbo people

use extensively in their everyday life.

Proverbs used by Igbo People:

The Igbo language is rich with proverbs and

sayings which have flowed through several

generations orally. The proverbs form a great

part of the Igbo folklore, making their language

and culture very rich. The smartness and wisdom

of Igbo people can be understood through their

efficient and apt use of sayings and proverbs.

Proverbs are heavily used by them, especially by

good speakers and leaders. Proverbs are also used

by the people participating in mask dances and

presentations.

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There are a lot of Igbo proverbs exhibited in

the novel Arrow of God by Achebe. Some of the most

commonly used proverbs and sayings are observed

in this section.

Some of the frequently used sayings are as

follows:

“When an adult is in the house the she-goat

is not left to suffer the pains of

parturition on its tether.”1 (p. 18,19)

“The fly that has no one to advise it follows

the corpse into the grave.”1 (p. 27)

“... if you want to be the lizard that ruined

his own mother’s funeral you may carry on as

you are doing...”1 (p. 51)

“...A man who knows that his anus is small

does not swallow an udala seed.”1 (p. 72)

“... a woman who began cooking before another

must have more broken utensils.”1 (p. 101)

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These are a few examples of common sayings of

the Igbo people.

During the mask presentation, the mask goes on

uttering many proverbs. The Ogbazulobodo spirit

which is carried by Obika during the second

burial of Amalu runs throughout the village of

Umuachala shouting several proverbs.

“... The fly that struts around on a mound of

excrement wastes his time... The man who

walks ahead of his fellows spots spirits on

the way... It is Ofo that gives rain-water

power to cut dry earth...When a handshake

passes the elbow it becomes another thing.

The sleep that lasts from one market day to

another has become death... The mighty tree

falls and the little birds scatter in the

bush...”1 (p. 228,229)... and so on.

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Thus the author has extensively explained

about the proverbs and sayings which have become

a natural and integral part of the Igbo language

and culture. These sayings seem to be arriving

out of their continued experiences of several

generations.

CONCLUSION

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CONCLUSION

The purpose of this dissertation work was to

understand the lifestyle and culture of a

community through a novel. The detailed study of

the topic and the novel has served the purpose of

this dissertation. Chinua Achebe’s novel Arrow of

God has several aspects in it but the aspects

that I chose for my dissertation were to fulfil

the purpose of this work. The study conducted

95

during the dissertation has helped me to

understand the life and culture of the Igbo

community of Nigeria.

In the Introduction of this dissertation, I

have briefed about the African Postcolonial

Writings, with a special focus on the literature

of Chinua Achebe. His works have been a

manifestation of cultural expression of the

primitive African societies. Through his deep

insights into the social setup of the Igbo

community of Nigeria, Achebe has got a tremendous

popularity in the modern literary arena.

Further in the first chapter of the

dissertation, I have detailed about the social,

cultural and religious aspects of the Nigerian

Igbo community. In this chapter, I have noted

down the general information about the Igbos that

was available from various sources such as

96

encyclopaedias, dictionaries and other articles

that were available online. The first chapter

thus became a background with which I could

analyse in detail the text which I selected for

my dissertation work with the specific

perspectives.

In the second chapter, a detailed analysis of

the incidents, anecdotes and episodes from the

novel Arrow of God has been carried out in order to

find out various dimensions of the community life

of the Igboland.

Thus, religion, art, folklore, lifestyle,

food and clothing, customs, rituals of the Igbo

community have been explored while doing this

dissertation work.

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A Select Bibliography:

Primary Sources:

1.Achebe, Chinua. Arrow of God. Penguin Books.

London. 2010. Print.

Secondary Sources:

i. Poetic Heritage; Igbo Traditional Verse; compiled and

translated by R. N. Egudu and Donatus

Nwoga. Print.

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ii. Achebe, Chinua. Things Fall Apart. Allied

Publishers. New Delhi. 2012. Print.

Webliography:

a.en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Igbo_people

b.http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Igbo_calendar

c.http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Igbo_culture

d.http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chukwu

e.http://www.igboguide.org/HT-chapter9.htm

f.http://www.igboguide.org/HT-chapter3.htm

g.http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chinua_Achebe

h.http://www.theparisreview.org/interviews/

1720/the-art-of-fiction-no-139-chinua-

achebe

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