The novel, Things Fall Apart is a story written by Chinua Achebe about a man Okonkwo, in the Ibo society and how he managed to play a role in his society’s downfall. The film directed by Roland Joffe, The Mission, is a story about a tribe in South America and how they are in conflict with the Portuguese and Spanish government. Both pieces of work provide similar aspects through their experiences and characters. For example, in both stories the characters are put in situations where they are left to quickly make a decision. The novel Things Fall Apart and the film, The Mission display the idea that one’s self lets certain factors like people, pride and fear influence …show more content…
In the novel,Okonkwo has taken in a young boy from another society. This boy is Ikemefuna, who serves as a caring son and brother in the novel. When Okonkwo is told that the Oracle had decided to kill Ikemefuna, Okonkwo is surprised, but he can not ask why (57). A big part of the culture is not asking why about anything you are told by the gods. Asking why would show he isn’t loyal to the gods or doesn’t trust their beliefs. After words, he is told not to take part in the killing, yet he does anyways, “He heard Ikemefuna cry, ‘My father they have killed me!’ as he ran towards him. Dazed with fear, Okonkwo drew his machete and cut him down. He was afraid of being seen as weak” (Achebe 61). Okonkwo lets his pride take over and influence his decision. He is afraid to be seen as showing affection to his dying son who is calling out to him. Instead of making his own decision, Okonkwo thinks about how other people in society will think of him rather than thinking about what the best decisions is. His pride means more to him than showing love to his …show more content…
This is shown through Chinua Achebe’s novel, Things Fall Apart, and Roland Joffe’s film, The Mission. Both works are similar in the displaying characters with decisions that not only affect them but the people around them in a negative way. The main takeaway is to learn why people let this happen. It is because when decisions are being made some people think way to hard and look to what others would do, say and/or think. Causing them to let other beliefs way in. For Okonkwo and the Emissary, they let what others would think get in their head. They can learn their decisions could have been far more different if not