It is a shame that I hadn't heard about him earlier and it was by chance that I read his analysis of Conrad's Heart of Darkness which was so powerful that it made me want to read one of his books. Literature from Africa has historically been the whiteman's forte and so all we got was the colonizer's point of view. By choosing to write in English Achebe managed to reach worldwide audiences and brought international stature to African literature. In the past African Music has always been the torchbearer for African Culture and its influences on world music are taken for granted. Chinua Achebe did for African literature what numerous musicians like his countryman Fela Kuti, or Malian Ali Toure did for African Music. No wonder he is such a towering figure of inspiration for the new breed of African writers.
I've heard many high schools in America have "Things Fall Apart" as required reading. I can't wait to have my daughter read it. I remember the feeling I had when I first read "To Kill a Mockingbird" as a 9th grader in India (It was required reading for me as determined by my dad) and the book still stays with me. "Things fall apart" is not very different, and I will mandate both these books as required reading for my daughter in a few more years.
He will be missed!
I saw the news of his death early this morning when I read the BBC headlines.
ReplyDeleteLike you, my first introduction to African literature by African writers was Things Fall Apart.
Thank you for the post. Will try and read his books (hopefully sometime soon). But why do you say it is a sad day? Surely you didn't think he would live forever. Was there unfinished business? I agree that it is a sad day for people close to him - those that are influenced by him beyond his books. For someone as far removed from him as I, I will celebrate his life by reading his books - yes, may be I'm very late coming to it, but what's the hurry? After all, we don't mourn Newton's death do we?
ReplyDelete@ Srihari: It is a sad day 'cos it now means no more new writings from him. He had not "retired" or stopped writing/speaking. For e.g Harper Lee who wrote "To kill a mockingbird" didnt write anything after that and has remained a recluse, but Achebe has been pretty active.
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