Things Hold Together

Several years ago, when I was teaching Things Fall Apart, one thing that kept hitting me over and over was the tension in Okonkwo’s life even before the arrival of the Europeans.

He’s a brilliantly crafted character—so great in his culture but so at odds with it, too. His identity is built on what he perceives to be the most important cultural values, strength and fearlessness. Yet fear certainly overshadows his thoughts and actions, and he does cruel and ruthless things to prove his unmatched strength and control. Ultimately, the culture proves cruel and ruthless toward him as well.

Clearly, the cultural shift that happened with the arrival of the Europeans hastened Okonkwo’s downfall, but there were already cracks in the life he’d built for himself.

We approached the novel through the lens of cultural and character analysis, tracking elements of Ibo (Igbo) and European cultures and the internal and external traits of the main characters. In the end, our goal was to determine the degree of impact culture and character had on each other.

I need to mention that I taught Things Fall Apart at a private Christian school and that I am a follower of Jesus Christ. That’s a key detail in this story.

As we compiled our lists of cultural elements and examined how the characters embodied their respective cultures, I had an epiphany. Or maybe two.

First, I realized that even though religion is an element of culture, there is a huge difference between culture-based Christianity and what C.S. Lewis would call “mere Christianity”… the essence of the faith apart from a particular culture.

Second, it dawned on me just how tightly the threads of my American culture and faith had woven together without my awareness. It was shocking, and I spent the next few years questioning my assumptions about faith, culture, and the connection between the two.

As I journeyed through this season, the threads of pure faith in Jesus and what it looks like to be His disciple unwound from the values my culture dictated as most important.

As challenges came and the larger culture shifted in a direction I just could not go, my foundation remained solid. The Spirit used literature to show me the cracks in the life I’d built for myself. This season led me through a major course correction.

During this time, I made a chalk-painted sign with the words of Colossians 1:16b-17 (NIV) and hung it in my classroom to remind me that anything I build my life on besides Jesus will ultimately let me down. It also became a reminder to my high school students that there’s a better foundation for their lives, a surer foundation, than the ever-shifting sands of their culture.

So, that’s the origin story for this resource.

If you happen to teach at a Christian school where students read Things Fall Apart in your English class, here’s a free poster to pair with the Yeats & Mere Anarchy poster I shared a few weeks ago. Even if you don’t teach in a Christian school where students read Things Fall Apart in your English class, you are welcome to this resource. Because it’s true: in the world, things fall apart, but in Jesus, all things hold together.