Things Fall Apart By Chinua Achebe - 1622 Words

Okonkwo. Mr.Brown. These two men are drastically different from one another. But it is only 2 things in this whole wide world that separate them. In the novel, Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe, the fundamental differences between Okonkwo and Mr. Brown’s core beliefs as to how society should run derives from they’re interpretations of moral religious requirements and culturally accepted or rejected actions when it comes to economy, women’s rights, as well as war and military. That glaring line between their beliefs on those issues is materialism and how present materialism is in their respective religions and cultures. In Okonkwo’s culture, to be accepted, money is almost the only thing you need. The only thing more important to a man’s†¦show more content†¦To Mr.Brown’s culture, if all you care about is money, you aren’t going to be accepted often. You will be viewed as selfish, greedy and not many people will generally like you. Money is freedom in his culture, as you can do more enjoyable and expensive events with that money. But he knows that money is valueless when you die. Either you go to Heaven or Hell in his beliefs, and money is useless in both places. Therefore, an economy is clearly important to have, since probably anarchy would ensue without a stable economy system, but some people take it too seriously. Money isn’t everything in his culture. And family, memories and being a Christ following person is what really matters, not money. Those things you can’t drop on your foot, therefore materialism is viewed as evil in his society, sinc e needing tangible things is frowned upon in his society. He knows some people don’t get that, but the overall cultural beliefs are that money isn’t all to live for. In spite of Okonkwo’s beliefs on the extreme importance of money, Mr.Brown’s culture believes money is valueless when you die and isn’t the only thing to live for. In conclusion, materialism, as what someone has is how much one is worth, is viewed as highly acceptable in Umofia, while Mr.Brown believes that materials do not make a man and it’s who that person is inside is what matters. In Okonkwo’s beliefs, men are supreme and are just better than women derives from