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Nigerian Colonialism and the Igbo People

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Defined as the policy or practice of acquiring full or partial political control over another country, occupying it with settlers, and exploiting it economically, the residues of colonisation continue to loiter over a modern Nigeria. Joseph Conrad's classic tale Heart of Darkness (1899), one of the most celebrated novels of the early twentieth century, presents Africa as a wild, "dark," and uncivilized continent. Through the success of Nigerian authors, novels such as Things Fall Apart and Half of a Yellow Sun battle to counteract Conrads perception of the other and tell the story of colonisation from the perspective of the victim, providing a voice for the voiceless. By revealing a sophisticated and complex Nigerian society before European arrival, it exposes the deeply engraved destruction of the country's social, cultural, and political fabric. The style of narrative in both Half of a Yellow Sun and Things Fall Apart acts as a purpose to humanise a society that the Western World has demonised throughout history. Both Achebe and Adichie use free indirect discourse to develop the relationship between reader and character. Achebe shifts between this indirect discourse and the omniscient narrative; whereas Adichie slips into the consciousness of three different characters, separating each character by chapter. Consequently both stories are not told explicitly, as our perception is tainted by the stance of the character and therefore a personal connection is developed. As Achebe recalled in an interview once you allow yourself to identify with the people in a story, then you might begin to see yourself in that story even if on the surface its far removed from your situation. It is this personal association that allows a Western audience to sympathise with a Nigeria that was once ignorantly stereotyped as uncivilized. Achebe and Adichie excelled in constructing novels that exposed colonisation in a different light; whilst simultaneously identifying the importance of the individuals story. By employing narrative techniques that differ from colonial or European writings that are prevalent of the time, both authors succeeded in crafting characters with complex emotions and relationships, supporting the argument that Nigerian citizens weren't merely half devil as European writers such as Rudyard Kipling claimed. Adichie wanted to write about characters that are driven by impulses that they may not always be consciously aware of, unrestrained by the margins of truth and untruth which historians are bound to, she was able to produce a multidimensional version of the Nigerian Civil War that debunked the incorrect, stereotypical Western view of the East as The White Mans Burden. The reader is fully exposed to the effect colonisation has upon the individual emotionally, as opposed to being limited to merely the shift in Nigeria politically and economically as a result of colonisation. Both authors use structure to create a substantial contrast of the Igbo pre and post colonisation. The reader is immediately introduced to the main characters, Ugwu (Half of a Yellow Sun) and Okonkwo (Things Fall Apart) and indulges into a beautifully complex Igbo society; where Ugwu was youthful but keen to learn everything fast and Okonkwo, who brought honour to his village. Achebe explores in depth the concept of tradition and the functioning of the complex and sophisticated clan prior to colonisation; it is this technique that sculpts the foundation of his novel and exposes the emotional and physical struggle of Igbo life post-colonisation. An extensive introduction allows an audience to familiarise themselves and develop affection for the Igbo culture, consequently when the coming of the white man occurs even a Western audience is traumatised. It is notable that writing in 1959 and while lauding the authenticity in the novel, Bishop Obumselu criticized Things Fall Apart for its failure to capture the s

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