The white man is very clever. He came quietly and peaceably with his religion. We were amused at his foolishness and allowed him to stay. Now he has won our brothers, and our clan can no longer act like one. He has put a knife on the things that held us together and we have fallen apart.”
-Chinau Achebe
The village
A part of the village in Umuofia
Things Fall Apart takes place in a series of Igbo villages in Lower Niger during the late 1880's, just before European colonists' arrival. This is an important time becuase the British were expanding their influence economically culturally and politically.The village is called Umuofia and is smaller then most villages. There isn't much description of the setting in the book but the little details included makes it so visible The village is surrounded by the dark woods, the forest is both respected and feared as a chief god.
Umuofia is an Igbo village with very well defined traditions. It is a village that is respected by those around it as being powerful and rich. Each person has a hut or obi that is located in the center of a compound. Each of the wives has a separate obi with a shed for goats and an attached chicken coop. The main occupation of the men is sowing and growing yams since yams are considered the most important crop. The women grew less significant crops like coco-yams, beans and cassava.