Teaching Pack: Things Fall Apart

Cambridge IGCSE™ / IGCSE (9–1)

Literature in English 0475 / 0992

Cambridge O Level
Literature in English 2010
For examination from 2025
© Cambridge University Press & Assessment 2024 v1

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Contents
Introduction........................................................................................................................................4
1. Themes and text summary.............................................................................................................5
2. Character summaries and quotations............................................................................................8
3. Reflection and activities...............................................................................................................12
4. Quiz..............................................................................................................................................15
Quiz answers...................................................................................................................................17
Teaching Pack: Things Fall Apart

Introduction
This Teaching Pack supports teachers and learners when studying Cambridge IGCSE / IGCSE (9–
1) and O Level Literature in English set texts.
Set texts regularly rotate on the syllabus and may change from one year of examination to the
next. Before you begin teaching, check the set text list for the year in which your candidates will
take their examinations.
Teachers may use this teaching pack to engage their learners when introducing a set text, or as a
revision tool.
The content of these set text resources will need to be expanded on to cover what candidates are
expected to know and be able to comment on in an examination.

To increase learners’ understanding and appreciation of the set text we recommend learners to set
up a reading log, which could include:
 brief synopses of chapters/acts (in no more than a couple of sentences in their own words)
 a timeline of events (useful when a narrative is arranged non-chronologically)
 a list or diagram of characters and their relationships with each other
 first impressions of main characters
 initial thoughts about the main themes or ideas in the text.

In this pack we have included some useful lesson resources to use with learners.

 Themes and text summary

 Character summaries and quotations
 Reflection and activities
 A quiz.

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 Teaching Pack: Things Fall Apart

1. Themes and text summary

Chinua Achebe explores the themes of:
 Change and tradition
 Colonisation
 Masculinity and patriarchy
 Reputation
 Fate and free will
Things Fall Apart is a three-part novel that follows the life and relationships of protagonist Okonkwo
and his family, from his success in the fatherland (Umuofia), to his exile in the motherland (Mbanta)
and then back to the fatherland.

Part One At the start of the novel Okonkwo is eighteen, but he has already achieved
fame as the wrestler who beat ‘Amalinze the Cat’. Over the next two
decades, and partially in response to the shame he feels at his father’s idle
nature, Okonkwo achieves great success as a farmer and a leader. He has
three wives and eight children, yet he is cold and easily provoked within the
households. He is both respected and feared by his family and the village
alike.
The reader is informed that Okonkwo’s father, Unoka, died ten years ago
and was regarded by the village as a ‘loafer’. Instead of focusing on hard
work and farming, he spent his days as a young man playing the flute and
borrowing money that he could not repay. As an older man he was a failure
as a farmer, and his wife and children often went hungry. He died a poor
man, with no title and no wealth, bringing great shame to his son Okonkwo.
Later, the narrator tells the reader it was declared in the marketplace that
the sons of Mbaino have murdered a woman of Umuofia, the wife of
Ogbuefi Udo. It is decided that Mbaino will either go to war or will offer
sacrifices as compensation for their sons’ crime. Okonkwo is sent as an
emissary of war and goes to negotiate with the sons of Mbaino. He returns
to the village with a virgin and a young boy who is to be the sacrificed. The
young boy (Ikemefuna) is fifteen years old and it is decided he will live with
Okonkwo and his family. Ikemefuna integrates quickly into Okonkwo’s
family, enjoying the household and the village celebrations. He develops a
particularly strong bond with Okonkwo’s son, Nwoye, and quickly becomes
a leader of the siblings and very influential.
It has now been three years that Ikemefuna has lived with Okonkwo’s family
and he calls Okonkwo ‘father’. He appears to have a strong influence on
Nwoye and as a result Nwoye starts to act in a more masculine manner,
enjoying stories of war and disdaining women, much to Okonkwo’s
pleasure.
Finally the locusts swarm and settle in Umuofia and bring with them joy and
celebration as they are a new food source. Okonkwo, Nwoye and
Ikemefuna are outside working and feasting on the locusts when Ogbuefi
Ezeudu comes to inform Okonkwo that it has been decided by the clan that
it is time to sacrifice Ikemefuna. Ezeudu tells Okonkwo that he should not
be involved in the killing because of his paternal bond with Ikemefuna. The
next morning Ikemefuna is told he will be returning home, but the family,
and Ikemefuna understand that this is not the truth. Nwoye is very upset
and cries, but Okonkwo beats him to silence him.
Okonkwo does not pay attention to Ezeudu’s advice and the next day he
and Ikemefuna and the killing party set out. Ikemefuna is reassured by the
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presence of his ‘father’ and actually believes he may really be going home.
One of the party cuts Ikemefuna with a machete and he runs towards
Okonkwo looking for protection. Afraid to look weak in front of the other
men, instead of protecting Ikemefuna, Okonkwo uses his own machete to
strike the boy and kill him.
Following the killing, Okonkwo is distracted, not eating, or sleeping properly,
until his daughter Ezinma directs him on the third day to eat. He does so
and reflects on the idea that Ezinma should have been a boy; she is direct
and confident, yet still only a woman. To add to Okonkwo’s unrest, he is told
by Obierika that his shameful vanity fuelled actions against Ikemefuna (his
son) may be punished by the goddess and are the kind of actions that
destroy ‘whole families’.
Time has passed and drums signal the death of Ezeudu, the oldest man in
the village. The funeral is a loud and chaotic affair. During the service,
Okonkwo’s gun accidently fires and it kills Ezeudu’s sixteen-year-old son.
Killing one of your own clan is forbidden and means that Okonkwo and his
family will be banished, yet since it was an accident they will be allowed to
return after seven years. This marks Okonkwo’s departure from the
fatherland as he and his family head for his mother’s home: Mbanta. After
they leave, a group of men from Ezeudu’s quarter set fire to all of
Okonkwo’s houses, kill his animals and destroy his barn as justice for the
earth goddess.

Part Two Okonkwo and his family are welcomed by his mother’s people. He is given
a plot of land to build homes and farmland and seed-yams to start a farming
business. Okonkwo and his family work hard after the rains, but it is difficult
for Okonkwo to start again and rebuild with the same enthusiasm he once
had. His mother’s younger brother, Uchendu, tells Okonkwo a story about
the nurture a mother provides, forcing him to see the connection between
this story and the nurture his motherland can provide at this time of need.
In the second year of Okonkwo’s banishment, his friend Obierika comes to
visit with two bags of currency. The two men talk and Okonkwo is pleased
to see his friend. Along with Uchendu they discuss the story of the Abame
Clan and how their clan was wiped out after they killed a strange visitor, a
white man, who the Oracle said would destroy them. After dinner, Obierika
explains that the money is for Okonkwo’s yams and that he will continue to
sell them in Umuofia on his behalf.
Another two years passes and Obierika returns to visit Okonkwo once
again. This time the visit is less pleasant and Obierika explains that white
missionaries have come to Umuofia and have built a church. He reports that
Okonkwo’s son Nwoye is a convert to this new faith. It appears that the
missionaries came some time earlier to Mbanta, causing upheaval. The
missionaries had asked for some land for church building and Uchendu had
given them some land in The Evil Forest, expecting it to kill them. When
they did not die, but instead cleared the forest to build their church, they
won some converts. It appeared their God and their faith was stronger. This
is when they gained the faith of Nwoye, as he distanced himself from his
disapproving father.
As time passes the white missionaries and their three converts gain power
through fear. The converts boast that the Mbanta Gods are dead and
hostility between the clan and the church increases. Fear spreads as
rumours circulate that the white men are bringing their government in
addition to their Christian faith.
After seven years in Mbanta, Okonkwo and his family reach the end of their
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banishment. Okonkwo sends money for Obierika to build him two homes in
his compound for this return. He then throws a grand feast to thank the
people of Mbanta for their kindness and generosity.

Part Three The narrator tells the reader that even in year one of his banishment,
Okonkwo started planning for his return to his own clan. Although bitter at
the lost years, he planned to make his return grand and to re-establish
himself as an important man once again. He tells his sons they may follow
Nwoye if they wish, but that he will curse them after death if they do. He
also hopes that his beautiful daughters Enzima and Obiageli will attract
great attention. Enzima has the beauty of her mother, Ekwefi, and is known
as ‘Crystal of Beauty’ as her mother was in her youth.
On his return Okonkwo finds that seven years has made a great difference
in Umuofia. The white men and their church have great influence and they
have also built a court and created a government to judge the people of
Umuofia in ‘ignorance’. Okonkwo asks why the clan do not fight back, but
Obiageli explains that many of their own have already converted. Despite
his disapproval, it is surprising to Okonkwo that many people of the clan do
not feel as strongly as he does. Although Christianity seems strange to
them, the white men have also brought trade and money to the village.
Even Christianity seems to be taking hold of the clan as the respectfully
spoken Mr Brown works with the clan’s own traditions to promote the new
faith. Mr Brown also builds a school and a hospital and urges clan members
to use them to educate themselves and to get help.
Okonkwo’s return is not the great success he had imagined or wished for.
His beautiful daughters cause a stir, but he is not welcomed as the great
warrior he once was. His grief for both him and the warriors of Umuofia is
great.
Mr Brown is replaced with the religious zealot Reverend James Smith. His
style is much more antagonistic and results in a number of clashes between
the clan and the white men. One such clash ends with an overzealous
convert Enoch, ripping the mask of one of the Egwugwu (men of
judgement). The clan retaliate and burn Enoch’s compound and Mr Brown’s
church down. The clan is pacified for the moment and Okonkwo is pleased
with the retaliation.
For two days all is quiet, but then the District Commissioner returns and
gathers all the great leaders of Umuofia to discuss the events. The leaders
are tricked, handcuffed, and imprisoned. Their heads are shaved, they are
not allowed to urinate and they are treated poorly. Okonkwo is angry and is
overheard saying they should have killed the white men. He too is then
captured and imprisoned. The village is ordered to pay two hundred and
fifty bags of cowries as punishment. Eventually they agree.
At a town meeting Okonkwo argues for war, yet the meeting is ordered to
close by a group of white messengers. Okonkwo, filled with rage, strikes
down the head messenger with his machete, feeling that a strong act will
bring about war against the white man.
Later, the District Commissioner arrives at Okonkwo’s compound with a
band of soldiers. They are asked by Obierika to follow him to the back of the
compound where they can ‘help’. Intrigued they follow him to a great tree.
Okonkwo’s body is hanging from the tree; he has taken his own life.
As the District Commissioner walks away he thinks about the book he
intends to write and how Okonkwo’s suicide will make an interesting
chapter. He will call his book: The Pacification of the Primitive Tribes of the

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Teaching Pack: Things Fall Apart

Lower Niger.

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2. Character summaries and quotations

Okonkwo
Okonkwo is a tragic hero whose fatal flaw is his desire to be seen as powerful and strong; he fears
weakness. The text opens asserting Okonkwo’s quick rise to reputation and fame as the young
wrestler who ‘brought honour to his village’ by ‘throwing’ the great wrestler ‘Amalinze the Cat’.
Following this success Okonkwo’s fame grows quickly and he becomes a feared man with a
‘severe look’.
Over twenty years Okonkwo’s fame grows like ‘a bushfire’. He has become a large and imposing
figure and he breathes heavily and walks as if he’s about to pounce. He has three wives, eight
children and a successful yam-farming business. Okonkwo is a cold and unaffectionate man who
can act irrationally and is violent with his family and clan alike. He has no patience or time for
unsuccessful men and he similarly had no time for his lazy and unsuccessful father, Unoka.
Okonkwo rules his household ‘with a heavy hand’. His wives and his children live in constant fear
of his temper and his beatings. The novel suggests that in his heart Okonkwo is not a ‘cruel man’,
but that his life is dominated by the fear of being perceived as weak, like his shameful father. It is
this fear that drives him to act violently and with little mercy. This fear has driven Okonkwo since he
was a young child and as an adult it is rooted deep within him.
Okonkwo can be seen to act irrationally and without thought. He is advised by Ogbuefi Ezeudu not
to take part in the sacrifice of the boy Ikemefuna as ‘the boy calls you [him] father’. Despite this
advice, when Ikemefuna runs to ‘his father’ for help, Okonkwo uses his machete to cut him down
as he ‘was afraid of being thought weak’. This action causes an unusual depression in Okonkwo
and he is chastised by Ogbuefi Ezeudu for offending the Gods.
After an incident in Umuofia where Okonkwo accidently kills a young boy when his gun goes off, he
is exiled for causing the death of one of his own clan. He takes his wives and children to his
mother’s land: Mbanta. Here he is welcomed and starts his life again, rising to some success with
the plot of land and the seed yams he is gifted. However, the work is no longer a pleasure to him
and he struggles to find the same enthusiasm he had as a younger man. During Okonkwo’s time in
the motherland his life is dominated by one desire, to return to Umuofia and become one of the
great ‘lords of the clan’. It is this passion that dominates and drives his every thought and action.
First, the white missionaries come to Mbanta, and eventually they settle in Umuofia also. Okonkwo
cannot adapt to the changes they bring and fights continually in opposition to their developments.
He clings to the old traditions and ways of life and is too proud to accept any change, even while
the world and people around him are changing. After his disappointing return to the fatherland, he
impulsively kills an officer from the British District Office in a bid to fuel a war between his clan and
the white missionaries, yet he loses the support of his clan who now fear him and his impulsive
actions. Unable to adapt, he accepts defeat and commits suicide, hanging himself from a tree at
the back of his compound. This is seen as a shameful end, just like his father’s shameful end. This
completes Okonkwo’s rise to fortune, his error and his eventual downfall as a tragic hero.

Quotation This suggests…

‘When he walked, his heels hardly touched the That even from a very young age Okonkwo had
ground and he seemed to walk on springs as if the reputation of being fierce and predatory. The
he was going to pounce on somebody. And he simile and the verb ‘pounce’ suggests he is
did pounce on people quite often.’ Ch 1 animal like and ready at attack at any moment.
The adverbs ‘quite’ and ‘often’ add to the feeling
that this is his natural state, and that people
should be fearful of him.

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Quotation This suggests…

‘Dazed with fear, Okonkwo drew his machete and That Okonkwo acts irrationally and without
cut him down. He was afraid of being thought thought. Ogbuefi Ezeudu warns Okonkwo that he
weak.’ Ch 7 should not take part in the sacrificing of
Ikemefuna because ‘he calls you [him] father.’
However, driven by the ‘fear’ of being seen to be
‘weak’ he ‘cut him down’. The monosyllabic
phrasing here suggesting the hard finality of the
movement as it ends Ikemefuna’s life.

‘Then they came to the tree from which That by the end of the novel Okonkwo has lost all
Okonkwo’s body was dangling, and they stopped hope and is defeated. After he kills the white
dead.’ Ch 25 messenger and his clan back away from him in
fear, he realises that he cannot save/preserve the
traditions of the past, yet he cannot
accommodate change with the future. The
imagery of the ‘dangling’ body is one of limp
weakness and is symbolic of Okonkwo’s
impotency in the face of change.

Ikemefuna
Ikemefuna is a fifteen year old boy from the neighbouring village of Mbaio. He is given to the
village and people of Umuofia as a sacrifice after his father kills a woman of Umuofia. For three
years Ikemefuna lives in the household of Okonkwo with his wives and children.
To begin with, Ikemefuna is nervous, but he soon finds confidence and starts to function as one of
the children of Okonkwo’s family. Ikemefuna is a very hard worker and is good at hunting and
making bows, he is ‘at one’ with nature and is able to easily identify birds and animals. He quickly
fits in and becomes popular with the rest of the children and with his adoptive father Okonkwo.
Ikemefuna grows particularly close to Okonkwo’s son, Nwoye and they share the affection of
brothers. This relationship is particularly good for Nwoye, as Ikemefuna’s influence seems to make
Nwoye more manly and so more popular in Okonkwo’s eyes.
Okonkwo is a hard and ‘stern’ father who shows little affection to his children, yet the presence of
Ikemefuna suggests that Okonkwo is capable of some softness and affection, ‘inwardly of course’.
Okonkwo approves of Ikemefuna’s influence on Nwoye and he enjoys the company of both boys
on a number of occasions, telling them stories, working with them and eating locusts. Ikemefuna
comes to regard Okonkwo as his ‘real father’ and treats him as such, working to gain his love and
approval. It is during the sacrifice of Ikemefuna that this trust is challenged, and the reader is left
shocked at Ikemefuna’s betrayal by his father. After Ikemefuna is attacked by the men with
machetes, he runs to Okonkwo for protection, believing that as his ‘real father’ Okonkwo will
protect him. Despite the warning he has received not to take part in the sacrifice of a boy who calls
him ‘father’, it is Okonkwo that strikes the final machete blow that ends Ikemefuna’s life.
It is the personal killing of Ikemefuna and the betrayal of trust between father and son that initiates
Okonkwo’s tragic downfall. As a man who refuses the show any weakness, the reader is startled
when he obviously starts to suffer an ‘internal-fall’ following the incident. He is unable to
concentrate, sleep or eat for a number of days, a malaise that is only broken when his daughter
Ezinma brings him food and commands him to eat.

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Quotation This suggests…

‘Even Okonkwo himself became very fond of the That, Okonkwo has quickly become deeply
boy – inwardly of course… Ikemefuna called attached to Ikemefuna. The use of the adverb
him father.’ Ch 4 ‘very’ and the adjective ‘fond’ suggests an
affection that Okonkwo does not have for some
of his biological children. In allowing Ikemefuna
to call him ‘father’ he reciprocates the boy’s
feelings of closeness and affection.

‘He could hardly imagine that Okonkwo was not As Ikemefuna is led into the woods for sacrifice
his real father.’ Ch 7 he has no fear because he considers Okonkwo
to be his ‘real’ father and he assumes that as a
father should, Okonkwo will protect him. Indeed,
the bond that Okonkwo has with Ikemefuna is
deep and affectionate, yet this is still very little in
the face of Okonkwo’s fear of weakness. The
sacrifice Okonkwo makes in slaughtering his
‘son’ reveals the depths of his own fear of
failure.

‘Nwoye knew that Ikemefuna had been killed, Ikemefuna has been a role model for Okonkwo’s
and something seemed to give way inside children, particularly Nwoye, who has a strained
him… He just hung limp.’ Ch 7 relationship with his father. Ikemefuna’s
influence, making bows and identifying animals
and birds, makes Nwoye behave in a more
manly manner in Okonkwo’s eyes and so buys
him some favour. Ikemefuna’s sacrifice has a
profound effect on Okonkwo’s household and
especially Nwoye, who simply ‘hung limp’,
reminiscent of Okonkwo’s dead body at the end
of the text.

Unoka
Unoka was Okonkwo’s father and is a source of disappointment to the village and his children. He
is a lazy man who is neglectful of his wife and children; they live hungry and in poverty while he
plays his flute and drinks wine. He does not plan or look forward to the future, but rather enjoys the
moment, believing you should enjoy what you have while you have it. This seems to be an
admirable philosophy, yet it means that Unoka never saw beyond the day that he enjoyed; he
never prepared for his or his family’s future.
Instead of working hard at farming, Unoka blames the Gods for not honouring his sacrifices. The
priestess tells him that harvest will be good or bad depending on the ‘strength’ of the man’s ‘arm’.
Unoka is known throughout the clan for the ‘weakness of his [your] machete’, sowing yam seeds
on exhausted land, rather than chopping down ‘virgin forests’ to create good new planting land. He
is told to ‘go home and work like a man’, yet he does not follow the priestess’ advice and so dies
with nothing: no land, no fortune, no title to pass to his son Okonkwo.
The narrator describes Unoka as an ‘ill-fated man’ who was followed by ‘evil fortune’ to his death.
He dies of ‘the swelling’, an abomination to the earth goddess. Those afflicted with this swelling are
not permitted to die in the house or be buried, but rather they are taken to The Evil Forest and left
to die. This is Unoka’s shameful fate and he dies, with his flute, in The Evil Forest.
Unoka’s lazy and wasteful life means that Okonkwo starts his young adult life with nothing. He
does not inherit a title, any land, or a wife. He is certainly disadvantaged, yet he works tirelessly
and like one ‘possessed’ to ensure that he does not follow in his father’s shameful footsteps. This
is this fear that drives the tragic hero Okonkwo to success and then to his downfall.
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Quotation This suggests…

‘Unoka was, of course, a debtor, and he owed That Unoka’s reputation as a ‘loafer’ and an
every neighbour some money, from a few untrustworthy man is known throughout the whole
cowries to quite substantial amounts.’ Ch 1 village. The determiner ‘every’ suggests that
every person knows of his shame and his
inadequacy as a man, worker, husband, and
father.

‘He was in fact a coward and could not bear the Unoka is presented as unmanly. He enjoys
sight of blood. And so, he changed the subject music, the arts, and feminine activities, and these
and talked about music, and his face beamed.’ make him happy. The traditionally masculine
Ch 1 activities such as hunting and the associated
‘blood’ he finds disagreeable. He is described
with the noun ‘coward’; he never became a
warrior and wars made him sad and unhappy; a
great shame within the village and its culture and
traditions.

‘He died of the swelling which was an Unoka’s death reflects his life and its
abomination to the earth goddess.’ Ch3 disappointments. The mysterious ‘swelling’ is
shameful and the use of the noun ‘abomination’ is
emotive and suggests a deep offense to Unoka’s
cultures and traditions. The offense to ‘the earth
goddess’ means that Unoka cannot be buried in
the earth, and so is left to rot on top of it.

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3. Reflection and activities

Now you have read the novel, reflect on your thoughts:

Explore passages/extracts and relate them to the whole text.

Select a passage of key importance from the novel.

Explain where the extract appears in the text and what happens immediately before and after the
extract.

Consider the significant links between the content of the extract and the rest of the text.

Provide a brief overview of the content and organisation of the extract.

Explore the way the writer uses language to achieve certain effects. Highlight key words on a copy
of the extract and annotate them, saying what you find striking, vivid, memorable, disturbing, etc.

Create an exam style question around the passage, for example:

 How does [author] make this such a memorable / significant moment in the story?
 Explore the ways in which [author] portrays [character’s] attitude towards [character] at this
moment in the novel.
 Explore the ways in which [author] makes this moment in the novel so [moving / exciting /
sad, etc].
 How does [author] movingly convey [character’s] thoughts and feelings at this moment in
the novel?
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Explore the characters in the novel

Create an exam style question around the characters of the novel, for example:
 Explore the ways in which [author] portrays the differences between [character] and
[character]?
 Explore the ways in which [author] strikingly portrays [character’s] relationship with
[character].
 How does the writer memorably depict the life of [character]?
 In what ways does [author] make [character] such a memorable / admirable character?
Choose one of your exam style questions and complete the following activities:
Compile a QUOTATION + COMMENT table to record your ideas about specific characters.
Add notes to each quotation about what it reveals about the character and their relevant contexts.
Learn some key quotations.
Answer the question. Peer-evaluate each other’s answers.
Note examples of:
o irrelevant points (which perhaps narrate or describe)
o repeated points (where no more credit can be given)
o unsupported assertions (which do not constitute analysis)
o long quotations (which indicate a lack of clear focus).
Tick:
 points that are valid and thoughtful
 quotations that are concise and relevant
 critical comments on key words or aspects of structure and form.
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Explore the themes of the novel

Create an exam style question around a theme (listed in section 1), for example:

 How does [author] portray [theme] in the novel?

 In what ways does [author] convey [theme] in the novel?
 How does [author] present his ideas about [theme] in the novel?

Choose one of your exam style questions and complete the following activities:

 Compile a QUOTATION + COMMENT table to record your ideas about specific

characters.
 Add notes to each quotation about what it reveals about the character and their relevant
contexts.
 Learn some key quotations.
 Answer the question. Peer-evaluate each other’s answers.

Note examples of:

o irrelevant points (which perhaps narrate or describe)
o repeated points (where no more credit can be given)
o unsupported assertions (which do not constitute analysis)
o long quotations (which indicate a lack of clear focus).
Tick:
 points that are valid and thoughtful
 quotations that are concise and relevant
 critical comments on key words or aspects of structure and form.
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4. Quiz
Complete this quiz after you have read the novel.

1. How does Okonkwo first win fame in Umuofia?

A) He is a great leader of the clan.
B) He is a very successful farmer.
C) He beat ‘Amalinze the Cat’ in a wrestling match.
D) He is more successful than his father.

2. Which of these statements is false?

A) The Mbaino kill the son of Ogbuefi Udo.
B) The Mbaino choose not to go to war.
C) The Mbaino successfully negotiate with the emissary over their crime.
D) The Mbaino send a woman and a child as compensation for killing the wife of Ogbuefi Udo.

3. What happens to Ikemefuna when he arrives in Umuofia?

A) He is sent to live with Ogbuefi Udo.
B) He is sacrificed straightaway.
C) He is sent to live with Okonkwo’s family.
D) He is sold in the marketplace.

4. What advice does Okonkwo receive about the sacrifice of Ikemefuna?

A) To be personally involved in the sacrifice.
B) To help Ikemefuna escape to his mother and sister.
C) To not take part in the sacrifice due to his paternal bond with Ikemefuna.
D) To reveal the plan so Ikemefuna can escape on his own.

5. Why do Okonkwo and his family leave Umuofia?

A) He is banished for 7 years for killing one of his own clan.
B) He has lost his home and business due to fire.
C) He is scared of being punished by the earth goddess.
D) He is ashamed of his part in causing the death of Ezeudu’s son.

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 Teaching Pack: Things Fall Apart

6. Which of these statements is true?

A) Okonkwo is not welcomed in the motherland due to his crimes in the fatherland.
B) Okonkwo fails to see how the motherland can nurture and provide for him.
C) Okonkwo works hard to build a new home and life in the motherland.
D) Okonkwo is refused a plot of land to farm in the motherland.

7. How do the white missionaries gain power in Mbanta (the motherland)?

A) Through the taking of land.
B) Through quickly gaining converts.
C) Through religion.
D) Through fear.

8. When Okonkwo finally returns to Umuofia, what does he find?

A) The clan are greatly influenced by the new power of the missionaries and their church.
B) The clan are angry at the presence of the white man in their community.
C) The clan and the place have remained unchanged for 7 years.
D) The clan welcome him back with joy and celebration.

9. Which of these statements is false?

A) The District Commissioner tricks and imprisons all the great leaders of Umuofia after the
retaliation.
B) The District Commissioner treats the great leaders of Umuofia badly.
C) The District Commissioner captures and imprisons Okonkwo also.
D) The District Commissioner orders that the village is paid two hundred and fifty bags of Cowries
as compensation.

10. What does Obierika ask the District Commissioner to ‘help’ with?
A) The removal of the white man from the village.
B) The removal of Okonkwo’s hanging body.
C) The removal of soldiers from Okonkwo’s compound.
D) The removal of Okonkwo’s name from his book on ‘Primitive Tribes’.

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Quiz answers
1. How does Okonkwo first win fame in Umuofia?
C) He beat ‘Amalinze the Cat’ in a wrestling match.

2. Which of these statements is false?

A) The Mbaino kill the son of Ogbuefi Udo.

3. What happens to Ikemefuna when he arrives in Umuofia?

C) He is sent to live with Okonkwo’s family.

4. What advice does Okonkwo receive about the sacrifice of Ikemefuna?

C) To not take part in the sacrifice due to his paternal bond with Ikemefuna.

5. Why do Okonkwo and his family leave Umuofia?

A) He is banished for 7 years for killing one of his own clan.

6. Which of these statements is true?

C) Okonkwo works hard to build a new home and life in the motherland.

7. How do the white missionaries gain power in Mbanta (the motherland)?

D) Through fear.

8. When Okonkwo finally returns to Umuofia, what does he find?

A) The clan are greatly influenced by the new power of the missionaries and their church.

9. Which of these statements is false?

D) The District Commissioner orders that the village is paid two hundred and fifty bags of Cowries
as compensation.

10. What does Obierika ask the District Commissioner to ‘help’ with?
B) The removal of Okonkwo’s hanging body.

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