Negative & Positive Impact British Rule
Due to the experiences of Portuguese traders in Igboland during the 15th century, the British became interested in the significant resources there and began settling in Iboland during the early 16th century. As one historian notes, “From then until 1960, the British slowly imposed their government and the Christian religion on the Igbo’s, changing their way of life forever”. During the late part of the 19th century, most of Africa’s continent came under the formal political control of European powers. In Nigeria, things were no different and by 1905 the British had established rule over all of present-day Nigeria.
The slave trade often made Nigeria a violent and insecure land for its inhabitants. Many were outright terrified over the prospect of being rounded up in slave raids. Nigerian tribes were far outweighed in military resources and skills compared to British forces. Because of the colonization of Nigeria, the country “witnessed political, cultural, and economic change during the colonial period”. In her book Things Fall Apart, Chinua Achebe focuses on the phenomenon of colonialism, one which she views as cyclical in nature.
Achebe’s work focuses on the end of the cycle, wherein the negative impact of a political and social system forced on a people has been fully manifested. Through the characters in her book, Achebe demonstrates that what endures during the cyclical swing of colonialism is the human spirit. We see that Okonkwo’s achievements mirror the kind of values Achebe believes enable oppressed human beings to endure the often unfair and destructive consequences of colonialism. For Okonkwo’s fame rests in large part upon achievements that mirror the social, cultural, and ethical values held by his own people and not those of British colonists. The Igbo natives became the “other” in their own lands, and Okonkwo’s achievements demon
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