Albert Chinualumogu Achebe was born on November 16, 1930, in Ogidi in Igboland. He is seen as the father of modern African literature. His first novel, Things Fall Apart, the story of the Igbo warrior Okonkwo and the colonial era, is the most widely read book in modern African literature. More than 10 million copies have been sold. Things Fall Apart was, Chinua says, »A story that only someone who went through it could be trusted to give. It was insisting to be told by the owner of the story, not by others, no matter how well meaning or competent«. |
Chinua was raised in the large village of Ogidi, one of the first centres of Anglican missionary work in Eastern Nigeria. His parents, Isaiah Okafo Achebe and Janet Anaenechi Iloegbunam Achebe, were converts to the Protestant Church Mission Society. They stood at a crossroads of traditional culture and Christian influence, which made a significant impact on their children, especially Chinua. Storytelling was a mainstay of the Igbo tradition and an integral part of the community. His mother and sister told him many stories as a child, which he repeatedly requested.
In 1936, Chinua entered St. Philips' Central School. He also attended Sunday school every week and the special evangelical services held monthly. At the age of twelve, he moved away from his family to the village of Nekede, four kilometres from Owerri. He enrolled at the Central School, where his older brother John taught. In 1944, Achebe sat entrance examinations and was accepted at the prestigious Government College in Umuahia. In his first year he was double-promoted, completing the first two years' studies in one year. In 1948, he was accepted to study medicine at the new University College at Ibadan, an associate college of the University of London. After a year of grueling work, he changed to English, history, and theology.
The growing nationalism in Nigeria was not lost on Chinua. At the university, he dropped his English name »Albert« in favour of the Igbo name »Chinua«, short for Chinualumogu, which is translated as »May God fight on my behalf«.
After graduating in 1953, he taught at the Merchants of Light School in Oba for four months. In 1954, he moved to Lagos and joined the Nigerian Broadcasting Service. He was assigned to the Talks Department, preparing scripts for oral delivery. This helped him master the subtle nuances between written and spoken language, a skill that helped him later to write realistic dialogue. In 1956, he was selected at the Staff School run by the British Broadcasting Corporation. In London, he met a novelist Gilbert Phelps, to whom he offered the manuscript. Phelps responded with great enthusiasm, asking Chinua if he could show it to his editor and publishers, which he declined, insisting that it needed more work.
Back in Nigeria, Chinua set to work revising and editing his novel. By 1957, he had sculpted it to his liking and sent his only copy of his handwritten manuscript to the London company. After he waited several months without receiving any communication from the typing service, he began to worry. His boss at the Nigerian Broadcasting Service, Angela Beattie, was going to London for her annual leave and he asked her to visit the company. She found that manuscript was lying ignored in the corner of the office. In 1958, his first novel Things Fall Apart was published.
Things Fall Apart describes the customs and society of the Igbo people, and the influence of British colonialism and Christian missionaries on the Igbo community during the late 19th century. Things Fall Apart became one of the most important books in African literature. It is seen as the archetypal modern African novel in English. It is a staple book in schools throughout Africa and is widely read and studied in English-speaking countries around the world. Things Fall Apart is unquestionably the world's most widely read African novel, having sold more than 10 million copies and was translated into more than 50 languages.
His later novels include No Longer at Ease (1960), Arrow of God (1964), A Man of the People (1966), and Anthills of the Savannah (1987). Chinua's novels focus on the traditions of Igbo people, the effect of Christian influences, and the clash of values during and after the colonial era. His style relies heavily on the Igbo oral tradition, and combines straightforward narration with representations of folk stories, proverbs, and oratory. He has also published a number of short stories, children's books, and essay collections.
On March 22, 1990, Chinua was riding in a car to Lagos when an axle collapsed and the car flipped. The weight of the vehicle fell on Chinua and his spine was severely damaged. In July doctors announced that although he was recuperating well, he was paralyzed from the waist down and would require the use of a wheelchair for the rest of his life.
Soon after, he moved to the United States and taught at Bard College, where he remained for 15 years. In 2009, he joined the Brown University, serving as professor of Africana Studies as well as the David and Marianna Fisher University professor.
Chinua was a supporter of Biafran secession. He had acted as roving cultural ambassador for Biafra at the time, but for more than 40 years he remained silent about his war experiences. In 2012, he published a long-awaited memoir about the brutal three-year Biafran war titled There Was a Country: A Personal History of Biafra. The book is in fact a lament for Biafra and the decline of Nigeria, which he relates directly to the Biafran war. In his telling, the Igbo aroused hostility because of their intelligence and success; they had always been a democratic, well-educated and progressive people, and they flourished in the bigger context of Nigeria.
Chinua Achebe won several awards over the course of his writing career, including the Man Booker International Prize (2007) and the Dorothy and Lillian Gish Prize (2010). He also received honorary degrees from more than 30 universities around the world. Despite his achievements and the global importance of his work, Chinua never received a Nobel Prize, which some observers viewed as unjust.
Chinua was a man of resilient will. His works are testimony to the domination of the human spirit over the forces of repression.
He died on March 21, 2013, in Boston, at the age of 82.
In 1936, Chinua entered St. Philips' Central School. He also attended Sunday school every week and the special evangelical services held monthly. At the age of twelve, he moved away from his family to the village of Nekede, four kilometres from Owerri. He enrolled at the Central School, where his older brother John taught. In 1944, Achebe sat entrance examinations and was accepted at the prestigious Government College in Umuahia. In his first year he was double-promoted, completing the first two years' studies in one year. In 1948, he was accepted to study medicine at the new University College at Ibadan, an associate college of the University of London. After a year of grueling work, he changed to English, history, and theology.
The growing nationalism in Nigeria was not lost on Chinua. At the university, he dropped his English name »Albert« in favour of the Igbo name »Chinua«, short for Chinualumogu, which is translated as »May God fight on my behalf«.
After graduating in 1953, he taught at the Merchants of Light School in Oba for four months. In 1954, he moved to Lagos and joined the Nigerian Broadcasting Service. He was assigned to the Talks Department, preparing scripts for oral delivery. This helped him master the subtle nuances between written and spoken language, a skill that helped him later to write realistic dialogue. In 1956, he was selected at the Staff School run by the British Broadcasting Corporation. In London, he met a novelist Gilbert Phelps, to whom he offered the manuscript. Phelps responded with great enthusiasm, asking Chinua if he could show it to his editor and publishers, which he declined, insisting that it needed more work.
Back in Nigeria, Chinua set to work revising and editing his novel. By 1957, he had sculpted it to his liking and sent his only copy of his handwritten manuscript to the London company. After he waited several months without receiving any communication from the typing service, he began to worry. His boss at the Nigerian Broadcasting Service, Angela Beattie, was going to London for her annual leave and he asked her to visit the company. She found that manuscript was lying ignored in the corner of the office. In 1958, his first novel Things Fall Apart was published.
Things Fall Apart describes the customs and society of the Igbo people, and the influence of British colonialism and Christian missionaries on the Igbo community during the late 19th century. Things Fall Apart became one of the most important books in African literature. It is seen as the archetypal modern African novel in English. It is a staple book in schools throughout Africa and is widely read and studied in English-speaking countries around the world. Things Fall Apart is unquestionably the world's most widely read African novel, having sold more than 10 million copies and was translated into more than 50 languages.
His later novels include No Longer at Ease (1960), Arrow of God (1964), A Man of the People (1966), and Anthills of the Savannah (1987). Chinua's novels focus on the traditions of Igbo people, the effect of Christian influences, and the clash of values during and after the colonial era. His style relies heavily on the Igbo oral tradition, and combines straightforward narration with representations of folk stories, proverbs, and oratory. He has also published a number of short stories, children's books, and essay collections.
On March 22, 1990, Chinua was riding in a car to Lagos when an axle collapsed and the car flipped. The weight of the vehicle fell on Chinua and his spine was severely damaged. In July doctors announced that although he was recuperating well, he was paralyzed from the waist down and would require the use of a wheelchair for the rest of his life.
Soon after, he moved to the United States and taught at Bard College, where he remained for 15 years. In 2009, he joined the Brown University, serving as professor of Africana Studies as well as the David and Marianna Fisher University professor.
Chinua was a supporter of Biafran secession. He had acted as roving cultural ambassador for Biafra at the time, but for more than 40 years he remained silent about his war experiences. In 2012, he published a long-awaited memoir about the brutal three-year Biafran war titled There Was a Country: A Personal History of Biafra. The book is in fact a lament for Biafra and the decline of Nigeria, which he relates directly to the Biafran war. In his telling, the Igbo aroused hostility because of their intelligence and success; they had always been a democratic, well-educated and progressive people, and they flourished in the bigger context of Nigeria.
Chinua Achebe won several awards over the course of his writing career, including the Man Booker International Prize (2007) and the Dorothy and Lillian Gish Prize (2010). He also received honorary degrees from more than 30 universities around the world. Despite his achievements and the global importance of his work, Chinua never received a Nobel Prize, which some observers viewed as unjust.
Chinua was a man of resilient will. His works are testimony to the domination of the human spirit over the forces of repression.
He died on March 21, 2013, in Boston, at the age of 82.