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Things Fall Apart
Students read Chinua Achebe's widely acclaimed Things Fall Apart as they examine themes of identity, culture, and colonialism, analyzing the author's careful choice of words and symbolism.
ELA
Unit 7
11th Grade
This unit has been archived. To view our updated curriculum, visit our 11th Grade English course.
Unit Summary
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Chinua Achebe, often called the father of modern African literature, has had an impact on readers around the world and on a generation of novelists who have come behind him. His tragic novel, Things Fall Apart, is one of the most widely-read books in the world. The novel’s message about colonialism is echoed and built upon by many of the non-European authors students will read throughout 11th and 12th grade English.
In this unit, students will examine how Achebe develops the complex themes of identity, culture and colonialism, and the individual and community throughout the novel. They will analyze his craft by looking deeply at character development, word choices, and symbols, examining how the author uses these devices to comment on the devastating impact of European colonialism on the culture and peoples of Africa. Along with the novel, students will read several articles and poems that will help to deepen their understanding of the author, the text, and the themes. They will be required to show their deep understanding of both the content and skills of the unit through a mid-unit essay and a unit test.
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Texts and Materials
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Core Materials
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Book: Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe (Penguin Books, 2017)
Supporting Materials
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Excerpt: Igbo Culture and History by Don C. Ohadike
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Book: Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad
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Book: Purple Hibiscus by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie (Algonquin Books, 2012)
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Poem: “Mango Seedling” by Chinua Achebe
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Poem: “The Second Coming” by William Butler Yeats
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Article: “Chinua Achebe, African Literary Titan, Dies at 82” by Jonathan Kandell (New York Times, 2013)
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Essay: “How to Write About Africa” by Binyavanga Wainaina (Granta)
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Speech: “An Image of Africa: Racism in Conrad’s 'Heart of Darkness'” by Chinua Achebe
Assessment
These assessments accompany Unit 7 and should be given on the days suggested in the Lesson Map. Additionally, there are formative and creative assessments integrated into the unit to prepare students for the Performance Task.
Content Assessment
The Content Assessment tests students' ability to read a "cold" or unfamiliar passage and answer multiple choice and short answer questions. Additionally, a longer writing prompt pushes students to synthesize unit content knowledge or unit essential questions in writing. The Content Assessment should be used as the primary assessment because it shows mastery of unit content knowledge and standards.
Unit Prep
Intellectual Prep
- Read and annotate the novel.
- Take the final exam, including writing the essay.
- Read all of the supporting texts for this unit.
Build Background Knowledge
- A suggested article to build your background knowledge on Chinua Achebe is "After Empire" by Ruth Franklin (The New Yorker)
Essential Questions
- Identity: In what ways are human beings similar across culture? In what ways does culture impact identity?
- The Individual and Community: What is community? What holds it together? What tears it apart? What is the relationship between the individual and community? Why is maintaining balance in this relationship so important?
- Culture and Colonialism: What is the impact of European colonialism on the characters in the novel? On the people and cultures of Africa?
Writing Focus Areas
Spiraling Literary Analysis Writing Focus Area
- Developing a unique thesis statement to convey an idea about a text
- Selecting the most relevant pieces of text to support an argument
- Explaining accurately how the evidence supports the argument
Related Teacher Tools:
Vocabulary
Literary Terms
proverb, epigraph, theme, characterization, character motivation, conflict, mood, setting, tone, juxtaposition, foil, perspective, point of view, irony, satire, tragedy, tragic or fatal flaw
Roots and Affixes
ora- (orator, oracle) and ex- (exile, expedient), im- (impenetrable, impotent)
Text-based
chapter 1: plaintive (6), prowess (8, 38); chapter 2: amiss (9), discern (9), potent (11), capricious (13); chapter 4: benevolent (26), repentant (31), abomination (31); chapter 5: morality (36), subdue (42); chapter 6: frenzy (47), taut (48); chapter 7: harbinger (56), copiously (56); chapter 8: valor (65), succulent (71); chapter 9: malevolence (79), specious (80); chapter 10: trifle (94); chapter 11: impenetrably (95), benumbed (107); chapter 12: prominent (119); chapter 13: lamentation (12), inadvertent (124), calamity (125); chapter 14: requisite (130); exile (133); chapter 15: fugitive (138), harbinger (139), abomination (141); chapter 16: derisive (146), callow (147); chapter 17: fetish (149), miscreant (152), effeminate (153), annihilation (153); chapter 18: convert (154), heathen (157), ostracize (159); chapter 20: indignity (175), wrath (177); chapter 21: dispensation (178), zeal (178), prestige (182); chapter 21: desecrate (186, 190), imminent (188), pacified (191); chapter 23: palaver (193), ominous (196), sonorous (196); chapter 24: vengeance (199), valor (203); chapter 25: superfluous (206)
Idioms and Cultural References
Text: colonialism (for context), harmattan (1, 5), share-cropping (22)Â
There are a number of Igbo words and phrases used in the novel. Students should use the glossary at the back of the book for these Igbo words—they are italicized in the text.
Content Knowledge and Connections
- European colonization of Africa
- Igbo culture
- Chinua Achebe as a writer and social commentator
Future Fishtank ELA Connections
Lesson Map
Common Core Standards
Core Standards
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