An Identity in Crisis Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe is a story about personal beliefs, customs and also a story about a conflict of identity. There is struggle between family, culture and religion of the Ibo tribes. It shows how things fall apart when these beliefs and customs are questioned and how personal identity changes for a man. The novel concerns the life of Okonkwo, a local leader and wrestling champion in the villages of the Ibo ethnic group of Umuofia in Nigeria, Africa, his three wives and his children. Throughout the novel, Okonkwo is internally challenged and slowly becomes someone who is no longer recognizable to his friends or family. As Okonkwo faces change, his identity begins to fade. Okonkwo is one of the most powerful men of the Ibo tribe. In his tribe he is feared and honored. This is evident from this quote: "Okonkwo was well known throughout the nine villages and beyond. His fame was based on solid personal achievements. He brought honor to his tribe by casting Amalinze the cat" (Achebe 3). This suggests that in Okonkwo's tribe, making a name for oneself in any way possible, even if it means fighting and striving for one's fame, achieves power. Okonkwo wanted to be one of the highest leaders of the tribe and was willing to do anything to achieve this goal. He loved his tribe and they defined him. The Ibo people had a very different lifestyle and religious culture. They believed in many gods; they were a polytheistic tribe. The Ibo supreme god was Chukwu, and people believe that he “created all the world and other gods” (Achebe 179). They believed that everything had a spirit and that ancestral spirits called “egwugwu” kept the law. The Ibo... middle of paper... rgivable. The clan considered it “an abomination for a man to take his own life” (Achebe 207). Okonkwo went from being someone his clansman respected to an outsider no one cared about. destroy everything you hold dear" (anonymous quote). Okonkwo not only lost his tribe, his family, and his religion; but he also lost himself along the way. Aristotle once said that "The man, when perfect, is the best of animals, but, when separated from law and justice, he is the worst of all." Change should not rule someone's life. It is something inevitable and, once truly accepted , You Can Be at Peace. Works Cited Achebe, Chinua, 1959