Chinua Achebe Questions and Answers
Chinua Achebe
What literary awards has Chinua Achebe received?
Chinua Achebe received numerous literary awards, including the Saint Louis Literary Award (1999), the Peace Prize of the German Book Trade (2002), and the Man Booker International Prize (2007). He...
Chinua Achebe
What are Nnaemeka's objections to his father's choice of bride?
Nnaemeka objects to his father's choice of Ugoye as a bride due to several reasons. Firstly, he is already engaged to Nene, an Ibibio girl, and fears his father's disapproval of marrying outside...
Chinua Achebe
What does Chinua Achebe mean by his comments on the use of English as a medium for conveying African experience?
If a world language, English, is to continue to be understood by all peoples and in all lands where it is spoken, Achebe says that (1) it must submit to the use of many different kinds of people; and...
Chinua Achebe
Explain the use of satire in Chinua Achebe's works.
The response generated is correct. Nigerian author Chinua Achebe uses satire to critique societal issues, including colonialism and the conflicts between traditional African culture and modern...
Chinua Achebe
What are some examples of imagery in Achebe's "Butterfly" and "Vultures?"
Imagery in Achebe's poems "Butterfly" and "Vultures" prominently features nature and destruction. In "Vultures," natural imagery includes a vulture "perching high on broken bone of a dead tree,"...
Chinua Achebe
In "Chike's School Days," what shocks Elizabeth and how does she attempt to correct her son's mistake?
Elizabeth is shocked when her son Amos plans to marry an Osu woman, a member of the lowest caste in Igbo society, due to his Christian conversion. Despite being a Christian herself, Elizabeth is...
Chinua Achebe
What two details suggest the setting of "Refugee Mother and Child" by Chinua Achebe?
Two details that suggest that the setting of the poem "Refugee Mother and Child" by Achebe is a refugee camp are the following air was heavy with odours of diarrhoea of unwashed children and...
Chinua Achebe
What is the theme of "Bull and Egret" by Chinua Achebe?
The theme of "Bull and Egret" by Chinua Achebe centers on the negative impacts of the decolonization struggle in Nigeria, specifically the Biafran War of 1967-1970. Through the imagery of a bull and...
Chinua Achebe
How can one compare the themes of "Refugee Mother & Child" and "An Abandoned Bundle"?
Both "Refugee Mother & Child" and "An Abandoned Bundle" explore themes of death and inhumanity through the depiction of children who have died needlessly. The settings—famine-stricken areas and...
Chinua Achebe
Before the arrival of the white men, how did the distribution of land and the Bible change?
Before the arrival of white men, the distribution of land and the Bible symbolizes the impact of Christian imperialism, where colonized societies like the Ibo people of Nigeria were compelled to...
Chinua Achebe
Why does Achebe detail Chike's parents' marriage in "Chike's School Days"?
Achebe details Chike's parents' marriage to provide context for Chike's unusual behavior and beliefs. Chike's father, Amos, married an Osu woman, making their family outcasts in a traditional...
Chinua Achebe
Does the poem "Refugee Mother and Child" by Chinua Achebe enhance the dignity of motherhood?
The poem "Refugee Mother and Child" by Chinua Achebe does enhance the dignity of motherhood by portraying the refugee mother's tenderness, surpassing even that of the Virgin Mary. However, the poem...