In Things Fall Apart, what leads to the society's disintegration?

The biggest single cause of the disintegration of the society of Umuofia is the advent of Christianity and the way that this foreign religion ends up splitting the society in two and causing conflict in a culture which previously had been united and had clear guidelines and rules. Note how this is highlighted in the speech that a member of the umunna gives at the feast that Okonkwo hosts at the end of Chapter 19:

But I fear for you young people because you do not understand how strong is the bond of kinship. You do not know what it is to speak with one voice. And what is the result? An abominable religion has settled among you. A man can now leave his father and his brothers. He can curse the gods of his fathers and his ancestors, like a hunter's dog that suddenly goes mad and turns of his master. I fear for you; I fear for the clan.

The book describes very clearly what happens when Christianity arrives and how its first converts are those who were traditionally excluded from Igbo society, and the tension that this causes. This conflict is heightened however when traditional taboos are openly challenged and violated, and also with the arrival of education and how this serves to drive a wedge between the Christians and those who have not ascribed to this new religion. The entire book clearly displays that it is the missionary endeavours of Westerners that initiate the disintegration of this rich and vibrant pre-colonial society. 

How does society contribute to the tragedy in Things Fall Apart?

In Chinua Achebe’s Things Fall Apart, Achebe foregrounds a changing society as a major contribution to the tragic circumstances that befall the doomed protagonist Okonkwo. Indeed, the massive changes that result from the influence of Western Christian missionaries leaves the inflexible Okonkwo feeling trapped and disenfranchised, and he eventually takes his own life as a result. Okonkwo is shown as being deeply affected by the changes to Umuofia after he returns from his seven year exile to Mbanta:

“Okonkwo was deeply grieved. And it was not just a personal grief. He mourned for the clan, which he saw breaking up and falling apart, and he mourned for the warlike men of Umuofia, who had so unaccountably become soft like women” (183).

Okonkwo’s return to Umuofia is underwhelming, and he longs for the past and the warrior culture that he left behind when he was initially exiled. As he lives in the altered region, he has unsavory encounters with the incipient white government officials. Okonkwo is unable to adjust to the changes, buckles under the pressure, and commits suicide. Obierika directly blames the officials and the surrounding society for driving his best friend to this:

“That man was one of the greatest men in Umuofia. You drove him to kill himself, and now he will be buried like a dog” (208).

Thus, society plays a major role in the ultimate tragedy of the novel. The changes to the region drive Okonkwo to suicide.

What factors lead to the destruction of Igbo society in Things Fall Apart?

It is important to realise that in this novel Achebe spends a number of chapters describing and presenting traditional Igbo society to the reader before the white colonists arrive. The implication is clear: we are shown a fully developed and extremely complex society that is in no way backward, and that has existed for thousands of years by itself. This serves to destroy any myth that the white colonisers came to "save" or to help the "backward" people of Africa. However, the biggest single factor that resulted in the destruction of Igbo society was the arrival of these colonists. Note how this is described in allegorical terms in Chapter 7, with the arrival of the locusts:

And at last the locusts did descend. They settled on every tree and on every blade of grass; they settled on the roofs and covered the bare ground. Mighty tree branches broke away under them, and the whole country became the brown-earth color of the vast, hungry swarm.

The anaphora, created through the repetition of the phrase "they settled," combined with the repetition of the word "every," serve to demonstrate the all-consuming nature of the locusts, and through them the colonists. The way the locusts cover everything and even cause "mighty tree branches " to break because of their weight perfectly reflects the way in which the branches of traditional Igbo culture are broken through the arrival of these insects. The comparison, as the rest of the book demonstrates, is all too obvious. Just as "the whole country" is impacted by the arrival of the locusts, so too is life changed irrevocably by the arrival of the white colonists. 

Does unwise decision-making by Igbo society cause catastrophic destruction in Things Fall Apart?

Thanks for the question! Ultimately, the response to this prompt on Chinua Achebe's novel Things Fall Apart is a matter of opinion. It is important to consider the arguments on both sides as you weigh your thoughts, so I will share a few points from both a positive and negative perspective.

If you agree with the prompt, you hold Igbo social and cultural norms responsible for the destruction of Igbo society. Although this is a more difficult position to take, you could argue that certain aspects of Igbo culture made it susceptible to being conquered by the British. For example, the large groups of osu, social outcasts viewed as unclean, were easily converted to Christianity because they had few stakes in maintaining the status quo. The polytheistic nature of Igbo religion meant that many villagers were interested in the new Christian God, which facilitated a rapid disintegration of Igbo culture and political autonomy. In this sense, the acceptance of a British presence in Umuofia was akin to allowing a wolf pup into the sheepfold; had the Igbo rejected and fought British influence immediately, a different outcome may have been possible.

If you disagree with the prompt, one argument that you could employ is that “decisions” cannot be made by societies at all. Individual members of a culture, such as Okonkwo, can make mistakes, but it is difficult to hold an entire society and culture accountable for “untimely and unwise” choices.

I would also note that it was the arrival of the British that served as the catalyst leading to the destruction of the Igbo tribes. Although internal divisions among Umuofians certainly enabled the British to exploit Okonkwo’s homeland and surrounding villages, Igbo culture was destroyed by external forces.

I hope this helps you organize some thoughts for the prompt. Good luck!