A DECONSTRUCTIONIST READING OF COLONIAL AND GENDER ISSUES IN ACHEBE’S THINGS FALL APART

Abstract

Most scholarly writings on Chinua Achebe’s acclaimed novel Things Fall Apart disproportionately focus on two issues: the role of women in pre-colonial Igbo society and the disruptive arrival of Europeans. Critics often argue that the novel both denigrates African women and exalts African culture over European influence. This paper interrogates these positions using Jacques Derrida’s deconstructionist framework, identifying the binary oppositions embedded in the text and reversing the hierarchies they imply. The analysis reveals that the conventional interpretations exaggerate or misrepresent Achebe’s intentions, as the novel provides nuanced portrayals that challenge these binary assumptions, opening the work to innovative readings and perspectives