Things Fall Apart Important Quotes

• No matter how prosperous a man was, if he was unable to rule his women and his children (and especially his women) he was not really a man.

  Chinua Achebe

  Children, Men, Okonkwo

  Chinua Achebe (1996). “Things Fall Apart”, p.37, Heinemann

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• We think that the point is to pass the test or overcome the problem, but the truth is that things don't really get solved. They come together and they fall apart. Then they come together again and fall apart again. It's just like that. The healing comes from letting there be room for all of this to happen: room for grief, for relief, for misery, for joy. (10)

  Pema Chodron

  Grief, Fall, Healing

  Pema Chodron (2000). “When Things Fall Apart: Heart Advice for Difficult Times”, p.11, Shambhala Publications

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• If a child washed his hands, he could eat with kings.

  Chinua Achebe

  Kings, Children, Hands

  Chinua Achebe (1996). “Things Fall Apart”, p.6, Heinemann

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• Let the kite perch and let the eagle perch too – If one says no to the other, let his wing break.

  Chinua Achebe

  Eagles, Wings, Kites

  Chinua Achebe (1996). “Things Fall Apart”, p.14, Heinemann

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• The white man is very clever. He came quietly and peaceably with his religion. We were amused at his foolishness and allowed him to stay. Now he has won our brothers, and our clan can no longer act like one. He has put a knife on the things that held us together and we have fallen apart.

  Chinua Achebe

  Brother, Clever, Fall

  Chinua Achebe (2009). “Things Fall Apart: Authoritative Text, Contexts and Criticism”, W W Norton & Company Incorporated

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• Among the Igbo the art of conversation is regarded very highly, and proverbs are the palm-oil with which words are eaten.

  Chinua Achebe

  Art, Oil, Conversation

  FaceBook post by Chinua Achebe from Sep 05, 2014

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• Things fall apart; the center cannot hold.

  William Butler Yeats

  Life, Fall, Falling Apart

  "The Second Coming" l. 1 (1921)

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• There is no story that is not true.

  Chinua Achebe

  Stories, Abomination, Things Fall Apart Okonkwo

  Chinua Achebe (1996). “Things Fall Apart”, p.99, Heinemann

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• Living fire begets cold, impotent ash.

  Chinua Achebe

  Fire, Okonkwo, Ashes

  Chinua Achebe (1996). “Things Fall Apart”, p.109, Heinemann

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• At the most one could say that his chi or ... personal god was good. But the Ibo people have a proverb that when a man says yes his chi says yes also. Okonkwo said yes very strongly; so his chi agreed.

  Chinua Achebe

  Men, Okonkwo, People

  Chinua Achebe (1996). “Things Fall Apart”, p.19, Heinemann

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• The falcon cannot hear the falconer

  William Butler Yeats

  Falling Apart, Anarchy, Things Fall Apart Okonkwo

  "The Second Coming" l. 1 (1921)

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• Age was respected among his people, but achievement was revered. As the elders said, if a child washed his hands he could eat with kings.

  Chinua Achebe

  Kings, Children, Hands

  FaceBook post by Chinua Achebe from Jul 05, 2014

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• There is no story that is not true, [...] The world has no end, and what is good among one people is an abomination with others.

  Chinua Achebe

  People, Stories, World

  Chinua Achebe (1996). “Things Fall Apart”, p.99, Heinemann

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• We shall all live. We pray for life, children, a good harvest and happiness. You will have what is good for you and I will have what is good for me. Let the kite perch and let the egret
  perch too. If one says no to the other, let his wing break.

  Chinua Achebe

  Children, Wings, Kites

  Chinua Achebe (2009). “Things Fall Apart: Authoritative Text, Contexts and Criticism”, W W Norton & Company Incorporated

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• We have heard stories about white men who make the powerful guns and the strong drinks and took slaves away across the seas, but no one thought the stories were true.

  Chinua Achebe

  Strong, Powerful, Gun

  FaceBook post by Chinua Achebe from Nov 10, 2011

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• When things are shaky and nothing is working, we might realize that we are on the verge of something.

  Pema Chodron

  Frustration, Might, Realizing

  Pema Chodron (2000). “When Things Fall Apart: Heart Advice for Difficult Times”, p.10, Shambhala Publications

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• Beware Okonkwo!" she warned. "Beware of exchanging words with Agbala. Does a man speak when a god speaks? Beware!

  Chinua Achebe

  Men, Okonkwo, Doe

  Chinua Achebe (2009). “Things Fall Apart: Authoritative Text, Contexts and Criticism”, W W Norton & Company Incorporated

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• We think that the point is to pass the test or to overcome the problem, but the truth is that things don't really get solved. They come together and they fall apart.

  Pema Chodron

  Fall, Thinking, Together

  Pema Chodron (2000). “When Things Fall Apart: Heart Advice for Difficult Times”, p.11, Shambhala Publications

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• When things are shaky and nothing is working, we might realize that we are on the verge of something. We might realize that this is a very vulnerable and tender place, and that tenderness can go either way. We can shut down and feel resentful or we can touch in on that throbbing quality. (9)

  Pema Chodron

  Quality, Down And, Might

  Pema Chodron (2000). “When Things Fall Apart: Heart Advice for Difficult Times”, p.10, Shambhala Publications

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• Sometimes good things fall apart so better things could fall together.

  Marilyn Monroe

  Change, Inspiring, Break Up

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• An old woman is always uneasy when dry bones are mentioned in a proverb

  Chinua Achebe

  Okonkwo, Dry Bones, Old Woman

  FaceBook post by Chinua Achebe from Oct 28, 2014

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• Most of us do not take these situations as teachings. We automatically hate them. We run like crazy. We use all kinds of ways to escape - all addictions stem from this moment when we meet our edge and we just can't stand it. We feel we have to soften it, pad it with something, and we become addicted to whatever it is that seems to ease the pain.

  Pema Chodron

  Running, Pain, Hate

  "When Things Fall Apart: Heart Advice for Difficult Times". Book by Pema Chodron, September 26, 2000.

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• Only to the extent that we expose ourselves over and over to annihilation can that which is indestructible in us be found.

  Pema Chodron

  Life, Determination, Commitment

  Pema Chodron (2000). “When Things Fall Apart: Heart Advice for Difficult Times”, p.10, Shambhala Publications

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• A man's life from birth to death was a series of transition rites which brought him nearer and nearer to his ancestors.

  Chinua Achebe

  Life, Men, Transition

  Chinua Achebe (2009). “Things Fall Apart: Authoritative Text, Contexts and Criticism”, W W Norton & Company Incorporated

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• The sun will shine on those who stand before it shines on those who kneel under them.

  Chinua Achebe

  Shine On, Shining, Sun

  FaceBook post by Chinua Achebe from Jul 14, 2016

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