Essay on Victims of Culture Clash in Literature

Culture clash is a common thing in literature. It is more apparent in narratives that portray the proliferation of western culture in an already established traditional systems. The people who in most cases promote such foreign invasive cultures perceive it as a way of modernizing the primitive existing ways of life. Through the eyes of the undisclosed narrator of Ralph Ellisons Invisible man, Okonkwo in Things fall apart, Marlow in Heart of darkness and Othello in Shakespeares play of Othello, culture clash is aptly depicted as a force that tears the characters apart.

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In Things Fall Apart, the entry of the Christian whites into the tiny village of Umuofia estranges Okonkwo. As a noble warrior and adamant conservative of the Igbo traditional ways of life, Okonkwo refuses to accept the cultural changes introduced by the white missionaries. At first, the natives of Umuofia took the coming of the Christian missionaries as just a joke but soon afterward Okonkwo became weary of the undermining of cultures. He sets up a spirited anti-white missionary campaign and wins the heart of his locals to preserve their traditions. He considers the influence of the new Christian couture as progressively undermining their traditions thus leading to the breaking up and falling apart (Achebe 183). The collision between the Igbo traditional values and Christianity causes the dramatic fall of Okonkwos great influence in the village. The more he struggled to preserve the traditions, the more his control crumbled thus making him commit suicide.

In the story Invisible Man, the narrator whose identity is not disclosed struggles to conceptualize his personal identity as a black man staying in America. His main point of cultural conflict is the race. He attributes the challenges that he experiences to racial identity. The clash epitomized by the narrator is predominantly between the African American and White communities. Through this search for self-identity, the narrator gains a critical sense of insight and empowerment. He ponders greatly about his racial identity and what it portends of his achievements and place within the wider American society. As the story ends, the narrator attains a personal introspection and attainment of self-identity. The narrator contends thus, I was looking for myself and asking everyone except myself questions which I, and only I, could answer...I am nobody but myself. But first I had to discover that I am an invisible man" (Ellison 15).

Marlow in the Heart of Darkness finds himself dejected by the inhumanity with which the Europeans in Congo treat Africans there. Whereas the Congolese culture promoted humane treatment and high value for life, the whites are motivated by a culture of segregation and disenfranchise of people perceived to be less powerful. Though Marlow recognizes the superiority of the Europeans, he scorns their aggressiveness. The enslavement and mistreatment of Africans by the European portray their frustration of fundamental human rights. He is startled that the Europeans claim to be civilized yet undermine natural human liberties. They inadvertently struggle to wipe away the African culture forcefully while at the same time robbing them of their resources. Marlow asserts that They grabbed what they could get for the sake of what was to be got. It was just robbery with violence, aggravated murder on a great scale, and men going at it blindas is very proper for those who tackle a darkness (Conrad 13).

In the play Othello, Othello breaks is caught up between the English Elizabethan culture and his African heritage. He is forced to break away from the stereotypical English beliefs and introduces the stature of An African man. In fact, he shocks his audience with his portrayal of cultural deviation. In his show of defiance, Othello embodies what he believes is the ideal identity of African men including He presents a reality that African men are including politeness, informed and faithful husbands.

Works Cited

Achebe, Chinua. Things Fall Apart. Oxford: Heinemann Educational, 2000. Print.

Conrad, Joseph. Heart of Darkness. Mineola, N.Y: Dover Publications, 2001. Internet resource.

Ellison, Ralph. Invisible Man. Harmondsworth: Penguin Books, 1970. Print.

Shakespeare, William, and Gayle Holste. Othello. Hauppauge, NY: Barron's Educational Series, 2002. Print.