THE MAN WHOSE PEN WOKE THE WORLD TO AFRICA: A EULOGY FOR A LITERARY ICON: PROF. CHINUA ACHEBE (1930-2013)

Prof Achebe at different stages in life

My father is a great man. The realization only hit me recently when I remember how much my turbulent childhood contributed to who I am today. My father, though difficult is a great man for many reasons, principal of which is the stern and academic upbringing I received. My father's intellect has always been a wonder and today, I'm proud that some of that intellect flows in my veins. I was introduced to the world of books at a very young age - first by sight. My father possessed a personal library that was the envy of many - a habit he developed at a young age so at a young age, crammed books inside a bookshelf made of wood and glass in our sitting room was a familiar sight.

The books in that shelf were on various topics ranging from mathematics, economics and literature. I remember vividly seeing a red hardcover volume of one of Adam Smith's books. There were volumes of books by Karl Marx, Maxim Gorky; there were others by Niccolo Machiavelli, Gustav Sandgren, most of which I cannot remember now . The literary section boasted of many classics such as William Golding's Lord of the Flies; DH Lawrence's Lady Chatterley's Lover, Graham Greene's The Heart Of The Matter, Frederick Forsyth's autobiography on the Biafran Warlord titled Emeka, Dale Carnegie's Lincoln The Unknown, volumes of Harold Robbins amongst others too numerous to mention. There also was a tidy spread of James Hadley Chase which were pilfered over time - in fact, most of these books are missing now; something I regret deeply.

My younger brother and I got to discover the hard way how important this bookshelf was. We were engaged in our usual "rough play" when we crashed the glassy display of the wooden bookshelf. That day, the harmless-looking "koboko" which hung quietly in my father's bedroom had a taste of our flesh for the first time - my father was a firm believer in Solomon's sagely proverb of "spare the rod and spoil the child".

A larger section of the bookshelf was devoted to African writers which included Ngugi wa Thiong'o, Ferdinand Oyono, Camara Laye, Okot p'Bitek, Cyprian Ekwensi, Elechi Amadi, Chukwuemeka Ike, Wole Soyinka amongst others too numerous to mention. However, my father's favorite was his Chinua Achebe collection; he bought every one of his books that was available in print. That was how I got to know of the man. My first read was Chike And The River which was a recommended text in primary schools at the time. From then on, I attempted to read Things Fall Apart which was a popular TV series aired frequently but being a kid, I lost interest as the book was quite complex.

Achebe in 1958

I encountered Chinua Achebe in secondary school once again as Things Fall Apart was a recommended text. After reading the book and the heavy analysis of the book that followed as a literature student, I didn't wait for any further recommendation as I read voraciously No Longer At Ease, Arrow of God, A Man Of The People, Girls At War in quick succession during my spare time. By this time, I was totally convinced that Achebe was the greatest African writer ever after having read my fair share of the different African authors; a sentiment shared by Simon Winder, publishing director at Penguin. I wanted to be a writer just like him but it was a fancy that passed too quickly, just like my drawing skills which were heavily frowned upon. My fate was sealed by an unchecked admiration I expressed as a youngster for brilliant lawyer, Mr Matlock in the old sitcom, Matlock.

Over the years, as my mind matured, I began to appreciate fully the man, Chinualumogu Albert Achebe. He was born in 1930, in Ogidi, Eastern Nigeria, which is now part of Anambra State. He was awarded a scholarship and attended University of Ibadan where he studied English, History and Theology. After his studies, he was employed by the Nigeria Broadcasting Service as a scriptwriter. His first novel Things Fall Apart, the title of which comes from Yeats's poem "The Second Coming", has gone on to sell more than 10million copies and has been translated into more than 50 languages was already in the works when he went to England and was finally published in 1958. It was an instant hit in the literary world. Nobel Laureate Wole Soyinka spoke of the book in glowing terms as the "first novel in English which spoke from the interior of an African character rather than . . . as the white man would see him".

Prof Achebe with Nelson Mandela

No Longer At Ease was published in 1960 and was closely followed by Arrow Of God in 1964.
Achebe's writing skills is without doubt one of the greatest to have graced literature. Asides being a novelist, he was a poet, children's writer, critic, editor and essayist. Achebe took his skills further and became a voice for black Africa. Nelson Mandela said that Achebe "brought Africa to the rest of the world" and called him "the writer in whose company the prison walls came down".

His essay, An Image of Africa: Racism in Conrad's Heart of Darkness (1975) on Joseph Conrad's Heart of Darkness in which Achebe argued that Joseph Conrad was a racist despite his disposition towards colonialism has been the catalyst for intellectual discuss on the subject ever since. In his words;

"I felt it was my duty as an African writer to reflect on the work of Conrad. But I won't return there although I am pleased it sparked so much discussion. It is good to show in stark outline what the real situation is, what the person at the other end of the whip is feeling. But I also understood that I must get on with my work and not dwell on one subject or book."

Achebe's Anthills Of The Savannah was published in 1987 and was shortlisted for the 1987 Booker prize. It dealt with the military regime that ran a west African republic. His final legacy to the literary world and Nigeria particularly was released last year and was the cause of much furor in political and ethnic circles. In There Was A Country: A Personal History Of Biafra, Achebe gave a passionate and personal account of the events that culminated in the nation's civil war of 1967 to 1970 - the devastation that it left in its wake and his disgust that Nigeria with all her potential has become a cesspool of corruption and injustice as a result of mediocre and selfish leadership. In this book which took the literary iroko some 40 years to compile, I had a glimpse of a man who was bitter about the failure Nigeria had become especially as hopes were high after her independence from Britain in 1960. It occurred to me that Achebe was saddened by the fact that he would never live long enough to see the Nigeria of his dreams rise from the abyss she had been plunged into by successive failures in leadership.

His foray into politics was brief; he joined People's Redemption Party at the end of the war and withdrew as he found that "the majority of people … were there for their own personal advancement"; a statement that still rings true today, thus his devotion to the academia.

An unfortunate accident in 1990 paralysed him from the waist down and forced his move to the US where he died. He expressed his longing to return home when he said in 2007; "I miss Nigeria very much. My injury means I need to know I am near a good hospital and close to my doctor. I need to know that if I went to a pharmacist the medicine there would be the drug that the bottle says it is..." - this in itself is a testament to the rot that has pervaded Nigeria as we know it today.

His disappointment at leadership in Nigeria led him to reject twice, attempts by the Nigerian government to confer on him national honours of Commander of the Federal Republic, first in 2004 and in 2011. He expressed his alarm and dismay at the political wranglings especially in Anambra, his home state that seemed determined to "turn my homeland into a bankrupt and lawless fiefdom". He said in response to the attempt to confer him with national honours in 2004;

"I am appalled by the brazenness of this clique and the silence, if not connivance, of the presidency … Nigeria's condition today under your watch is, however, too dangerous for silence. I must register my disappointment and protest by declining to accept the high honour awarded me in the 2004 honours list."

Prof Achebe's other books include Girls At War And Other Stories (1972), Christmas in Biafra (1973) which won the Commonwealth poetry prize, The Trouble With Nigeria (1983) and numerous scholarly and widely published essays. Until his death at the ripe age of 82 yesterday, he was
a David and Marianna Fisher University Professor and professor of Africana studies in Brown University. He is survived by his wife, Christie; four children and six grand children.

Prof Achebe who is widely regarded as the father of African literature lived a full life and is a rare and irreplaceable gem who stood firm for what he believed. In the words of my brother who, like me was influenced by him;

"He was one of a kind, a giant of no small means, a warlord whose weapons were gold-plated in words, a gentleman with a godly demeanor, an advocate of knowledge and peace, he was all that an established man is, that a visionary should aim to be...one of Nigeria's greatest losses yet." 

In celebrating his life, let us remember and emulate what he stood for. He was a man of incredible genius, indefatigable energy and impeccable integrity who defended Africa with the pen. He had an undying belief in the greatness Nigeria could be; a hope we all must keep alive.

It is for this reason that I salute my father who introduced me to the world of this great man who inspired me, whose literary shoes can never be filled. May the solace of heaven provide you in no small measure, the peace that the deplorable state of Nigeria denied you for years.

Malcolm O. Ifi.

I am on twitter @saymalcolm