things fall apart critical essay

Chinua Achebe’s “Things Fall Apart” Critical Review Essay

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Things Fall Apart is the first novel of the Nigerian author Chinua Achebe. Published in 1958, the novel describes the life of a Nigerian village – Iguedo, at the advent of the white colonization in Nigeria. The novel’s main protagonist is Okonkwo, a warrior, and a consistent traditionalist, who fell victim to circumstances. Okonkwo was entrusted with raising Ikemefuna, a child from a hostile village who was taken as a hostage. Feeling personally attached to Ikemefuna, Okonkwo never showed his true emotions, and fearing appearing weak in front of his village, he killed the boy. After another incident, in which he killed a clansman by accident, Okonkwo was exiled from the village with his family for seven years, after which he returned to find white people with missionary work in his village. Okonkwo refused to reconcile with the new order and eventually killed himself.

Although Iguedo is a fictional village, the novel took a realistic approach toward depicting the life of the Nigerian tribes. In that regard, Iguedo can be seen as an example of a traditional Nigerian tribe with a distinctive social structure. The relations with Umuofia, the clan to which Iguedo belonged, might be seen as a representation of a simple political system within the Nigerian tribes at the time, which included wars, peaceful settlements, and mediations through an authoritative party (the Oracle of the Hills and the Caves) (Achebe, 1996, p. 9). A form of democracy was also present in such an establishment, where the main political and social aspects were determined through clan meetings.

The culture of the tribe that was depicted in the novel was of the Igbo culture. This culture still exists and many of its elements were realistically depicted in the novel. One element can be seen in the absence of a ruler in the tribe, where “decisions [were] made by including almost everyone in the village” (Froiland, 2010), an aspect that was truthfully reflected in the novel (Achebe, 1996, p. 19). Additionally, the religion was represented by showing that the highest level of divine beings is the supreme god, or “Chukwu”, a loving father who should be feared when doing against his will (Achebe, 1996; Froiland, 2010).

The main conclusion that can be drawn from reading about the culture in the novel is that despite considering the culture as non-static and adaptive to changes, the example of Okonkwo shows the opposition of tradition to such changes. In that regard, the colonization in the novel can be considered as one of the main driving forces of change to which Okonkwo was so resistant.

Accordingly, the questions that might be raised are concerned with the overall idea of cultural change. Does the author’s view support holding on to the culture and the tradition despite some of its negative aspects? Examples of negative aspects can be seen in the sacrifice process, the role of women, and others.

Analyzing the novel on a larger scale, it can be stated that the ideas of cultural diversity, multiculturalism, and globalism do not seem to fit into the idea of tradition opposing changes. The latter can be seen in that one of the consequences of diversity, multiculturalism, and globalism is gradually erasing the distinctive features of each culture and mixing them into one large melting pot of various cultures.

Finally, the ideas that can be used in class are mainly related to showing examples of early social structures, groups, and social roles. In that regard, gender in the novel can be used to show the way social roles are shaped in such a society. Additionally, colonization as an agent of change can be analyzed and paralleled to other agents in the context of modern society.

Achebe, C. (1996). Things Fall Apart (1st Anchor Books ed.): Heinemann.

Froiland, A. (2010). IBO (IGBO). The Africa Guide. Web.

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Things Fall Apart

Chinua achebe, ask litcharts ai: the answer to your questions.

Welcome to the LitCharts study guide on Chinua Achebe's Things Fall Apart . Created by the original team behind SparkNotes, LitCharts are the world's best literature guides.

Things Fall Apart: Introduction

Things fall apart: plot summary, things fall apart: detailed summary & analysis, things fall apart: themes, things fall apart: quotes, things fall apart: characters, things fall apart: symbols, things fall apart: theme wheel, brief biography of chinua achebe.

Historical Context of Things Fall Apart

Other books related to things fall apart.

Full Title: Things Fall Apart
When Written: 1957
Where Written: Nigeria
When Published: 1958
Literary Period: Post-colonialism
Genre: Novel / Tragedy
Setting: Pre-colonial Nigeria, 1890s
Climax: Okonkwo's murder of a court messenger
Antagonist: Missionaries and White Government Officials (Reverend Smith and the District Commissioner)
Point of View: Third person omniscient

Extra Credit for Things Fall Apart

Joseph Conrad: “A Bloody Racist”. Chinua Achebe delivered a lecture and critique on Joseph Conrad's Heart of Darkness , calling Conrad “a bloody racist” and provoking controversy among critics and readers. However, Achebe's criticism of Conrad has become a mainstream perspective on Conrad's work and was even included in the 1988 Norton critical edition of Heart of Darkness .

Achebe as Politician. Achebe expressed his political views often in writing, but he also involved himself actively in Nigerian politics when he became the People's Redemption Party's deputy national vice-president in the early 1980's. However, he soon resigned himself in frustration with the corruption he witnessed during the elections.

Themes and Analysis

Things fall apart, by chinua achebe.

Chinua Achebe sought to rediscover pride and dignity among Africans by rehabilitating their image damaged by the humiliating effect of racist portrayals. In 'Things Fall Apart' he does this with grace and clarity.

Article written by Israel Njoku

Degree in M.C.M with focus on Literature from the University of Nigeria, Nsukka.

In ‘Things Fall Apart ,’ Achebe details Western colonialists’ impact on African societies. This impact is outlined in a very simple manner, but within this simplicity, there is a rich and inventive use of language. The plot might move irregularly for large sections of the book, but this pacing represents a deliberate attempt to conform to an essentially African literary tradition and style. ‘Things Fall Apart ‘ contains themes that reflect the richness and sophistication of African cultures as well as the debilitating impact of outsiders on this culture.

Themes in Things Fall Apart

The humanity of african societies.

Achebe was motivated to write ‘Things Fall Apart’ because he wanted to re-tell the story of the Africans who European imperialists and their enablers in the arts had depicted in unfair one-dimensional representations. Achebe creates a fairly sophisticated and self-sufficient society with organized institutions. His aim was not to create a perfect society, but one more true to the facts of the situation. In Umuofia, we see disputes settled between members fairly, as seen in the case between Mgbafo’s brothers and husband before the Egwugwu . The temperaments of people in the community are not uniformly animalistic or primitive as depicted in the works of Joseph Conrad. Rather, there is a wide range of personality types, ranging from the extremely chauvinistic and aggressive Okonkwo to the sentimental and gentle Unoka and Nwoye. In between them, we have the likes of Obiereka and Ogbuefi Ezeudo, who do not lose their sense of sentiment and passion while subscribing to the patriarchal tenets of their society. Within individuals, there is much complexity, as Okonkwo himself isn’t innately evil but rather forced into that way as a result of childhood trauma and pressure to meet the expectations of society. This complexity of the African individual and society marks them out as ordinary, rather than exciting or exotic.

Clash of Cultures

‘Things Fall Apart’ chronicles the great tragedy of the displacement of traditional African societies by encroaching Westerners with imperialist ambitions. The community of Umuofia had ruled itself and observed its customs, and preserved its institutions for years. The worldview every community member learned from birth, all systems and institutions they came to accept without question, were suddenly threatened by the arrival of the white man with his religion and political system. The British came with a fundamentally different value system, power structure, and religion. Disputes were no longer solved the old way, under the overarching goal of maintaining communal cohesion over everything else. The people of Umuofia, who had lived without rulers, now have to deal with colonialists exerting uncommon power and authority over them. With the coming of the Whiteman with his process and sense of justice that took no cognizance of the customs of the people, the people of Umuofia essentially faced the erosion of their traditions and values.

Umuofia’s society is highly patriarchal, and Okonkwo’s behaviors and motivations are, in part, informed by his society’s gender roles and expectations. Okonkwo measures his success according to the fulfillment of his society’s ideal of masculinity. He strove to be a valiant wrestler and a hard physical laborer on his farm because these activities represent peak male performance and demonstration of physical strength. Okonkwo’s desire for an unquestionably dominant status in his family often motivates his physical violence when he perceives some challenge to his authority from his wives. The patriarchal ordering and gender expectations in the community extend into farming, with Okonkwo focusing on cultivating the supposedly manly yam while leaving other less important crops like cocoyam to his wives to cultivate. Women also have some importance in society. For example, the goddess Ani is one of the most powerful and important deities within the Umuofia religious system. She has a huge influence in day-to-day life as the goddess of fertility and has an entire week devoted to honoring her, within which feminine attributes like peace and tolerance are encouraged.

Class Struggle

‘Things Fall Apart’ sees the construction of Igbo society in a pristine and undisturbed form, including its class system. As is typical of the Igbos, the Umuofians valued and respected wealth, placing the wealthy firmly at the top of the social hierarchy even though theirs was essentially a democratic system without clear rulers.

Titles, number of wives, number of yams, and size of one’s compound, as well as the number of huts inside, are some of the physical and symbolic evidence of wealth, and the absence of all these was clear evidence of an individual’s failure in life. The less fortunate are not exactly marginalized or excluded, they are still carried along, and we see evidence of this when public opinion swung against Okonkwo when he tried to shut a fellow villager up in a meeting by implying this individual’s opinions weren’t needed as he has not taken any title. Nevertheless, the people of Umuofia valued wealth and thought of the wealthy as better than the poor. Okonkwo’s father, Unoka, was derided in the village for his poverty, and the existence of the insult of ‘Agbaya’ and the popularity of its usage suggests the presence of societal consequences of poverty in this society.

Wealth is also not the only marker of status. Within Umuofia’s religious system, there are two classes of people; the freeborn and the Osu . The Osu are descendants of people who have been dedicated to the lifetime service to the gods of the land. This permanently separates them in many ways from the freeborn, and they are thus seen as an inferior stock. With the coming of the Christian missionaries and British overlordship, these marginalized groups were accepted by the church and consequently gained a gradual ascendancy in society, upturning Umuofia’s normal hierarchy.

Within the inclusive tenet of Christianity, the Osu were judged to be equal to all other humans in Christ. The “poor” and otherwise “worthless” gained a new sense of purpose and importance. The church’s propagation of supposedly “feminine” qualities like love, tolerance, and acceptance stands at variance with traditional patriarchal Umuofia values. Meanwhile, the stock of those who hold uncompromisingly to traditional Umuofia values continues to fall. Powerful villagers, including Okonkwo, were captured and humiliated by the British when they tried to challenge the growing boldness and authority of those elements of the community who had joined the church. The failure of the Umuofians to stamp authority on this group of people who would have been powerless before them before the arrival of the missionaries and colonialists signified a demolishment of traditional Umuofia systems and a transfer of power away from the usual power brokers. Those who still further resist this new state of affairs meet an ignominious end, like Okonkwo, who was forced into suicide. So, throughout the novel, we see the colonialists function as both oppressors and liberators of certain groups within Umuofia’s society.

Analysis of Key events in Things Fall Apart

Okonkwo throws Amalinze the Cat and establishes himself as a man of talent and strength.
Okonkwo comes to care for Ikemefuna, the gesture marking his status as one of the leading men of the community.
Okonkwo participates in the killing of Ikemefuna, demonstrating his fear of being seen as weak.
Okonkwo is banished from Umuofia after accidentally killing the son of Ezeudo.
Obierika visits Okonkwo in exile and informs him about the arrival of the White men.
Nwoye leaves his father’s hut to join the Christians in Umuofia.
Okonkwo returns from exile with his family to meet a much-changed Umuofia.
Men of Umuofia destroy the church building in retaliation after Enoch commits a sacrilege.
The District Commissioner arrests Okonkwo and other leaders of the clan as punishment for destroying the church and forces the community to pay a fine for their release.
Okonkwo beheads the chief messenger and commits suicide afterward

Style, Tone, and Figurative Language of Things Fall Apart

‘Things Fall Apart’ is divided into three parts, with the first part being much longer and slower-paced than the remaining two parts. The first part employs a circumlocutory narrative technique that shifts between the present and the past. This represents the Igbo rhetorical technique of initially skirting around a subject before directly addressing it.

The progression of the plot is often halted to regale us with bits of Okonkwo’s backstory and information on Umuofia culture. This arrangement lacks the narrative linearity that is typical of classical European fiction. The structure helps in portraying African culture as comparatively developed, sophisticated, and self-sufficient. The considerable treatment of crops, the festivals attached to them, marriage and funeral ceremonies as well as the convening of the Egwugwu judicial process are not necessarily central to the immediate plot but exist to paint a rich cultural texture around the story. All these gradually build up a picture of the culture in which Okonkwo inhabits as well as illuminate Okonkwo’s character.

By the second part of the novel, when the White missionaries and colonizers had arrived in the picture, the novel picks up the pace and continues with the plot almost without interruptions.

‘ Things Fall Apart’ is written in a very accessible manner. The sentences are simple enough, and the words are uncomplicated, save for a couple of Igbo words that warrant translations. Achebe’s writing is very effective. The sprinkling of Igbo proverbs all around the work helps to enrich the narrative and dialogues as well as accord them a measure of authenticity. Although written in English, Achebe maintains a strong local cultural flavor in the language. When we read the dialogues or follow the narrative, the English language used does not interfere with the authenticity of the dialogues and narrative because Achebe’s writing transmits as accurately as possible the original Igbo contexts.

Achebe can induce great emotions through seemingly innocuous actions. For example, before Ikemefuna was killed, as he walked in front of the Umuofians who had been tasked with this job, Achebe chose this time to write about Ikemefuna’s excitement and hope at seeing his mother again. Achebe sets up a powerful moment when Ikemefuna breaks into a childhood song and walks in sync with the rhythm, deciding that if the song ends on his right leg, it will mean his mother was still alive, but that if it ends on his left, his mother would be dead or ill. This mood of great optimism and innocence sets up a stark contrast with the horrific murder that follows. Ikemefuna’s death, just at the point when we are getting to know him far more and relate with his hopes and fears and even root for him, makes the entire scene all the more powerful and emotional. Ikemefuna’s superstitions are only part of a large corpus of myths or other religious injunctions or ancient wisdom preserved through songs, folklores, mythologies, legends, aphorisms, and proverbs, which constitutes an important part of Umuofia culture. Achebe utilizes all these to great effect through the interlaying of these cultural vestiges and artifacts within the narrative to provide a rich texture and foundation.

All these properly secure the novel’s ties to Igbo culture and leave no one in doubt as to its authenticity and status as a legitimate representation of Igbo sensibilities. ‘Things Fall Apart’ utilizes the Third Person’s point of view, but this narrator’s perspective switches between a participating actor and an external observer, a “we” and a “them” at different points in the story. Sometimes the narrator seems to be intimately in the know and involved with the actions and the customs of the people, other times he seems like a detached observer.

Analysis of Key Symbols in Things Fall Apart

Yam is the primary crop in Umuofia society. Called the king of crops, it is associated with manliness and is an important status symbol. Okonkwo considers yams to be the only crop worth personally growing, leaving the other crops for his wives and children. The number of yams in a man’s barn is a definitive indicator of his level of success in life. Yams symbolize wealth and abundance.

Egwugwu Masks

The Egwugwu masks symbolize the villagers’ ties to the spirit realm, or rather to the land of their ancestors. The scary nature of the designs and carvings on the masks as well as the secrecy and anonymity with which its wearers operate, allows certain individuals to act on behalf of or with the unquestionable authority of the clan’s gods or ancestors.

What does Okonkwo’s death symbolize in ‘Things Fall Apart?’

Okonkwo’s death in ‘Things Fall Apart’ symbolizes the futility of the struggle against change as brought about by European colonizers. The moment the British came to their doorstep, the people of Umuofia were fated to lose their independence and way of life.

Why did Chinua Achebe write ‘Things Fall Apart’?

Achebe wrote ‘ Things Fall Apart’ mainly to challenge racist and uncomplimentary portrayals of African societies at the point of contact with colonizing Europeans.

Did Chinua Achebe present a perfect traditional African society in ‘Things Fall Apart?’

Although Chinua Achebe sought to challenge racist portrayals of traditional African society with ‘Things Fall Apart,’ he did not go the other extreme by presenting a perfect society. Instead, he presented an African society with all of its strengths and faults, asking not that people idolize or dismiss these societies, but instead view them as essentially human.

Is ‘Things Fall Apart’ popular internationally?

‘Things Fall Apart’ has sold over 20 million copies all over the world, making it one of the most popular African novels of all time. It is used widely in schools across the world.

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Things Fall Apart Chinua Achebe

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Things Fall Apart Essays

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The Role of Women Annie White

Chinua Achebe's Things Fall Apart explores the struggle between old traditions within the Igbo community as well as Christianity and "the second coming" it brings forth. While on the surface, it appears the novel narrows its focus to a single...

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In the novel Things Fall Apart, Chinua Achebe uses Okonkwo's story to elaborate a deeper, more comprehensive understanding of the cultural values of African tribes. Achebe wrote Things Fall Apart as a rebuttal to Joseph Conrad's Heart of Darkness....

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When the Europeans arrived in Nigeria to harvest ivory and spread their religious ideals, many Africans were exploited and their cultures were irreversibly changed. Two novels, Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad and Things Fall Apart by Chinua...

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“The white man is very clever…He has put a knife on the things that held us together and we have fallen apart.”

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The Story of Okonkwo: A Fine Balance of Hope and Tragedy Joshua Nobleman

The South African Igbo tribe of Umuofia, as depicted in Chinua Achebe’s “Things Fall Apart,” (1958) encompasses layer upon complex layer of social order. From birth to death, every aspect of Umuofian culture is defined by an intricate balance of...

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By comparing White Teeth with at least one other appropriate text, explore the presentation of family and family relationships in postcolonial literature.

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Sexism In Things Fall Apart Stephen Harris

The presence of sexism, both individual and institutional, runs rampant in Chinua Achebe’s Things Fall Apart. It is the most constant theme in the story, more intrinsic in the plotline than even racism, and certainly more deep-rooted. The...

The Culmination of Tragedy: Tradition and Change in Things Fall Apart Anonymous College

Tradition and change are as much at war as the people are in Chinua Achebe’s novel Things Fall Apart. The events that define this war are centered on and around the main character, Okonkwo, who finds himself unable to adapt to the changes taking...

Proverb Symbolism for the Clan Anonymous 12th Grade

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The European and African Narrative Techniques used in 'Things Fall Apart' and 'Petals of Blood' Diana Grech College

The structure of the African novel is seen to be made up from two different frameworks, the external, or international, and the indigenous “mode of discourse and artistic expression.” 1 Therefore, the typical African novel contains elements in its...

Murder and Repression in Things Fall Apart Leah Kristine Smith College

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Chinua Achebe’s novel, Things Fall Apart , is set in Nigeria; the novel examines the clash between traditional African culture, and western ideals by the Igbo tribe, through the protagonist, Okonkwo. Nigerian writer Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie’s...

Setting in Chinua Achebe's "Things Fall Apart" Anonymous 11th Grade

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After conducting extensive research studying cultures around the world, theorist and social anthropologist Peter Van Der Veer remarked that "the critical elements, like those to be found in the spiritual ideas at the beginning of the 20th century,...

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Traits of Influence Samantha Sortijas 12th Grade

The novels Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe and Moby Dick by Herman Melville feature two uniquely different characters who similarly strive for fulfillment amidst uncertainty and danger, completely devoid of moral qualms about extremities taken...

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Okonkwo is a character in Chinua Achebe’s novel “Things Fall Apart” who attempts to conform outwardly while questioning inwardly, although he definitely might not appear to be at first glance. Okonkwo’s inner conflict caused by the tensions of...

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Okonkwo in Things Fall Apart

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Critical Analysis of Chinua Achebe's Things Fall Apart

2021, IJARESM

The novel tells the fable of the Turtle who reached the sky because the birds lent it their feathers. The fable forms a pattern for the whole novel: just as the Turtle reaches the sky with the help of the birds, so Okonkwo reaches one of the foremost positions in his clan with the support of the population. But just as the Turtle plunges to the ground and crushes his shield, so Okonkwo falls from power when he loses the support of the people and the gods. The plot takes place in the fictional Ibo village of Umuofia in Iboland in eastern Nigeria in the late 19th century, just before and after the first white people arrive in the area. The theme is a tradition as opposed to change, the dissolution of traditional African society as it cannot withstand the forces of white civilization. The first part of the novel depicts life in the traditional Ibo society, its social and religious structure, its rites, and customs. It is a society where the individual is to a large extent subordinate to the collective and it is through the collective that the individual reaches his goal and life gets its meaning (Whittaker and Msiska, 2007).

Related Papers

Suhair Fuaad Hajo

A first reading of the novel reveals the fact that what fall apart in Things fall apart are Igbo’s cultures and traditions. Accordingly a lot of readings have been done on the novel with almost similar disclosures; considering it as a postcolonial novel and as Achebe’s response to the white racism embedded in European literature, which presented Africa as a primitive and socially retrograde nation. Hence, reading Things Fall Apart from a new and distinct perspective with the aid of trances from reader response criticism, this study aims to answer the question of; what really falls apart (in Things Fall Apart) and how? Through a close and transactional reading of the novel this study demonstrates that Igbo’s culture and religion didn’t fall apart but changed and in fact, what falls apart in Things Fall Apart is Okonkwo, the protagonist of the novel. By studying and comparing his conducts, before and after killing Ikemefona it reveals that his mortal sin parts him beyond the limits of his cultural conventions, in the process of gaining his individual purposes, which later leads to his downfall.

Research in African Literatures

Ato Quayson

International Journal of Linguistics, Literature and Translation (IJLLT)

Being a postcolonial narrative, Things Fall Apart experiences a wide critical acclaim. From the pen of Chinua Achebe, the Igbo cultural complexity has come into being a theme that opens up a historical account of the clash of two cultures. Okonkwo, a very well-known public figure in his community falls under the threat of a new culture brought by the white missionaries preaching the gospels of the Christianity. After the arrival of the Christian culture, the first collision that takes place is the division at the individual, and then at the societal levels. When a number of the Igbo people, including Okonkwo's son, change their religion, it creates chaos and confusions throughout the community. Although the Igbo people have a well-established way of life, the Europeans do not understand. That is why they show no respect to the cultural practices of the Igbo people. What Achebe delivers in the novel is that Africans are not savages and their societies are not mindless. The things fall apart because Okonkwo fails at the end to take his people back to the culture they all shared once. The sentiments the whites show to the blacks regarding the Christianity clearly recap the slave treatment the blacks were used to receive from the whites in the past. Achebe shows that the picture of the Africans portrayed in literature and histories are not real, but the picture was seen through the eyes of the Europeans. Consequently, Okonkwo hangs himself when he finds his established rules and orders are completely exiled by his own people and when he sees Igbo looses its honor by falling apart.

Sanjana S I N G H Rathore

African Literature has a long and rich history, dating back to ancient times when stories and myths were passed down orally from one generation to the other. In the 20th century, African literature appeared to gain recognition on a global scale, thanks to the works of writers such as Chinua Achebe, Ben Okri, Buchi Emecheta, and Wole Soyinka. One of the defining features of African literature is its focus on themes and issues that are central to African life and culture, such as colonialism, racism, identity, and post-colonialism. African literature often draws on traditional African storytelling techniques and incorporates elements of African languages and oral traditions.

JOURNAL OF LANGUAGE

Purwarno Purwarno

This research is aimed at reflecting how Chinua Achebe reveals the religious life of Igbo people before and after the coming of the missionaries as well as the invasion of British in the southeastern part of Nigeria during the late 19th century. Achebe reflects that various practices of social and religious life are thrilling, cruel and even inhumane. This research is considered significant and worthy since it is an exertion to understand historical knowledge and life lessons about religious life of the local people. This study is supported by the theory of literary sociology proposed by Laurenseon and Swingewood's to understand and evaluate literary works by considering social aspects and holistically conducted by descriptive qualitative method in which the data from the novel are analyzed to reveal the religious life of Igbo people before and after the coming of British people and the significant contributions as well as changes they have brought. The findings of this research...

African Studies Review

Benjamin Ofori-Yeboah

Mukunda Kandel

And the Centre Refuses to Hold: Homage to Things Fall Apart @ 60

Amechi Akwanya

Things Fall Apart has the air of concrete facticity, and therefore has usually been taken to be a realist work, with complete coincidence of sense and meaning. Leveraging on the fact that fiction normally deploys a narrative eye, which then works like a spotlight, it is made out in this paper that as a light-bearer, literally, the principal character of a tale inevitably sets off patterns of association and resemblance to other literary light-bearers and the sequences and patterns of denouement conventionally associated with them. While it is usual practice to see Okonkwo and Things Fall Apart as rooted in a unique and stable social system, the horizontal plane which connects to personages seen in literature of other places and times should not be ignored. This paper will build on the latter viewpoint. Thus it is possible to see Okonkwo as typical-which means that he is more than what is seen at the textual level. He is a 'dreamer' and also an 'intoxicated one', and being a very important member of Umuofia, these personal traits are working out their logic-and destabilizing impact-within the heart of Umuofia, down to its foundations. The white man will enter Umuofia in the midst of all this and catalyze the process into a premature denouement. The 'dreamer' and the 'intoxicated one', however, are mythical images frequently encountered in high mimetic literature.

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