[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"doc-detail-113564-en":3,"doc-seo-113564-105":30,"detail-sidebar-cat-0-en-105":92},{"code":4,"msg":5,"data":6},0,"success",{"doc_id":7,"user_id":8,"nickname":9,"user_avatar":10,"doc_module":4,"category_id":11,"category_name":12,"doc_title":13,"doc_description":14,"doc_content":15,"file_id":16,"file_url":17,"file_type":18,"file_size":19,"view_count":20,"is_deleted":4,"is_public":11,"is_downloadable":11,"audit_status":11,"page_count":21,"language":22,"language_code":23,"site_id":24,"html_lang":23,"table_of_contents":25,"faqs":26,"seo_title":27,"seo_description":14,"update_tm":28,"read_time":29},113564,13056703019662,"Evangeline","https://ap-avatar.wpscdn.com/avatar/be000253a8e92610077?_k=1778726343310543188",1,"Story & Novel","Things Fall Apart - Chinua Achebe - Chapter One","The opening of Things Fall Apart establishes Okonkwo as a celebrated figure across nine villages, whose public honor rests on violent athletic achievement and a harsh, impatient temperament. It contrasts his stern character with the earlier life of his father, Unoka, depicted as a frail, debt-ridden failure who found joy in music, communal gatherings, and seasonal pleasures. The chapter then introduces a domestic, ritual setting where social duties, ancestor prayers, and everyday debate intertwine with looming conflict, setting the stage for ensuing tensions.","Things Fall Apart  \nChinua Achebe  \nFirst published in 1959  \n(One of the first African novels written in English to receive global critical acclaim)  \nTurning and turning in the widening gyre The falcon cannot hear the falconer;  \nThings Fall Apart; the centre cannot hold;  \nMere anarchy is loosed upon the world.  \n--W. B. Yeats, \"The Second Coming\"  \nCHAPTER ONE  \nOkonkwo was well known throughout the nine villages and even beyond. His fame rested on solid personal achievements. As a young man of eighteen he had brought honour to his village by throwing Amalinze the Cat. Amalinze was the great wrestler who for seven years was unbeaten, from Umuofia to Mbaino. He was called the Cat because his back would never touch the earth. It was this man that Okonkwo threw in a fight which the old men agreed was one of the fiercest since the founder of their town engaged a spirit of the wild for seven days and seven nights.  \nThe drums beat and the flutes sang and the spectators held their breath. Amalinze was a wily craftsman, but Okonkwo was as slippery as a fish in water. Every nerve and every muscle stood out on their arms, on their backs and their thighs, and one almost heard them stretching to breaking point. In the end Okonkwo threw the Cat.  \nThat was many years ago, twenty years or more, and during this time Okonkwo's fame had grown like a bush-fire in the harmattan. He was tall and huge, and his bushy eyebrows and wide nose gave him a very severe look. He breathed heavily, and it was said that, when he slept, his wives and children in their houses could hear him breathe. When he walked, his heels hardly touched the ground and he seemed to walk on springs, as if he was going to pounce on somebody. And he did pounce on people quite often. He had a slight stammer and whenever he was angry and could not get his words out quickly enough, he would use his fists. He had no patience with unsuccessful men. He had had no patience with his father.  \nUnoka, for that was his father's name, had died ten years ago. In his day he was lazy and improvident and was quite incapable of thinking about tomorrow. If any money came his way, and it seldom did, he immediately bought gourds of palm-wine, called round his neighbours and made merry. He always said that whenever he saw a deadman's mouth he saw the folly of not eating what one had in one's lifetime. Unoka was, of course, a debtor, and he owed every neighbour some money, from a few cowries to quite substantial amounts.  \nHe was tall but very thin and had a slight stoop. He wore a haggard and mournful look except when he was drinking or playing on his flute. He was very good on his flute, and his happiest moments were the two or three moons after the harvest when the village musicians brought down their instruments, hung above the fireplace. Unoka would play with them, his face beaming with blessedness and peace. Sometimes another village would ask Unoka's band and their dancing egwugwu to come and stay with them and teach them their tunes. They would go to such hosts for as long as three or four markets, making music and feasting. Unoka loved the good hire and the good fellowship, and he loved this season of the year, when the rains had stopped and the sun rose every morning with dazzling beauty. And it was not too hot either, because the cold and dry harmattan wind was blowing down from the north. Some years the harmattan was very severe and a dense haze hung on the atmosphere. Old men and children would then sit round log fires, warming their bodies. Unoka loved it all, and he loved the first kites that returned with the dry season, and the children who sang songs of welcome to them. He would remember his own childhood, how he had often wandered around looking for a kite sailing leisurely against the blue sky. As soon as he found one he would sing with his  \nwhole being, welcoming it back from its long, long journey, and asking it if it had brought home any lengths of cloth.  \nThat was years","cbCaiqXydNnmGnRe","https://ap.wps.com/l/cbCaiqXydNnmGnRe","pdf",555646,6,88,"English","en",105,"# Chapter One\n## Okonkwo’s reputation and character\n## Unoka’s life, debts, and music\n## The kola ritual and conversation","[{\"question\":\"Who is the main character introduced in Chapter One?\",\"answer\":\"Chapter One introduces Okonkwo, a well-known man whose fame comes from personal achievements, especially wrestling success.\"},{\"question\":\"How is Okonkwo’s father, Unoka, portrayed?\",\"answer\":\"Unoka is portrayed as lazy and improvident, frequently in debt, and unable to plan for tomorrow, though he is talented with music.\"},{\"question\":\"What ritual scene occurs early in the chapter and what does it involve?\",\"answer\":\"A neighbor, Okoye, visits Unoka with goatskin offerings, kola nut and chalk; they break the kola and perform ancestral-related prayers before discussing communal matters.\"}]","Things Fall Apart - Chinua Achebe - Chapter One | PDF",1784703642,136,{"code":4,"msg":31,"data":32},"ok",{"site_id":24,"language":23,"slug":33,"title":13,"keywords":34,"description":14,"schema_data":35,"social_meta":87,"head_meta":89,"extra_data":91,"updated_unix":28},"things-fall-apart-chinua-achebe-chapter-one","",{"@graph":36,"@context":86},[37,54,69],{"@type":38,"itemListElement":39},"BreadcrumbList",[40,44,48,51],{"item":41,"name":42,"@type":43,"position":11},"https://docshare.wps.com","Home","ListItem",{"item":45,"name":46,"@type":43,"position":47},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/","Document",2,{"item":49,"name":12,"@type":43,"position":50},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/story-novel/",3,{"item":52,"name":13,"@type":43,"position":53},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/things-fall-apart-chinua-achebe-chapter-one/113564/",4,{"url":52,"name":13,"@type":55,"author":56,"headline":13,"publisher":58,"fileFormat":61,"inLanguage":23,"description":14,"dateModified":62,"datePublished":63,"encodingFormat":61,"isAccessibleForFree":64,"interactionStatistic":65},"DigitalDocument",{"name":9,"@type":57},"Person",{"url":41,"name":59,"@type":60},"DocShare","Organization","application/pdf","2026-08-03","2026-07-22",true,{"@type":66,"interactionType":67,"userInteractionCount":20},"InteractionCounter",{"@type":68},"ViewAction",{"@type":70,"mainEntity":71},"FAQPage",[72,78,82],{"name":73,"@type":74,"acceptedAnswer":75},"Who is the main character introduced in Chapter One?","Question",{"text":76,"@type":77},"Chapter One introduces Okonkwo, a well-known man whose fame comes from personal achievements, especially wrestling success.","Answer",{"name":79,"@type":74,"acceptedAnswer":80},"How is Okonkwo’s father, Unoka, portrayed?",{"text":81,"@type":77},"Unoka is portrayed as lazy and improvident, frequently in debt, and unable to plan for tomorrow, though he is talented with music.",{"name":83,"@type":74,"acceptedAnswer":84},"What ritual scene occurs early in the chapter and what does it involve?",{"text":85,"@type":77},"A neighbor, Okoye, visits Unoka with goatskin offerings, kola nut and chalk; they break the kola and perform ancestral-related prayers before discussing communal matters.","https://schema.org",{"og:url":52,"og:type":88,"og:title":13,"og:site_name":59,"og:description":14},"article",{"robots":90,"canonical":52},"index,follow",{"doc_id":7,"site_id":24},{"code":4,"msg":5,"data":93},[94,97,101,105,110,114,119,124,129,132,136],{"id":11,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":46,"category_name":12,"show_sort_weight":95,"slug":96},90,"story-novel",{"id":47,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":46,"category_name":98,"show_sort_weight":99,"slug":100},"Literature",80,"literature",{"id":53,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":46,"category_name":102,"show_sort_weight":103,"slug":104},"Exam",70,"exam",{"id":106,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":46,"category_name":107,"show_sort_weight":108,"slug":109},5,"Comic",60,"comic",{"id":20,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":46,"category_name":111,"show_sort_weight":112,"slug":113},"Technology",50,"technology",{"id":115,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":46,"category_name":116,"show_sort_weight":117,"slug":118},7,"Healthcare",40,"healthcare",{"id":120,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":46,"category_name":121,"show_sort_weight":122,"slug":123},8,"Research & Report",30,"research-report",{"id":125,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":46,"category_name":126,"show_sort_weight":127,"slug":128},9,"Religion & Spirituality",20,"religion-spirituality",{"id":127,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":46,"category_name":130,"show_sort_weight":127,"slug":131},"World Cup","world-cup",{"id":133,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":46,"category_name":134,"show_sort_weight":133,"slug":135},10,"Lifestyle","lifestyle",{"id":137,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":46,"category_name":138,"show_sort_weight":106,"slug":139},19,"General","general"]