Things Fall Apart Important Quotes by William Butler Yeats, Chinua Achebe, Pema Chodron, Marilyn Monroe, Erich Maria Remarque and many others.
The falcon cannot hear the falconer
Among the Igbo the art of conversation is regarded very highly, and proverbs are the palm-oil with which words are eaten.
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)
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.
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.
Only to the extent that we expose ourselves over and over to annihilation can that which is indestructible in us be found.
Beware Okonkwo!” she warned. “Beware of exchanging words with Agbala. Does a man speak when a god speaks? Beware!
When things are shaky and nothing is working, we might realize that we are on the verge of something.
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.
There is no story that is not true.
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.
Sometimes good things fall apart so better things could fall together.
The sun will shine on those who stand before it shines on those who kneel under them.
A man’s life from birth to death was a series of transition rites which brought him nearer and nearer to his ancestors.
Let the kite perch and let the eagle perch too – If one says no to the other, let his wing break.
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.
Feelings like disappointment, embarrassment, irritation, resentment, anger, jealousy, and fear, instead of being bad news, are actually very clear moments that teach us where it is that we’re holding back.
