Tradition and culture, two aspects that make a person unique, what would happen to that person if he stopped believing in his own tradition and culture? Chinua Achebe, the author, is a very traditional man who believes that his roots and all African roots are what makes Africans special. Throughout the book, Achebe describes the traditions of the Igbo people, and when the settlers arrived, Achebe describes how many Igbo lost their traditions and sense of who they really were. Achebe says in his essay: “The worst thing that can happen to a people is the loss of their dignity and self-esteem.” Achebe tries to remind many Africans who they once were and where they came from. The Igbo people, as described by Achebe, are a traditional people who will try to maintain their traditions and fight to continue their traditions. Achebe believes that it is his job to write to help people regain their dignity and their history, and tries to explain what happened to them and how they originally lost the sense of who they once were, and he succeeds. On page 9 it says: “The darkness was a vague terror to these people, even the bravest among them. Children were warned not to whistle at night for fear of evil spirits. The dangerous animals became even more sinister and strange in the darkness. A snake was never called by name at night, because it would hear. It was called a rope. This quote describes part of the culture of the Igbo people; it talks about how they believe that evil spirits roam the Earth at night and that a snake would hear you if you called it "snake", which is why people have to call the snake "a rope". Achebe is able to describe part of his culture, and even the smallest details of that culture......middle of paper......e the Igbo people as people who make mistakes but who know how to learn and always adapt their culture and that sometimes tradition is something that means a lot to some residents of Umuofia. In “Things Fall Apart,” Achebe is able to help readers imagine the culture of Umuofia and the characters depicted in the story. Achebe is able to help Africans/Nigerians reclaim their tradition by describing how sacred it is and how much it is a part of some people's lives. Achebe describes in many ways "the depth and beauty" of the Igbo people, describing the rituals or possibly the stories by which the people live, but above all the culture and the strong passion of these people for their heritage. And Achebe describes the Igbo as ordinary people, people who are passionate about something, people who have regrets and sorrows, but also people who are able to accept and forgive..