Understanding the beliefs of a different culture is often difficult. From birth, people are surrounded with cultural values and traditions that are soon accepted as normal. It may often be challenging to comprehend another culture's beliefs without immediately judging their culture as a whole, therefore being prejudiced. Set in the late 19th century, Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe, the struggle of the Ibo of Nigeria is explained as we learn about their unique culture. Women play a role that in our society today would be considered atrocious. They are thought of as feeble and are ordered around as if they were meaningless slaves. Throughout the novel, Achebe demonstrates the lack of respect for women and mistreatment of them, but manages to portray women, as mothers, in the highest regard.
             The main character, Okonkwo, is one of the many to abuse his wives. He has numerous wives who are often mistreated from the beginning of the book. Okonkwo gets furious when one of his wives asks a simple question about the length of Ikemefuna's stay (a young lad given to Okonkwo's tribe) debasing her and yelling. Later in the book, Okonkwo beats his youngest wife when she fails to cook diner and instead visits with her friend during the Week Of Peace. "He beat her heavily. In his anger he had forgotten that it was the Week of Peace...It was unheard of to beat somebody during the sacred week." (p. 29-30) Soon after, he beats his second wife for calling him one of those "guns that never shot." Wife beating is accepted in the Ibo society, but Okonkwo is pushing the envelope when it comes to his treatment of women. A big part of his violent actions are triggered by his paranoia of being seen as weak as his father once was. The rest is mostly due to his short temper.
             Okonkwo views women as weak and helpless beings. Other than the respect given for being a mother, women, in the Ibo culture, receive almos...