Why is Things Fall Apart a tragedy?

In many ways, colonization is a tragedy in itself. The culture of many peoples being stripped away from them as they are forced to assimilate into another culture that may differ widely from theirs. Okonkwo being painted as a tragic hero isn’t too far from the truth in my opinion, as humans are always reluctant to change especially when something foreign is introduced, such as the British missionaries. Okonkwo rose to the top from despair but then fell back due to his actions and struggle with colonization.
Chinua Achebe himself is part of the igbo culture, though he described his christianity compared to his igbo culture as being on a fence. As a biracial person, being half Arab and Latino, I have some sort of understanding about what Achebe says about being on a fence. It could be because he lives in Nigeria and wanted to represent that part of his culture, which again is understandable for me. Arabs are never portrayed in media correctly, so when I write I always have Arab characters.
This is similar to Achebe, he took his cultural identity and applied it to stories he wrote. Being able to write a tragedy about your own culture can have lasting impacts, especially when there's nothing on your culture before it was colonized. The author is able to shift the perspective and allows people to have another understanding about the colonization of Igboland, a deeper understanding of the culture and the tragedy of colonization. This way, he is able to express his feelings on his own culture and how it's portrayed and provide insight to non-igbo or non-african audiences.

Igbo Bg Assignment

NOTE: The background assignment is presented as a speech given in the Victorian Era about why it is unjust to have colonies.

I greet each and every one of our prestige guests to the Royal Colonial Institute. We gather to speak of the colonies, how we may regard them as an extension to our prestige empire. However, to what extent do we speak of the culture and lifestyle of our extensions? Do we stop and think about the peoples under our empire? The Igbo people are just one of them, but they were just as much as a civilization as we are today. What do you know about the Igbo people?

After witnessing their society first hand, I must say that their culture has captivated and beheld me. Their customs and way of life before we had ‘taken them under our wing’  is truly fascinating. I was in the company of an Igbo man, where traditionally a kola nut would be broken and shared amongst us. I enjoyed learning their idioms and phrases, too. I learnt that iron forges has been a part of their culture for centuries and developed unique techniques. They have such a rich culture that even a vegetable has such an impactful meaning, such as the yam. The Igbo believe that the yam is the first agricultural turning point for them.

Staying in a village was insightful, I developed a deeper understanding and passion for these people that I can only say it is unfair to assume they are savages when they have such intricate democratic and social aspects that just differ to our own. Women contributed largely to their society and are in charge of religious duties and are able to commerce freely and gain ranks just as their male counterparts. Everybody in this society contributes to a greater goal of keeping civil and peace, therefore it is unjust to ruin that when they have lived so long without the help of our empire. We should also keep this in mind to other lands that are an 'extension' to us.