Conflicts and Conflict Resolution - Chinua Achebes Things Fall Apart - Research Paper Example

?Topic: Chinua Achebe’s “Things fall apart” Number: Conflicts and conflict resolution- Chinua Achebe’s “Things fall apart” Human beings, unlike other primates, are biologically adapted for culture from birth due to their unique social cognition. From birth, children begin to interact with others in various activities such as gestural communication, gaze following and social referencing. Such skills usually engender cases of cultural learning that promote language acquisition, use of cultural tools, discourse skills and other activities, that ensure the culture maintains long life(Tomasello p.550) . Culture may mean a set of shared paradigms that reflect the values, attitudes and beliefs of a person, together with the tools and artifacts that make life possible for a unit of individuals. Future generations inherit the norms and beliefs, leading to further acquisition of culture. Culture usually consists of values and norms that guide the behavior of those who share in it, thereby, it is synonymous to tradition. Cultural differences are as a result of many factors, but most importantly, geographical locations. It is also common to find a minor culture within a major one, that is to say, cultures and sub cultures. For example, many people would be aware of the African culture that emphasizes unity and brotherliness. However, within the African culture, there are subcultures defined by the location of each country. Even further, there are subcultures within a country. In reference to the definition of a culture, it is clear that a culture is present everywhere; within a society, an organization, a family or among friends. However, this paper will emphasize on societal culture with emphasis on conflicts caused by culture and its aspects such as sexuality, culture change and language. The paper gives reference to Things fall apart, a book by Chinua Achebe. Chinua Achebe narrates the consequences and struggles that accompany cultural change, and how it affects the people of a rural village, Umuofia. Before the arrival of missionaries, the people in Umuofia village had a patterned culture, which defined their traditions. They worshiped gods, offered sacrifices and lived communally. Additionally, leadership and war determined a man’s worth to the society. Achebe uses Okonkwo as an example of what the village expects of a man (Achebe 35). Achebe develops conflict in the eyes of a clash between change and culture. The arrival of missionaries threatens the stability of this culture, bringing with it unexpected change. Whenever there is an anticipated change in culture and tradition, conflict usually arises. Conflict refers to a state of competition between groups or people with goals that are incompatible, struggle for power, or struggle for scarce resources. Conflict is an essential aspect of human relationships, and so people always devise appropriate ways to resolve conflicts whenever they occur. For the people of Umuofia, villager elders resolved conflicts between people or groups within the village. People conceive conflicts differently, and this determines the ways they devise to deal with conflicts. Some people conceive conflict as a result of a struggle for resources necessary for people to reach their goals. Others perceive it differently, with no connection to material acquisition. They see it as a result of divergent perceptions about issues, situations or beliefs. These conceptions reflect the complexity of social behavior and perceptions. Understanding conflicts requires insight that most conflicts include mixed motives that include cooperation and competition. One must also understand that the parties conflicting believe that their respective divergent goals are responsible for the conflicts. This is important because the people involved will ultimately act on their perceptions and beliefs. The conception that conflict is as a result of the struggle for scarce resources is referred to as “realism”, while the belief that it is a result of divergent perceptions on beliefs is “constructivism”. Realists believe that when there is objective scarcity of resources, the outcome is conflicts. They consider power as an important variable of conflict. They argue that an imbalance in power between two groups usually force the weaker party to yield to the stronger one. This usually occurs whenever the two parties test their strengths, especially through war. If there is a somewhat equal balancing of power between the two parties, realists expect them to negotiate. They can either compromise or bargain to distribute the power, which encourages them to share the resources at the lowest level of satisfaction for both parties (Macartan p.2). Another option would require one of the parties to form alliances in order to gain more powers to rule the weaker partner. In such cases, the goal for resolving the conflict would be to encourage symbolic or verbal bargaining. In advanced conflict resolution, the two parties would maximize their joint benefits instead of settling for respective losses. In this sense, realists assume that both parties understand the conflict in the same way. Other times, parties usually perceive conflicts subjectively, in that their perceptions vary significantly. Those involved in resolving such a conflict focus on problems such as communication, perception or cognitive distortions and other interpretive dysfunctions (Bar-Tal Daniel p.13). This does not mean that communication failure or mutual faulty interpretations are the sole causes of conflicts. People should also not assume that all conflicts are due to the objective scarcity of resources among groups with mutual understanding of issues. Additionally, it is important to note that it is not a guarantee that if perceptions are mutual then communication will be perfect or transparent. Therefore conflict analysts must emphasize on any potential factors that may impede communication. The combination of subjective and objective dimensions contributes to the social complexity of conflicts. Language is an element of culture and tradition as it facilitates communication between individuals in the society. People of a similar culture also use language for identification, so people usually categorize those who speak the same language as coming from the same culture. During conflict resolution, language is a fundamental variable. An analytical language helps in resolving both conflicts (Bar-Tal Daniel p.31). In an analytical language, an individual speaks of maximization, optimization and utility functions. The conflicting parties look at the total benefits of the conflicts. Additionally, one presumes a decision making model that is universal; with principles that are universal and those that promote rational choice. It stresses communication, interpretation and the probability of varied decisions. A major contributor to conflict resolution is culture because it stresses commonality. Understanding the culture of the conflicting parties would help those willing to intermediate understand the variables at stake. They would also know how to communicate and encourage the parties o negotiate. Culture can either be manifested as local or generic. Generic culture is a collection of all humankind attributes; the human species’ adaptive features that make them unique. It emphasizes the universal human attributes that reflect their behavior. On the other hand, local culture is the complex meaning of systems that include cognitive representations such as schemas and symbols. Humans create these representations, share them across generations or transmit them to social groups at different times. Local culture focuses on differences and diversity amongst people. The connection between culture and conflict comes in when people view it in terms of differences. Cultural difference is common, and is a major cause of conflicts in many parts of the universe. Despite this, it is important to note that culture is also generic, in that conflict resolution strategies can be applied universally. For example, language acquisition is universal. Regardless of the language an individual speaks, they are capable of acquiring other languages. Additionally, interpretation is possible so it is easy to resolve a conflict between two groups that speak different languages. Because humans are capable of attaining different languages (multilingualism), this is also possible with culture. People can also attain different cultures (multi-culturism). The connection between language and culture is far more than just the fact that an individual can obtain a competency in both of them. Culture, just like language, change over time. A comparison between today’s English and that of the times of Shakespeare differ tremendously. This is evidence that over time, language has transformed. Language usually succumbs to external influences and social changes that make it change over time. This is similar to culture. Though many people may argue that culture is constant because it is passed over to future generations, culture is dynamic. Social change implications vary, leading to changes in subsequent cultures. A culture’s susceptibility to rapid change may cause social instability, resulting to conflict. In other cases, change possibilities in a culture may mean that the culture is capable of adapting to new situations. In the latter case, members of the culture can utilize the available cultural resources to survive the new changes and resolve any conflict that may arise. Patriarchy is also another aspect of culture that helps in understanding conflict and conflict resolution. In most African countries, patriarchy is a common phenomenon. Patriarchy is a social system allowing men to appropriate social roles and leave subordinate roles to women. Patriarchy is a universal concept that has survived for a long time because of its universal psychological weapon. Patriarchy has led to a number of societal and cultural conflicts, despite the reality that the family is responsible for breeding it through socialization of children into society. The family socializes young children to embrace roles that the society differentiates on bases of their sexuality. In Umuofia village, the culture differentiates young girls from boys at a very young age. It teaches young boys to be breadwinners or to view themselves as family heads. This contrasts what the family teaches young girls, who end up being submissive and obedient to their male counterparts. Some scholars attribute this differentiation to the fact that society and culture view women as sexual objects instead of human beings. The society also defines women in relation to men and as subordinates to males (Castells p.55). Because of this, the society socializes women to acquire qualities that fit a relationship of dependence. They include submission, passivity, gentleness and a constant struggle to please men. In Umuofial, Achebe illustrates that once a girl attains puberty, she is taught roles that would please her future husband or make her an obedient and submissive wife. Further, the society defines her sexuality by teaching her how to use it to the advantage of her husband. Such cultural teachings emphasize women’s dependency on men. This system is a common phenomenon in the African culture, where women largely depend on their husbands. In case the husband dies, women are incapable of supporting themselves; therefore, they quickly remarry in order to receive support. Additionally, there is a wide preference for the male child in most families. As Achebe illustrates, the male children rule the female ones by birth rights. So, if a family’s first children are all females and the last one is a boy, the boy automatically becomes the household’s head. As the head, the boy protects the family and takes control of the family’s resource. The family discriminates the female child with the notion that they would marry into another family while the boy remains in the family to ensure its survival. As children enter puberty, girls end up being confused because as much as they feel good being in a relationship with the opposite sex, they feel guilty. This guilt stems from the attitudes and norms that culture cultivates into their minds, labeling them as ‘spoilt’. On the other hand, the same culture is lenient to boys. The society allows boys to sexually experiment before marriage while women should maintain their virginity. This is hypocritical because the boys experiment with girls, yet the society does not judge them. In addition to the family, other social institutions such as politics, religion, marriage, the economy and education also infiltrate patriarchal practices. However, in many contemporary societies, conflicts arise over such patriarchal practices, where women demand deliberation from patriarchal practices. Conflict can also occur within an individual, as in the case of Okonkwo. This usually occurs when the individual is incapable of dealing with new situations or feelings that are contradictory to what the society expects. Okonkwo struggles to deal with his village’s acceptance of the missionaries, and their ways. When he realizes he can no longer fight them, he commits suicide. Conflicts are present in all societies. Human beings are naturally competitive, which is essential for survival and development. Conflicts lead to social change and encourage people to make improvements in their relationships. Whenever there is a conflict, the warring parties must seek equilibrium, where the conflict stops. This is only possible through resolution, which may require an intermediary. This paper has emphasized on conflict and conflict resolution, basing it on the factors associated with conflicts especially culture, sexuality (Patriarchy) and language. As a major component of a society, culture plays a major role in conflict and its resolution. Culture refers to the beliefs, norms and traditions that the society passes on to subsequent generations. These beliefs and traditions influence the individual’s behavior and perception of things around them. To resolve conflicts, it is essential to understand how each party involved perceives the conflict. Language and communication are important elements in conflict resolution. Language is also a component of culture as people use it to communicate and identify each other. Language, just like culture, goes through changes over time. Another aspect that the paper evaluates is patriarchy. For a long time, societies have socialized women to depend on men and remaining subordinate to them. This system has become so universal and because society socializes children this way from a young age, they grow up accepting it as a way of life. In some parts of the world, especially in Africa, patriarchy is so common that women can not support themselves without the help of men. With culture change, women also realized that this system suppresses them. With this realization, they started demanding equality. This results into conflicts as men try to maintain their command over women. This paper has explained conflict reflecting on Chinua Achebe’s book, “Things fall apart”. In the book, Achebe explains conflict in different sectors off Umuofia village. The major conflict occurs involves the protagonist, Okonkwo who resists the new ways brought by missionaries. Unfortunately, he realizes that change is inevitable and as a result of his stubborn nature, he commits suicide. References Bar-Tal, Daniel. From interactable conflict through conflict resolution to reconciliation: psychological analysis. New York: Wiley, 2002. Print. Castells Manuel. Towards a sociology of the network society. New York: American Sociological association, 2000. Print. Chinua Achebe. Things Fall apart. Oxford: Heinemann, 1996. Print. Humphreys, Macartan. Natural Resources, conflict, and conflict resolution. Columbia: Columbia University, 2005. Print. Tomasello, Michael. “The Human adaptation for culture”. Annual review of anthropology. 28: ( 1999) : 509-529.Print. Read More