# RIP Chinua Achebe

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rip-chinua-achebe/653662>\
**Category:** Cafe Society\
**Created:** [March 22, 2013, 6:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rip-chinua-achebe/653662 "2013-03-22T18:21:17Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 3\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![Greg\_Charles](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/839c29/32.png) [@Greg\_Charles](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Greg_Charles)\
**Post date:** [March 22, 2013, 6:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rip-chinua-achebe/653662/1 "2013-03-22T18:21:17Z")

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Like probably 90% of his fans, I’ve only read _Things Fall Apart_, but what a great book that was. It’s funny, but I was just thinking about it last week after I heard another quote from, _The Second Coming_. Rest in piece, Mr. Achebe. You gave a lot of first-worlders a perspective on colonization they wouldn’t have had otherwise.

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**Author:** ![StusBlues](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/dc4da7/32.png) [@StusBlues](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/StusBlues)\
**Post date:** [March 22, 2013, 8:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rip-chinua-achebe/653662/2 "2013-03-22T20:09:52Z")

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I taught \*Things Fall Apart \*once; some students got it, some didn’t.

I’ve been toying with assigning [his essay on Conrad](http://kirbyk.net/hod/image.of.africa.html). If you haven’t read it, give it a look.

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**Author:** ![Suil\_Dubh](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/85f322/32.png) [@Suil\_Dubh](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Suil_Dubh)\
**Post date:** [March 24, 2013, 6:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rip-chinua-achebe/653662/3 "2013-03-24T06:08:40Z")

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Very coincidentally, a few days ago I was reading an academic article on World Englishes (the concept that non-standard, local varieties of English are just as valid as the British, North American, and Australian versions) and the the author of that quoted at length an essay by Achebe.

To tell the truth, I had no idea the man was still alive. I thought he had passed away years ago.

Anyhow, I’ve read “Things Fall Apart” twice now, and I’ll probably read it again. Wonderful book.

R.I.P. Mr. Achebe.