A Marxist Reading Of Things Fall Apart In The Esl Classrom : Exploring Colonial Socio-economic Exploitation in the Nigerian Context

Abstract: This thesis aims to explore how a critical reading of the novel Things Fall Apart (1958) can provide valuable perspective for educators and students when examining socio-economic issues in  a colonial context in the ESL classroom. The main issues being analysed are how the novel reveals and explores socio-economic forms of exploitation under colonialism, and how a critical reading of the novel can be used in teaching to inform and persuade learners about social injustices. To show this, the essay examines the novel from a marxist perspective, and more specifically by drawing on the concept of primitive accumulation to understand and explain the changes brought about by the introduction of colonial rule. The changes in this context include the Igbo community's relation to land, its socio-economic and cultural aspects as well as the introduction of trade. The discussion and analysis of the novel centre on social injustices due to land expropriation, breakdown of traditional values and customs, and economic changes brought about by the arrival of Europeans in the context of colonialism. Expanding on this, the essay also reflects on the pedagogical implications of its arguments by showing how a critical reading of Things Fall Apart might provide an opportunity for teachers to underline issues of social injustice, material, and economic forms of exploitation under colonialism and beyond. This literary analysis also discusses and reflects on the practical challenges and possibilities of teaching such issues in the ESL classroom by using the concept of critical literacy.