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Quote by Chinua Achebe

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Things Fall Apart

This classic novel delves into the cultural and social changes experienced by an Igbo village in Nigeria as it grapples with the arrival of British colonizers. The story follows the protagonist Okonkwo, a strong and proud warrior, and his struggle to maintain his traditional values in the face of Western influence. more

Author

Chinua Achebe
Chinua Achebe

Nigerian novelist, poet, literary critic, widely regarded as one of the greatest African writers of the 20th century. Chinua Achebe is known for his profound insights into colonialism and African culture, with works such as 'Things Fall Apart' and 'Arrow of God'. more

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“"You sound as if you question the authority and the decision of the Oracle, who said he should die." "I do not. Why should I? But the Oracle did not ask me to carry out its decision." [...] "The Earth cannot punish me for obeying her mesenger," Okonkwo said. "A child's fingers are not scalded by a piece of hot yam which its mother puts into its palm."”

IfsShouldChildrenSaidEarthMotherDiesAsksSoundDecisionPiecesAuthorityHotFingersAsk MeShould IPalmsObeyingOraclesThings Fall Apart OkonkwoYamsOkonkwo
Author:Chinua Achebe
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“"We have heard stories about white men who make the powerful guns and the strong drinks and took slaves away across the seas, but no one thought the stories were true." [said Obierika]"There is no story that is not true," said Uchendu. "The world has no end, and what is good among one people is an abomination with others. We have albinos among us. Do you not think that they came to our clan by mistake, that they have strayed from their way to a land where everybody is like them?"”

PeopleThinkingMenWorldWaySaidEndsStoriesStrongWhitePowerfulMistakeHeardSeaLandDrinkGunSlaveWhite ManClansAbominationStrong Drink
Author:Chinua Achebe
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“When Ling was communicating to any person the signs by which messengers might find him, he was compelled to add, "the neighbourhood in which this contemptible person resides is that officially known as 'the mean quarter favoured by the lower class of those who murder by treachery'," and for this reason he was not always treated with the regard to which his attainments entitled him, or which he would have unquestionably received had he been able to describe himself as of "the partly-drained and uninfected area reserved to Mandarins and their friends.”

MeanPersonsReasonMightAbleKnownClassAreasMurderRegardAddCommunicateTreatedQuartersEntitledCompelledAttainmentReservedMessengersTreacheryDrainedNeighbourhoodsLower Class
Book:THE KAI LUNG FANTASY SERIES: The Wallet of Kai Lung, Kai Lung's Golden Hours & Kai Lung Unrolls His Mat: The Transmutation of Ling, The Story of Yung Chang, The Probation of Sen Heng, The Experiment of the Mandarin Chan Hung, The Confession of Kai Lung, The Vengeance of Tung Fel and more
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“Before hastening to secure a possible reward of five taels by dragging an unobservant person away from a falling building, examine well his features lest you find, when too late, that it is one to whom you are indebted for double that amount.”

WellsPersonsFallFiveBuildingAmountLateRewardsSecureFeaturesToo LateIndebted
Book:THE KAI LUNG FANTASY SERIES: The Wallet of Kai Lung, Kai Lung's Golden Hours & Kai Lung Unrolls His Mat: The Transmutation of Ling, The Story of Yung Chang, The Probation of Sen Heng, The Experiment of the Mandarin Chan Hung, The Confession of Kai Lung, The Vengeance of Tung Fel and more
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“Should a person on returning from the city discover his house to be in flames, let him examine well the change which he has received from the chair-carrier before it is too late; for evil never travels alone.”

ShouldWellsPersonsEvilHouseCitiesLateFlamesToo LateChairsCarrier
Book:THE KAI LUNG FANTASY SERIES: The Wallet of Kai Lung, Kai Lung's Golden Hours & Kai Lung Unrolls His Mat: The Transmutation of Ling, The Story of Yung Chang, The Probation of Sen Heng, The Experiment of the Mandarin Chan Hung, The Confession of Kai Lung, The Vengeance of Tung Fel and more
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“At the mention of the name and offence of this degraded being a great sound went up from the entire multitude - a universal cry of execration, not greatly dissimilar from that which may be frequently heard in the crowded Temple of Impartiality when the one whose duty it is to take up, at a venture, the folded papers, announces that the sublime Emperor, or some mandarin of exalted rank, has been so fortunate as to hold the winning number in the Annual State Lottery.”

MayHas BeensStatesWinningNamesSoundNumbersHeardCryDutyPaperUniversalFortunateTemplesMultitudesVentureSublimePapersCrowdedEmperorExaltedLotteryAnnualsOffenceImpartiality
Book:ERNEST BRAMAH Ultimate Collection: 20+ Novels & Short Stories (Including Max Carrados Mysteries and Kai Lung Fantasy Stories): The Secret of the League, The Coin of Dionysius, The Game Played In the Dark, The Tilling Shaw Mystery, Kai Lung's Golden Hours, The Confession of Kai Lung, The Mirror of Kong Ho and many more
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“The one-legged never stumble.”

Book:The Complete Works of Ernest Bramah (Including Max Carrados Mysteries & Kai Lung Fantasy Series): The Secret of the League, The Coin of Dionysius, The Game Played In the Dark, The Bravo of London, The Tilling Shaw Mystery, The Secret of Dunstan's Tower, The Missing Witness Sensationäó_
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