Chinua Achebe

Things Fall Apart

Modern influential 77 sayings

Sayings by Chinua Achebe

A man's life is a story that is told.

1964 — Novel, 'Arrow of God'
Controversial Unverifiable

The white man has a religion of his own, which he brought to us. We have our own religion. We should not abandon our own for his.

1958 — Novel, 'Things Fall Apart'
Controversial Unverifiable

If you want to eat a toad, you should eat the fat one.

1960 — Novel, 'No Longer at Ease'
Controversial Unverifiable

The past is never dead. It's not even past.

late 20th century — Often attributed to Faulkner, but Achebe often discussed the enduring impact of the past on the pres…
Controversial Unverifiable

Charity begins at home.

1960 — Novel, 'No Longer at Ease'
Controversial Unverifiable

Living fire begets cold, impotent ash.

1958 — Novel, 'Things Fall Apart'
Controversial Unverifiable

A man who lives on the road to a market does not need to be told when the market is full.

1964 — Novel, 'Arrow of God'
Controversial Unverifiable

The white man is a chameleon, he changes his colors to suit his environment.

1958 — Novel, 'Things Fall Apart'
Controversial Unverifiable

There is no story that is not true.

1987 — Novel, 'Anthills of the Savannah'
Controversial Unverifiable

The world has no end, and what is good among one people is an abomination among others.

1958 — Novel, 'Things Fall Apart'
Controversial Unverifiable

If we stand tall it is because we stand on the backs of those who came before us.

late 20th century — Various interviews and essays
Controversial Unverifiable

A man's value is not in what he owns, but in what he is.

late 20th century — Various interviews and essays
Controversial Unverifiable

The greatest tragedy is not death, but life without purpose.

late 20th century — Various interviews and essays
Controversial Unverifiable

The earth is not a place for us to conquer, but to cherish.

late 20th century — Various interviews and essays
Controversial Unverifiable

The wise man does not say all that he knows.

1958 — Novel, 'Things Fall Apart'
Controversial Unverifiable

Privilege, you see, is one of the great adversaries of the imagination; it spreads a thick layer of adipose tissue over our sensitivity.

2009 — From "The Education of a British-Protected Child"
Strange & Unusual Unverifiable

The impatient idealist says: 'Give me a place to stand and I shall move the earth.' But such a place does not exist. We all have to stand on the earth itself and go with her at her pace.

1983 — From "The Trouble With Nigeria"
Strange & Unusual Unverifiable