What Shall the Fate of World Literature Be?

What Shall the Fate of World Literature Be?

Brent Bogan

Period 1

June 6, 2011

West Career and Technical Academy

World Literature is more than just books from around the world. It includes such aspects such as distinct cultures, memorable people, and intriguing themes. One of those themes is when things are believed to come to be as they are or events to happen as they do. Some people call this destiny, but in this case, it's called fate. Fate plays a huge role in World Literature. For example, it is one of the components for such tales as Things Fall Apart, Siddhartha, and Chronicle of a Death Foretold. These three novels originate from three distinct places and cultures, but fate incorporates as the main theme of each protagonist.

In Things Fall Apart, Okonkwo's mission in life was to be a greater success, well just a success in general, than his father Unoka. Unoka's fate seemed to be set for doom. He was lazy, unsuccessful, and, "an ill-fated man. He had a bad chi or personal god, and evil fortune followed him to the grave, or rather to his death, for he had no grave. He died of the swelling which was an abomination to the earth goddess. When a man was afflicted with swelling in the stomach and the limbs he was not allowed to die in the house. He was carried to the Evil Forest and left there to die. There was the story of a very stubborn man who staggered back to his house and had to be carried again to the forest and tied to a tree. The sickness was an abomination to the earth, and so the victim could not be buried in her bowels. He died and rotted away above the earth, and was not given the first of the second burial. Such was Unoka's fate." (Achebe, C. 1999). Okonkwo made sure that didn't happen. He, "was clearly cut out for great things. He was still young but he had won fame as the greatest wrestler in the nine villages. He was a wealthy farmer and had two barns full of yams, and had just married his third wife. To crown it all he had taken two titles and had shown incredible prowess in two inter-tribal wars. And so although Okonkwo was still young, he was already one of the greatest men of his time. Age was respected among his people, but achievement was revered. As the elders said, if a child washed his hands he could eat with kings. Okonkwo had clearly washed his hands and so he ate with kings and elders." His fate made him successful, what he achieved of being, but as he lived on, tragedy rained upon him, and in the end, fate made him a failure as he lost it all trying not to become the thing that he became.

Fate also plays a major role in Siddhartha. As a young adult, Siddhartha is living a glorious life as he is given the upmost amount of pleasure and satisfaction, but he