A Man of the People is a 1966 satirical novel by Chinua Achebe. It is Achebe's fourth novel.

The novel
tells the story of the young and educated Odili, the narrator, and his conflict with Chief Nanga, his
former teacher who enters a career in politics in in an unnamed modern African country. Odili
represents the changing younger generation; Nanga represents the traditional customs of Nigeria. The
book ends with a military coup, similar to the real-life coups of Johnson Aguiyi-Ironsi, Chukwuma Kaduna
Nzeogwu and Yakubu Gowon.[1]

Contents

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* 1 Plot introduction

* 2 Similarity to future events

* 3 Literary significance

* 4 References

Plot introduction

A Man of the People is a first-person account of Odili, a school teacher in an unnamed African nation.
Odili receives an invitation from a former teacher of his, Chief Nanga, who is now the powerful but
corrupt Minister of Culture. As Minister, Nanga's job is to protect the traditions of his country, and
though he is known as "A Man of the People," he instead uses his position to increase his personal
wealth. The Minister's riches and power prove particularly impressive to Odili's girlfriend, who cheats on
him with the minister. Seeking revenge, Odili begins to pursue the minister's fiancee. Odili also agrees to
lead an opposition party in the face of both bribes and violent threats. Odili triumphs over the Minister,
however, when a military coup forces his old teacher from office. The book ends with the line: "you died
a good death if your life had inspired someone to come forward and shoot your murderer in the chest --
without asking to be paid."[2]

Similarity to future events

Upon reading an advance copy of the novel, Achebe's friend, the Nigerian poet and playwright John
Pepper Clark declared: "Chinua, I know you are a prophet. Everything in this book has happened except
a military coup!"[3] Later in 1966, Nigerian Major Chukwuma Kaduna Nzeogwu seized control of the
northern region of the country as part of a larger coup attempt. Commanders in other areas failed, and
the plot was answered by a military crackdown which resulted in the presidency of Major General
Johnson Aguiyi-Ironsi. A massacre of three thousand people from the eastern region living in the north
occurred soon afterwards, and stories of other attacks on Igbo Nigerians began to filter into Lagos.[4] In
July of 1966, Ironsi was himself overthrown by Yakubu Gowon (continuing the cycle of transition by
violence, Gowon was overthrown by General Murtala Mohammed who died a year later in yet another
coup attempt). Because Achebe's novel mirrored the coup that came shortly after the novel's
publication, military personnel suspected him of having foreknowledge of the coup. Achebe evacuated
his pregnant wife, Christie, and their children, to Port Harcourt. They arrived safely, but Christie suffered
a miscarriage at the journey's end. Chinua rejoined them soon afterwards in Ogidi.[5]

Literary significance

Achebe's first three novels were all clearly set in Igbo villages in Nigeria. A Man of the People, however,
was set in a fictional African country as Achebe sought to write African literature, pertinent outside of
just Nigeria. The novel does not include any specific ethnic or cultural groups. The problems portrayed in
the book, such as bribery, incompetence and governmental apathy, were experienced by many West
African nations in the neocolonial era. As Nigeria had not experienced a coup when Achebe wrote A
Man of the People, his model for the novel's events must have been military coups in other African
nations. Despite his intentions, however, the subsequent coup in Nigeria meant that the book was again
seen as being principally about Nigeria.[6] The book has the strongest satirical streak of Achebe's early
novels, and has been compared to the work of Wole Soyinka.[2]

References

1. ^ "A Man of the People by Chinua Achebe", Time, August 19, 1966. Retrieved on 2007-09-19.

2. ^ a b Mercedes Mackay (January 1967). "Review: A Man of the People by Chinua Achebe". African
Affairs 66 (262).

3. ^ Ezenwa-Ohaeto (1997). Chinua Achebe: A Biography. Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 109.
ISBN 0-253-33342-3.

4. ^ Ezenwa-Ohaeto, p. 115.

5. ^ Ezenwa-Ohaeto, p. 117.

6. ^ Joanna Sullivan (Fall 2001). "Research in African Literatures" 32 (3).

• •e

Works by Chinua Achebe

Novels: Things Fall Apart (1958) • No Longer at Ease (1960) • Arrow of God (1964) • A Man of the
People (1966) • Anthills of the Savannah (1987)

Short stories: The Sacrificial Egg and Other Stories (1962) • "Civil Peace" (1971) • Girls at War and
Other Stories (1973) • African Short Stories (1985) • Heinemann Book of Contemporary African Short
Stories (1992)

Children's stories: Chike and the River (1966) • How the Leopard Got His Claws (1972) • The Flute
(1975) • The Drum (1978)

Other works: An Image of Africa: Racism in Conrad's "Heart of Darkness" (1975)

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