Free Essays on The Second Coming Vs. Things Fall Apart

In 1919 William Butler Yeats published a poem called â€Å"The Second Coming.† Forty Years later, Chinua Achebe took the third line from that poem for the title of his book Things Fall Apart. Both pieces of literature deal with the beginning and the end of a civilization. Both show that change is inevitable and the nature of change can be chaotic and destructive. Yeats' poem "The Second Coming," depicts the approach of a new world order and demonstrates the concept that change is inevitable. â€Å"The Second Coming† also taps into the concept of the gyre. The gyre is the idea that history occurs in cycles, specifically cycles "twenty centuries" in length (ln. 19). In this poem, Yeats predicts that the Christian era will soon give way apocalyptically to an era ruled by a desert beast with a â€Å"lion body and the head of a man† (ln. 14). Yeats describes the beast's eyes as "pitiless as the sun" (ln. 15), and it is followed not by the falcon, but by "shadows of desert birds," which are probably vultures. And no self-respecting vulture would soar around a titanic beast simply because of its symbolic significance; vultures go where there is food. This beast is not only pitiless, but it leaves carnage behind, which leaves the reader to believe that this beast is not very friendly at all. Yeats felt that because of World War 1, Eur ope was left in complete chaos, and total anarchy was released upon the world. Yeats is trying to tell the reader that the society that was left in the wake of the war is already beginning to fall apart, and The Second Coming will occur. The Second Coming refers to the promised return of Christ on Doomsday; however, Doomsday is instead marked by the appearance of the terrifying beast. Things Fall Apart was published in 1958 during the Nigerian renaissance, and it’s theme also deals with the notion that change is unavoidable. It is the story of an Ibo village of the late 1800's and one of its great men, Okonkwo... Free Essays on The Second Coming Vs. Things Fall Apart Free Essays on The Second Coming Vs. Things Fall Apart In 1919 William Butler Yeats published a poem called â€Å"The Second Coming.† Forty Years later, Chinua Achebe took the third line from that poem for the title of his book Things Fall Apart. Both pieces of literature deal with the beginning and the end of a civilization. Both show that change is inevitable and the nature of change can be chaotic and destructive. Yeats' poem "The Second Coming," depicts the approach of a new world order and demonstrates the concept that change is inevitable. â€Å"The Second Coming† also taps into the concept of the gyre. The gyre is the idea that history occurs in cycles, specifically cycles "twenty centuries" in length (ln. 19). In this poem, Yeats predicts that the Christian era will soon give way apocalyptically to an era ruled by a desert beast with a â€Å"lion body and the head of a man† (ln. 14). Yeats describes the beast's eyes as "pitiless as the sun" (ln. 15), and it is followed not by the falcon, but by "shadows of desert birds," which are probably vultures. And no self-respecting vulture would soar around a titanic beast simply because of its symbolic significance; vultures go where there is food. This beast is not only pitiless, but it leaves carnage behind, which leaves the reader to believe that this beast is not very friendly at all. Yeats felt that because of World War 1, Eur ope was left in complete chaos, and total anarchy was released upon the world. Yeats is trying to tell the reader that the society that was left in the wake of the war is already beginning to fall apart, and The Second Coming will occur. The Second Coming refers to the promised return of Christ on Doomsday; however, Doomsday is instead marked by the appearance of the terrifying beast. Things Fall Apart was published in 1958 during the Nigerian renaissance, and it’s theme also deals with the notion that change is unavoidable. It is the story of an Ibo village of the late 1800's and one of its great men, Okonkwo...