Turning and turning in the widening vortex. The falcon cannot hear the falconer; Things fall apart; the center cannot hold; Simple anarchy is unleashed on the world. This is an excerpt from the poem "The Second Coming", which is the basis for the novel "Things Fall Apart". This title is significant for the numerous themes explored throughout the story. I feel like the story is split into three different themes to get to the main theme. The themes of tradition, appearance and social belonging, fear and anger, come together in such a way as to bring to light the main theme of the story. This idea is that although throughout one's life one can train oneself to think that one has absolute control over all things in one's life if one wishes, in reality one does not. The author shows the reality that through these ideas, we brainwash ourselves to believe that if we master these things and gain control over them, life as we know it will always be the same. The danger of thinking this way is that by doing so you never prepare yourself for change, and if you are not prepared for change everything in your life can fall apart. The conflict between these issues shows that although we may have momentary control over ourselves and/or family and even our culture, we do not have complete control over change, which is inevitable. The story is set in the Ibo tribe of Umuofia, which is one of nine villages that come together to form a large clan in Nigeria. These tribes are the ones who maintain extremely high courage, strength, tradition and customs. The theme of tradition is examined by The Dangers 3, showing that they are a proud people, who rely solely on the will of "their gods" to direct their paths in life, which in turn brings them great strength and prosperity. This is evident through a dialogue that takes place in the text which details what happens when a member of the tribe disobeys a law established by the gods: "You are not a stranger in Umuofia. You know as well as I that our ancestors ordered it first If we plant any crop in the ground we should observe a week in which a man does not say a harsh word to his neighbor.