A Short Biography of Yesterday

V.S. Naipaul on Things Fall Apart in the Guardian

‘Naipaul has seemed content to pay less attention than ever to the
novelistic nature of his work. He believes that “prose narrative” is
undergoing a change, and that change is needed. “In the 19th century,
the novel came out of a great need to describe society. I find in myself
an unwillingness to pick up a modern novel. What is against the form is
that everybody can do it and everybody does it, and I think this has
debased it, has made it obvious that there needs to be something else.
Interesting writing is always being done for the first time.”

In recent years, he has made good copy for journalists by criticising
writers such as Forster and Powell - “I was appalled”, he says by A
Dance to the Music of Time - not to mention Waugh and Greene, another
disappointment. In each case, his objections are based on the writer’s
failure to replenish his material. “Have you read Things Fall Apart by
Chinua Achebe? I think it’s an appalling book. It’s one of the things
that people talk about, without considering. It’s a primitive piece of
writing about primitive people ..and that’s something that’s very
limited. This thing - the rhythm of the year, the rituals - you can do
it once, you can’t do it all the time.” He feels that “there’s been no
African writing about Africa, in a way I would understand. I mean,
someone trying to explain to me why Africa is in a mess. Is it old
African magic in their heads?”

 It is very refreshing when intelligent minds rubbish universally
acclaimed books. You just know that in the toss of arguments will come
fresh perspectives. Seen in this light, the opinion of the Nobel
Laureate that Things Fall Apart is an appalling book, a primitive piece
of writing about primitive people is frankly, quite exciting.

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