Chinua Achebe’s A Man of the People: the Novel and the Public Sphere

Abstract

As Chinua Achebe’s most contemporary and most sharply political novel, A Man of the People1 was a scandal from the outset. With its scathing appraisal of Nigerian public life, and apparent call for a military takeover, the text became notorious in January 1966 for predicting the army coup which took place only hours after the novel’s launch. This violent anti-corruption purge, carried out by a group of nationalist army officers, marked the beginning of a major power struggle in the region which culminated in the Biafran war.