Chinua Achebe 's Things Fall Apart

Okonkwo and Walter may or may not have achieved it, but while their eyes are fixated on their end goals for success and what they are gaining, they overlook their losses. Because of Okonkwo’s fear of being regarded weak, he often acts overly aggressive to demonstrate his masculinity. Examples of his acting aggressive and cruel fills the entire novel. The first incident is his beating of his wife Ojiugo during the week of peace. No violence is permitted during this week, but Okonkwo breaks the laws only to establish his dominance in the house. Afterall, he cannot be “like the man in the song who had ten and one wives and not enough soup for his foo-foo” (Achebe 57). This incident is an indication of Okonkwo’s disregard for tribal laws because of how less they weigh than his masculinity does in his heart. After already losing respect for the Igbo cultures and customs, Okonkwo continues on losing a dear son. Ikemefuna is captured from

Okonkwo's fault of violence ultimately leads to consequences which confirms the Igbo ideal of universal justice and how each person is somewhat responsible for what happens to

In the book “Things Fall Apart” by Chinua Achebe Okonkwo shows a lot of violence. Throughout the whole book there is violence popping up very often due to Okonkwo. The violence Okonkwo shows advances the plot because there is almost always another action after the action that he does.

However, when Okonkwo retaliate back against society, there are dire consequences. In his first act of defiance, Okonkwo strikes down his adopted son, Ikemefuna, killing him. Even though the elders instruct him not to do so, or even partake in the killing, Okonkwo meets the consequences of his action with extreme guilt and depression. While this lasts for weeks, Okonkwo’s next act of defiance causes much more severe consequences. He is sent into exile, turning him into what the opposite of what he wished to become, a disgrace like Unoka. His goals of not being his father goes to ruins as he further caters for his personal needs. However, even when returning back to the society from which he was exiled, his personal emotions still get in the way. When angered at “the white man’s power”, Okonkwo “drew his machete…Okonkwo’s machete descended

Chinua Achebe depicts a head strong warrior, Okonkwo, who holds his beliefs to be self-evident despite the evolution taking place right in front of him in ‘Things Fall Apart’. Since Achebe never clearly paints Okonkwo as purely good or evil, Okonkwo can be viewed as morally ambiguous because his brutal actions come from a place of hurt and he is gung-ho on his culture’s traditions. Moral ambiguity is significant to the work as a whole because Achebe is communicating all people fight an internal battle between good and evil.

In addition to cultural clash, Achebe explores the theme of masculinity versus femininity, and in doing so, reveals Okonkwo’s fatal character flaw: hyper-masculinity. Okonkwo is motivated by a desire to prove himself superior to his father, who was cowardly and irresponsible and died a poor man with many unpaid debts. He viewed his father as overly pensive, slow to act, and effeminate (womanly). Therefore, Okonkwo adopts opposite traits; Okonkwo is rash, quick to act, and excessively violent (Okonkwo associates violence with masculinity). Achebe uses figurative language like metaphors and similes to compare Okonkwo to a fire. “. . . Okonkwo's fame had grown like

they wonder why he did it. Before the white men came to Umuofia, Okonkwo’s act of murdering a potential threat to the clan would not be questioned, but now everyone frowns upon Okonkwo’s actions. He is cast aside like a osu, an outcast. “…he mourned for the war like men of Umuofia, who had so unaccountably become soft like women”(Achebe 170) Okonkwo’s idea of manliness is not of high importance to the clansmen, at least not anymore. Consequently, his sense of identity changes. Being manly and strong was the only thing that Okonkwo had going for him, now he is loss of what he does with himself. The message that Chinua Achebe tells

Growing up in an environment where one’s parents and society restrict the behavior of that individual, can be a very challenging situation to be in. This was so for Nwoye. Raised in the Igbo culture, social order was said to demand conformity. It was a culture where he was forced to act a certain way, or be punished by his father Okonkwo, which wasn’t a type of lifestyle Nwoye would want to be living all his life. The book, Things Fall Apart, by Chinua Achebe uses Nwoye to exemplify the outcomes in a relationship, of a father forcing masculine and cultural tradition values his son, Nwoye. Although, Nwoye’s curiosity on the Igbo culture and will to become the person that he wants to be, comes before him even if it calls for going against

Which would you consider more justified: locking up a criminal in cage with minimal living conditions, or exiling him from city? In Chinua Achebe’s novel, Things Fall Apart, the level of civilization depicted by Igbo society may vary among the readers due to disparities in judgement and opinion. Throughout the book, the Igbo civilization is portrayed as civil through their established social system and enforced legislative laws; however, one may perceive Igbo culture as primitive, especially when compared to that of their own. The establishment of social positions within Umuofian society convey a rather high-level of civilization.

The only thing he (Okonkwo) fears most is not ending up like his father, Unoka. However, Achebe ‘‘makes an insightful comment on the nature of masculinity through his representation of the tribal leaders. Achebe basically, was conducive in creating four alter egos of Okonkwo: one of which were the masculinity; next of his fatherly abilities; and the last of his family progress and four of his likelihood of success’’ (Achebe.179). My paper will explain how Okonkwo’s Masculinity from Achebe’s Things Fall Apart will be characterized by his fears, beliefs, and emotions for several reasons.

Achebe introduces Okonkwo as a strong and humbled leader of the Igbo clan, but his own power destroys him. In the novel, “Okonkwo was well-known throughout the nine villages and even beyond” (Achebe 1) and his popularity increases his fear of being viewed as weak, which is one of his tragic flaws that drives him to his own downfall. Achebe adds that Okonkwo’s “fame rested on solid personal achievements”(3) and he had no help from a parent figure to get a start in his road to fame, this leads to the start of his hate against his dad. Finally,

Chinua Achebe’s portrayal of the role of women is significant because it disproves the stereotypes of non-western society. In Igbo society, women have many roles both in the household and in the village. “Igbo women [have] rights and freedoms”, such as “cook[ing] for themselves and rais[ing] their own children” (Ohadike xxxii). Because women are tasked with these important duties, women are very important. In Igbo society, sometimes women have more freedom than in other societies (such as western).

Okonkwo was a well respected leader of the Igbo community. He worked hard to become a wealthy farmer and had “two barns full of yams, he had just married his third wife” (8). Okonkwo was a well respected man because he started out with nothing and had to earn everything he had due to his father not providing a future for him. Okonkwo earned his respect towards the villagers because he “had taken two titles” (8). He was truly concerned about the wellbeings in his clan. Okonkwo “had brought honor to his village” (3), by never giving up on a villager in his clan. Okonkwo has weakness of character that gains sympathy from the audience. Okonkwo was a warrior to have brought great honor to all the villagers in his clan.

Throughout life many challenges come up that aren’t expected to arise. In some cases the best thing to do is help people that are hurting in tough situations. Instead of saying things about what people are doing wrong, boost them up. Everybody in life has good days and bad days. Many times you don’t understand what the other person is going through, so don’t say something that is going to hurt the other person. Everybody should watch what they say because the person you are talking to may see it in a completely different way. These tough situations could change history completely if each person took time to understand the other person that they are communicating with. In the book Things Fall Apart, written by Chinua Achebe, many times the readers

In response to the laziness and unsuccessfulness of his father, Unoka, Okonkwo vows to be the exact opposite of him. Okonkwo, who “was possessed by the fear of his father’s contemptible life” works hard everyday to earn power and title (Achebe). In Morgan Fillers’ article “Unexpected Social Pressure in Males,” Harry Brod, PhD., describes the “real man” as being “physically strong, aggressive, and in control of their work.” Okonkwo strives to have all the defining attributes of a “real man”. At a young age, he wins a wrestling competition and establishes himself as a war hero. Through tireless dedication to become a successful male, Okonkwo is rewarded with three wives, an abounding amount of children, and numerous yams. In his piece “The Things Men Do To Prove Their Masculinity,”