Chinua Achebe's Things Fall Apart

7. “Okonkwo ruled his house with a heavy hand. His wives, especially the youngest, lived in perpetual fear of his fiery temper, and so did his little children.”

For all of his desire to be strong, Okonkwo is caught up by the constant fear of being perceived as weak. He is afraid of failure and afraid of being considered weak. This fear drives him to do whatever he can to not become a failure like his father which ironically contributes to his death. While Okonkwo was a strong and important figure in his tribe, he had to keep his reputation that way by making some hard decisions. One of them was when he had to kill Ikemefuna, a young boy from the neighboring tribe. Okonkwo started accepting the decision to kill Ikemefuna because he started to call Okonkwo father. He had to keep his own valor intact and kill the boy to prevent himself from showing any weakness, but deep down, Okonkwo was really upset because of what he did which was ironic, “’When did you become a shivering old woman,' Okonkwo asked himself, 'you, who are known in all the nine villages for your valor in war? How can a man who has killed five men in battle fall to pieces because he has added a boy to their number? Okonkwo, you have become a woman indeed.'" (Achebe 65). He continued to roll downhill when the white man comes to try and convert Okonkwo’s tribe. Okonkwo responds by killing one of the messengers that were sent. This cause Okonkwo's own tribe to question his actions. “"Okonkwo stood looking at the dead man. He knew that Umuofia would not go to war. He knew because they had let the other messengers escape.

First, Okonkwo is a controlling gentlemen. He wants to be nothing like his father, him and his father are very different. During the week of peace Okonkwo beats his wife. He beats his wife up because she was braiding her hair instead of

Okonkwo thinks he is the owner of his household and he shows no mercy to anyone who angers him. “He ruled his household with a heavy hand. His wives…lived in perpetual fear of his fiery temper, and so did his little children. Perhaps down in his heart Okonkwo was not a cruel man. But his whole life was dominated by fear, the fear of failure and weakness.” (Achebe, Chapter 2, p.8). Okonkwo beats his children and wives because of his temper which is influenced by the Igbo society; he puts on a hard exterior because he is afraid of being weak and unsuccessful. At one point, he attempts to kill his second wife with a gun because he thinks she is the cause of a tree’s death. In order to prove his power and strength, without thinking of the consequences, Okonkwo beats his youngest wife during the week of peace - a week when the village celebrates peace and who ever disrupts the peace will be punished by Ala, the earth goddess (Lycos, online). “His first two wives ran out in great alarm pleading with him that it was the sacred week. But Okonkwo was not the man to stop beating somebody half-way through, not even for the fear of a goddess.” (Achebe, Chapter 4, p.21). Okonkwo lives in a male dominant society where men are pressured to be strong and successful; because of these influences, Okonkwo develops an inner

Okonkwo isolates many of his closest friends and family members from his life because of the christians. As Okonkwo returns from his exile it starts to become clear that the other clan members did not necessarily dislike the missionaries as much as Okonkwo: “There were many men and women in Umuofia who did not feel as strongly as Okonkwo about the new dispensation” (Achebe 178). This quote highlights the separation between Okonkwo and the majority of the clan. Okonkwo’s refusal to tolerate the missionaries dissolved the unity between him and the other clan members. This lack of unity is exhibited when the christian missionaries approach the Ibo tribe.

He felt like he had lost everything, his village, success, sons. He felt out of control and weak, like a failure. What he feared that he would be. He couldn’t handle it any more and so, Okonkwo made the decision to hang

Okonkwo’s merciless violence gave him the appearance of being impenetrable. His brutality in the book categorized him as emotionless and callous. His drive to become greater than his father meant he cared only about himself and his own success. Okonkwo beat his own son, Nwoye, for fear he was growing lazy like

Okonkwo is considered a man of high status. He was looked at as a fierce warrior in the clan of Umofia. According to Achebe, “He was a man of action, a man of war.” (10). He was a hard worker throughout his community which had landed him the position as a wealthy farmer. His hard work had obtained him a high ranking throughout the nine villages. Okonkwo 's tragic flaw was simply his fear of weakness or failing, which all had stemmed

In the beginning of Things Fall Apart, Okonkwo is highly praised all over Umuofia for his great wealth and power. Achebe praises the achievements of the protagonist as he

Okonkwo is greatly depressed because of all of this and deeply regrets all of the things he has done out of anger. Hence, at the end of the book Okonkwo commits suicide in order to free himself from the pain he has suffered and to

He is failing to overpower his fear of weakness. Okonkwo is apprehensive of looking weak like his father. “Okonkwo’s fear was greater than these. It was external but lay deep within himself. It was the fear of himself, lest he should be found to resemble his father” (Achebe, 13). As a result, he behaves frantically; bringing much trouble and sorrow upon himself as well as his

“He mourned for the warlike men of Umuofia, who had so uncontrollably become soft like women.” () Okonkwo “mourns for the warlike men...who had become soft” (__) He is just sad for them and confused as to why they would have given up the old ways of the tribe. This feeling of mournfulness and confusion later leads to his death. Okonkwo relied many on the social standards as a source of identity even though he was scared of them and in the long run it was a fleeting

Achebe uses Nwoye to make the leaving of many Ibo members more personal for the reader. Although the effect of other members of the society leaving would have worked, having a family member that the reader knows well leave the culture creates a much greater impact. This makes the situation very personal for Okonkwo. When the very thing he loves the most, his culture, is out at risk, to have a family member join the enemy, rips an ever deeper hole in Okonkwo and adds on to his piling internal conflict. Okonkwo even sees “himself and his father… waiting in vain for worship and sacrifice and finding nothing but ashes of bygone days, and his children the while praying to the white man’s god” when Nwoye first converts his faith (153).

Okonkwo trusted that since he was such a savage warrior, he could overcome anything life tossed at him. Be that as it may, it was his wild, proud, and battling demeanor that was his end even with wild circumstances. Okonkwo trusted that war and battling would settle every problem. He was a proud and resolute man always attempting to enhance his prestige in the tribal group. Okonkwo likewise had exceptional pride for his tribe and lifestyle.

We are here to remember Okonkwo. My father. Your friend, nephew, husband, rolemodel. Okonkwo lived greatly. He was a well respected man by all, and a powerful warrior in the nine villages of Umuofia.