Civilization is most often defined by its prevailing culture. In Chinua Achebe’s Things Fall Apart,

Okonkwo life is “dominated by fear, the fear of failure and of weakness” (Achebe 13). When Okonkwo was a boy, his playmates teased him calling, saying that his father was agbala. Okonkwo’s father, Unoka, was lazy. He did not work on his farm; he died in great debt. He did not acquire a single title. He did not have a barn to pass down to his son. Unoka is a type of man who is scorned in Umofia. He is seen as weak and effeminate. As Okonkwo grows older, he is determined not become a failure like his father. His father was weak; he will be strong. His father was lazy; he will be hard-working. Okonkwo earned his fame by defeating the reigning wrestling champion. Okonkwo diligently plants yam, building a successful farm. He builds himself an obi, has three wives and many children. His fame “rested on solid personal achievements” (Achebe 3). Okonkwo will not let one womanly trait sully his reputation. Therefore, he “hate[d] everything that his father Unoka had loved” (Achebe 13). One of these was gentleness. Okonkwo refuses to show any signs of emotion, except his temper. He

“He [Unoka] was very good on his flute, and his happiest moments were the two or three moons after the harvest when the village musicians brought down their instruments, hung about the fire place. Unoka would play with them, his face beaming with blessedness and peace.”… “Unoka loved the good fare and good fellowship…”(Achebe 5)

Change is a reoccurring theme throughout history. It destroys and creates. It displaces and introduces. It can cause death and life. The movement of imperialism in Africa brought great change to the native tribal life. Forcing the indigenous people to turn away from their century-old traditions caused violent rifts between the European settlers and the tribes, as well as internal problems between once amiable members of the Ibo culture. With the introduction of the foreign Western Society in Chinua Achebe’s Things Fall Apart, the tribe’s life and ideals are drastically altered as the new ethics and principles collide with the old traditions and laws, causing the members of the society to either adapt or be crushed underneath the foot of colonialism. Achebe’s character, Okonkwo, was impacted immensely by the cultural collision, as his previous way of life was pulverized before his eyes, and he found no reason to live any longer.

The character of Okonkwo in Chinua Achebe’s Things Fall Apart was driven by fear, a fear of change and losing his self-worth. He needed the village of Umuofia, his home, to remain untouched by time and progress because its system and structure were the measures by which he assigned worth and meaning in his own life. Okonkwo required this external order because of his childhood and a strained relationship with his father, which was also the root of his fears and subsequent drive for success. When the structure of Umuofia changed, as happens in society, Okonkwo was unable to adapt his methods of self-evaluation and ways of functioning in the world; the life he was determined to live could not survive a new environment and collapsed around

By focusing on his music, Unoka overlooks taking care of his family.Consequently, Okonkwo views everything about his father as weak and feminine since in the Umuofia culture father figures provide the family with food, shelter, and security. Unoka fails to conform with societal terms. Therefore, in Okonkwo’s eyes, the flute is weak and feminine. Instruments depict gender roles in the Umuofia society.

This novel is the definitive tragic model about the dissolution of the African Ibo culture by Nigerian author, Chinua Achebe. Okonkwo, a great and heroic leader, is doomed by his inflexibility and hubris. He is driven by fear of failure.

Unoka is Okonkwo’s father, he is a very lazy man and has amassed many debts. Okonkwo is very ashamed of Unoka and seems to hate him very much. Achebe states

Okonkwo is initially introduced as a proud, hardworking, successful warrior. He is described as "clearly cut out for great things" (6). But he is the son of a ne'er-do-well father; though genial and inoffensive, Unoka must certainly have been considered a failure. He is lazy and does not provide for his family. Not only is this disgraceful, but life-threatening as well. He is dependent on other members of the clan and must have been considered unsuccessful. Okonkwo chafes under such disgrace and his success is a consequence of his desire to be everything his father is not; society's vision of an exemplar citizen. The fact that Okonkwo is able to rise above his poverty and disgraceful paternity illustrates the Igbo's acceptance of individual free will. But Okonkwo's fate and his disharmony with his chi, family and clan are shown to cause his ultimate disgrace and death.

He was very well known thruoghtout nine villages and even beyond that. As a young man of the eighteenth centurry he bought geat honor to his village. This was a very surprising thing to do when you are young at that time .He defies this very well at the begining of the novel ‘’ hard work pays off’’.He does this by beating Amalinze the cat. Amalinze the cat was a great wrestler for seven years being undeafeated from umuofia to Mbaino .’’A young man of the eighteenth century bought great honor to his village by throwing Amalinze the Cat who was a great wrestler for seven years from Umuofia to Mbiano’’(Things fall Aaprt pg 2).This is a very good quote to be edvidence of my theme I picked ‘’hard wor pays off’’. However hard work pays off does not mean anything as it progresses towards the end of the novel. However hard work comes in very well when the novel talks about Okoye and Unoka. Unoka is a very hard working man and tries to feed his wife and children by any means neccessary even when it comes down to borrowing money. Thing about him is that he has a very bad issue with paying people back their money on time.But in the novel people should undeerstand and respect what he is doing to feed his family.’’Unoka was of course a debtor and he owed every neighbor soe money from a few cowries to substantial amounts ( Things fall Apart pg 3).Unoka son definetly shows how hard work pays off.’’He was still young but still had won fame as the greatest wrestler in the nine villages’’.He was wealthy farmer and had two barns full of yams and just married his third wife(pg6)This tells you he was a great man trying to make something out of himself and not trying to be like his father borrowing many from people and making a name for

It was for this man that Okonkwo worked to earn his first seed yams.” (18-19) The quote shows how polygyny plays a part in the igbo culture. The quote also explains how Okonkwo viewed Nwakibie as a role model for his success and wealth which earned Nwakibie a higher rank in society, rather than his own father, Unoka. Okonkwo did not inherit a farm from his father like many young men in Umuofia did. Father-son inheritance was the beginning of becoming a man in Umuofia, the son helps with the farm then inherits the farm along with starter seeds. Unoka was not able to provide a future for his son Okonkwo because he was broke, lazy & irresponsible as explained in the novel. “With a father like Unoka, Okonkwo did not have the start in life which many young men had. He

The fear of blood that Unoka had is what separated him from Okonkwo because of this Okonkwo made sure he would bathe in the blood of his enemies, rather than avoid conflicts like his father. This statement can be further strengthened when Okonkwo collected heads. Okonkwo stormed into battle for his tribe and decapitated his enemies. These heads showed that he was a warrior and not the woman his father was. The killing of Ikemefuna further displayed how ruthless Okonkwo was.

In the passage above, Achebe gives the reader some insight into Okonkwo’s father, Unoka. Unoka arrives at the priestess of Agbala’s cave is to ask why none of his crops will grow. The priestess states that “You [Unoka] have offended neither the gods or your fathers”(Achebe 17) and that a man’s “harvest will be good or bad according to the strength of his arm” (17). If the priestess is correct, then Unoka’s problems with his farms are not spiritual, but physical. The priestess then continues to explain to Unoka that “You, Unoka, are known in all the clan for the weakness of your machete and your hoe”(17) and that Unoka sows “yams on exhausted farms that take no labour to clear”(17). Unoka is not a highly valued member of the village and is

Direct Characterization Unoka Idleness “Unoka, the grown up was a failure. He was poor and his wife and children had barely enough to eat. People laughed at him because he was a loafer”(Achebe 5). In this passage, Okonkwo’s father, Unoka, is a lazy man with little motivation and will always try to find shortcuts to avoid work.

Yet, within the culture flutes are belittle. Thus, Okonkwo despises the pipe because it reminds him of his father, Unoka. Unoka did not provide for his family. Thus, Okonkwo grew up extremely poor, "He [Unoka] was poor and his wife and children had barely enough to eat"(2). Okonkwo's childhood reveals the hardship his family faced due to the lack of his father’s contributions. Unoka’s center of attention was in music as he claims in his downtime, "He [Unoka] could hear in his mind's ear the blood-stirring and intricate rhythms of the ekwe and the udu and the ogene, and he could hear his own flute weaving in and out of them, decorating them with a colourful and plaintive tune" (2). By focusing on his music, Unoka

In the novel Things fall Apart by Unoka is a Afraid, Cowardly, and a Unsuccessful men. First, Unoka is afraid. Unoka is afraid of war because he do not want to see any blood. According to the text “ Unoka could not bare the sight of blood” (6). Second, Unoka is a coward. Unoka was scared to go to war and was too scared to see blood. According to the text the “ Unoka was not happy when it comes to wars.” (6)” Third, Unoka is unsuccessful. Unoka is unsuccessful men because he could not get his own money and always asking for money from people. According to the text “Okonkwo had no patience with unsuccessful men. Okonkwo had had no patience with his father.’(4)