How Does Achebe Define Femininity And Masculinity?

The central theme in Achebe Chinua's novel, Things Fall Apart, is masculinity. The main character, Okonkwo has an obsession with being masculine and refuses to look weak. From the beginning of the novel, it is clear that his idea of his own self worth and his masculinity are strongly interrelated. This obsession is a result of his unsuccessful father, Unoka, who is very cowardly and fears the sight of blood. Okonkwo makes a vow at a young age to be nothing like his father so he adopts opposite ideals that his father stood for. Okonkwo has three wives and several children who he is extremely harsh and violent towards because he wants to hold a strong warrior-like reputation. He is extremely cruel to his eldest son, Nwoye, which eventually drives him into the hands of the Christian missionaries. Okonkwo is also is haunted by a fear of seeming weak. Masculinity is the theme of Achebe Chinua's

In most cultures an individual’s gender will influence their characterization. For instance, Ibo tribes in Africa classify people according to their gender. Women are thought as submissive individuals who are to some extent weaker than men. Men on the other hand are thought of as strong beings with much expected from them. Chinua Achebe’s Things Fall Apart strongly emphasizes on the categorization of masculinity and femininity in the society of Ibo tribes. Throughout the book, Okonkwo’s idea about masculinity situates him with respect to his community. In his community Okonkwo is greatly praised for his masculine traits. It is Okonkwo integration with masculinity that leads to him becoming an

Unoka is isolated from the clan due to his laziness and debt, “People laughed at him [Unoka] because he was a loafer, and they swore never to lend him any more money because he never paid back.” (Achebe 5). Here the reader can recognize how Unoka’s laziness and his unreliability cause the people in the clan to have a distaste of him. He is isolated from the clan because he is a shameful man who never pays people back when they help him. Okonkwo is also isolated from the clan, however for him it is because of his intensity and excessiveness; “Okonkwo stood looking at the dead man. He knew that Umuofia would not go to war… They had broken into tumult instead of action… He heard voices asking: ‘Why did he do it?’” (Achebe 205). After killing the messenger, Okonkwo is isolated from the clan. His intensity and violence cause him to jump into war mode without the support of his clan. Due to this, the clan is bewildered as to why Okonkwo would do something like that. He is left alone and separated from the clan that he loved so much. Unoka and Okonkwo are both betrayed and isolated by their clansmen. Unoka’s deficiency lead clansmen to laugh at his shameful life and Okonkwo’s excessiveness cause him to act too extreme for his clansmen. Moreover, Both Unoka and Okonkwo die decidedly similar deaths. Unoka dies a shameful death on his own in the evil forest, “[Unoka] died of the swelling which was an abomination to the earth goddess… He was carried out to the evil forest and left there to die.” (Achebe 18). Unoka dies shameful and alone. His disease means that he is not buried like most men are and instead he dies alone in the evil forest. The death of Okonkwo is noticeably similar to that of his father, “they came to the tree from which Okonkwo’s body was dangling… ‘Perhaps your men can help us

With the arrival of third-wave feminism, gender roles are an increasingly popular topic for discussion, and literature is an effective catalyst for it. This is shown through Chinua Achebe´s 1958 novel Things Fall Apart, which discusses the effects of European colonization on African society, using a fictional group of Igbo villages as an example. His main character is Okonkwo, an aggressive and powerful male figure in the community. He is a prime example of how male gender expectations can negatively affect people. As Achebe states, “fiction [is] entirely fictitious [but] it could also be true or false, not with the truth or falsehood of a news article but as to its disinterestedness, its intention, its integrity” (Franklin 3). Clearly, he writes with the purpose of conveying truths through the broader untruth of fiction, and so could not have unintentionally created a character with such problems that are glaringly caused by gender roles. The way that Okonkwo embodies stereotypical gender expectations for men makes clear how they can be toxic to everyone.

Gender roles played a crucial part to the understanding of the people of Umuofia; especially to Okonkwo. But just as in today’s world, one person of a group cannot define the entire group, it was the same back then, which further proves how the District Commissioner’s view of Umuofia would not represent the entire clan, let alone Africa as a whole. Okonkwo’s motivation behind his views of patriarchy stem from his father Unoka; he wanted to be such a great man of the tribe, unlike his “agbala” of a father. Okonkwo’s son “[n]woye knew that it was right to be masculine and to be violent, but somehow he still preferred the stories that his mother used to tell, and which she no doubt still told to her younger children…but he now knew that they were for foolish women

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.

Throughout the book Chinua Achebe illustrates Okonkwo’s relationship with his father, Unoka, to be a negative, tenuous, and non-existent. At the beginning of the novel the reader can already start to tell the opposition of the two characters when Achebe introduces them. Unoka is portrayed to be, “tall but very thin and [have] a slight stoop. He [wears] a haggard and mournful look except when he was drinking or playing on his flute” (3). Unlike his drunken and lazy father, Okonkwo, “was tall and huge, and his bushy eyebrows and nose gave him a very severe look” (1). Okonkwo was fierce and strong while on the other hand is father was lazy, weak, and feminine. The reader can tell that Unoka and Okonkwo were extremely different which plays a

In the novel Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe the main character Okonkwo and his father, Unoka are very different, but also similar in some aspects of their lives. They’re similar because they are both fathers of children. They’re also different because Okonkwo is a hard worker but most importantly a clan leader of Umuofia, and his father was a debtor who was lazy and a man of no title of Umuofia.

   In Chinua Achebe's novel Things Fall Apart, the Ibo people's patriarchal society has a strict system of behavioral customs according to gender. These customs strongly restrict the freedom of Ibo women and help to reinforce generation after generation the notion that Ibo men are superior to the women of their tribe.

Stereotypes: Ripped at the Seams We feel the plague of stereotypes every day - whether they are derogatory remarks about gender, judgements based on ethnicity, or hate towards a religion. But every once in a while, someone comes along and rips those stereotypes apart at the seams. In his novel, Things Fall Apart, Chinua Achebe shatters the stereotypes that come along with his story, while eloquently explaining the tale of Nigerian colonization. The tale begins with Okonkwo, one of the greatest men in Umuofia, who values the aspects of Ibo religion so greatly that he does not object in the slightest when a higher power declares that they must murder Ikemefuna, a boy who started out as a sacrifice but has since become as dear to Okonkwo as his

The novel Things Fall Apart took place in the Igbo Society-the part of the world that has very strict views on gender roles, but not just gender roles. It is likely that every individual in the Igbo society viewed or defined masculinity differently. To some, masculinity was expressed through anger and violence; to others, masculinity was expressed through a man’s responsibility. These different views on masculinity can create conflicts and can therefore impact individual's life. In the novel Things Fall Apart, Okonkwo and Obierika different interpretations of masculinity led them to a different life and such intention was successfully introduced through Achebe’s uses of foil characters.

Allan Anbalagan Williams Honors English 10 5 October 2014 Things Fall Apart: Effects of Bad Parenting Fathers play an influential role in the lives of their children by shaping their personalities. This is evident in the characters Unoka, Okonkwo, and Nwoye who are grandfather, father, and son respectively.

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.

Okonkwo's father, Unoka, was "a failure," "a loafer," and "People laughed at him" (1426). This would bring great shame to any man as it did for Okonkwo. In Umuofia "a man is judged according to his worth and not according to the worth of his father" (1427). In Umuofia "achievement was revered." Okonkwo became obsessed with the need to prove to everyone that he, unlike his father, was a man

Achebe refers to the Ibo as a strong tribe with an honorable amount of achievements. It is known that in the community, men are respected based on their personal achievements and how many titles he has. In Umofia, a man with no titles has accomplished nothing in his life, like Okonkwo’s father. Unoka was a man who died with no titles; he didn’t work and could not even provide food for his family. Unoka was known in the village but not for the right reasons, he was known only because he begged people for money and never repaying all those who gave it to him. For this Okonkwo resented him, he made sure that he never turned out like him, he was always working and he made sure that he could provide for his family. Okonkwo “has the position of high