How Does Okonkwo Change After Ikemafuna's Death

But his whole life was dominated by fear, the fear of failure and of weakness.” Many people believed that Okonkwo was such a cruel man because of the wall that he put up. This affected his family because he still continued to act tough with his wives and most of his kids, there was only one of his children that saw his soft side and that was Emzina, his daughter. He also thought a lot about one of the people he killed, which showed that he wasn’t the tough guy that everybody thought he was, but no matter what he refused to show any signs of weakness to avoid being like his

Okonkwo’s son named Ikemefuna had an huge impact in the determination of Okonkwo’s character development and emotions. “Later in the day he called Ikemefuna and told him that he was going to be taken home the next day.” “As for Ikemefuna, he was at a loss”(Achebe 50) Okonkwo knew that Ikemefuna was going to be killed because the old man told Okonkwo that told him that Umuofia has decided to kill him. “Why had Okonkwo withdrawn to the rear?” “As the man who had cleared his throat drew up and raised the machete, Okonkwo looked away. He heard the blow. The pot fell and broke in the sand. He heard Ikemefuna cry, ‘My father, they have killend me!’ as he rans toward him. Dazed with fear, Okonkwo drew his machete and cut him down. He was afraid

Okonkwo took his struggles to the extreme. A boy called Ikemefuna came to stay with Okonkwo and his family. Okonkwo and his family grew close to Ikemefuna and so did he. Nwoye considered Okonkwo his father figure because Nwoye did not have a father. Nwoye became best friends with Okonkwo’s son Nwoye. One day a group of Village elders from all nine villages came to okonkwo’s house and let him know that Ikemefuna was to be killed. The next day they all went out together along with Ikemefuna and as they were walking, one of the men raised his machete and struck him down. “My father, they have killed me!” As he ran towards him. Dazed with fear, Okonkwo drew his machete and cut him down. He was afraid of being thought weak”(Achebe 61) Okonkwo throughout the whole book doesn’t act the way he wants to scared he might be though weak and not manly. Okonkwo blocks off his emotions quite a lot. Okonkwo feels disappointed with his son but he is very proud of his daughter, yet he doesn’t want to admit it to her so he takes it out on her mother. He had wished that his daughter were to be a boy so he can be proud of her and praise her but he does not want to acknowledge a female.

Okonkwo his whole life strived to be the best in his clan and would never disrespect the culture and its Gods. In his clan he is seen as a strong and powerful figure, because he closely follows the religion. When The Oracle of the Hills and the Caves pronounced Ikemefuna was to be killed, Okonkwo became the most vulnerable. The decision to kill a child that refers to him as father, or show how strong he truly is and how he respects the culture of his clan. Okonkwo was more fearful of showing disrespect to the culture. “Dazed with fear, Okonkwo drew his machete and cut him down. He was afraid of being thought weak.” 61. The fear in Okonkwo made him vulnerable in this situation. He knew he did not have to be at the killing, but the strongest of the clan were at this event and he wanted to show others how strong he truly is. Also, how he could kill someone even if inside he truly cared for them. After Ikemefuna’s killing,

In Things Fall Apart, Okonkwo starts off with so much strength and power. He is a leader in his village and, is always working towards more success.With many mistakes Okonkwo starts to lose everything including his respect and authority. He goes through some big changes, and his life completely turns around. His aggression and violence become out of hand, and he can not control himself. He has to face extreme punishments that change who is and how he feels. Okonkwo’s success decreases throughout Things Fall Apart.

Okonkwo’s participation in the slaying of his adopted son, Ikemefuna is a pivotal moment in Things Fall Apart. It is a moment of horror that cannot please Ani, the great earth goddess, the center of community, the ultimate judge of morality for the clan. It is a moment that changes the course of events, a moment eerily paralleled in the death of Ezeudu’s son. It is a moment that ultimately causes Okonkwo’s son, Nwoye’s to abandon his ancestors and become a Christian. It is a moment when the center of community life, the need to honor blood ties and the need to respect the earth goddess, can no longer hold. It is a moment when things fall apart.

In the book Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe, not only are pride and manliness central themes but they also contribute to the demise of the main character, Okonkwo. In his mind, he is fighting the downfalls of his father while pushing away the people in his life who actually love him. By fighting the past, Okonkwo’s insecurities result in a lifetime of failure. Okonkwo has a desire to be in control of the clan.

Okonkwo loved Ikemefuna and treated him well. He was proud that he had finally got himself a strong man as his son. Although Okonkwo treated Ikemefuna just like a son Okonkwo’s success has more importance and nothing would stop Okonkwo from having a high rank in the clan. The day came when the clan decided to kill Ikemefuna, and even though Okonkwo treated him as a son, Okonkwo “was afraid of being thought of as weak.”(Achebe 61) causing Okonkwo to draw “his machete and cut him down.” (Achebe 61). Because he could not be looked at as weak, he chooses to take part in the killing of

fter helping the murder of Ikemefuma. Okonkwo is unable to sleep at night. Although he tried not to think about him, thoughts occurred frequently of Ikemefuma. One time he tried to walk around his room. However, he was so weak he could not carry himself. Despite his tendency to act on impulse, his decision to aid in the murder of his foster son may tarnish the confidence Okonkwo had previously in the story. Okonkwo’s refusal to be seen as weak ultimately had made him weaker as the story

Okonkwo causes suffering unto his peers by killing his adopted son Ikemefuna, beating his family, and killing the messenger.     Okonkwo a man who is thought of as a raging fire, will do anything in his power to be  thought of as masculine. He will go as far to kill his adopted son than to be looked at as a women.  Okonkwo kills Ikemefuna which causes suffering for his actual son, Nwoye. “ Okonkwo drew his machete and cut him down.

In the story Things Fall Apart the author, Chinua Achebe, uses the character Okonkwo to show that a man’s hubris can one day lead to a terrible fate. Achebe does this by having the main character Okonkwo struggle with keeping his life together. As Victor Uchendu talks about life in The Igbo World “is an equilibrium that is constantly threatened, and sometimes actually disturbed by natural and social calamities”(Uchendu 227). In the beginning of the story Okonkwo starts off as the strongest character when he defeats “Amalinize the Cat” (Achebe 3). This shows the reader that Okonkwo is the strongest and is determined to stay the strongest. Achebe uses certain events later in the story to foreshadow that Okonkwo will soon meet a terrible fate by having him kill Ikemefuna, by having him get kicked out of his village, by having the British change his son, and by displaying his rage and despair at the end of the story.

Okonkwo lives his life controlled by his inner fear of becoming his father who Okonkwo thought was weak, a failure, and was gentle, like females. These features are what Okonkwo dreads and avoids doing any of those things his father did. In which this causes him to lose touch and cause conflictions with his family, friends, society, and Christians. To begin with, in Things Fall Apart, Okonkwo is ordered to take in Ikemefuna, a boy from a nearby village taken as a sacrifice for Umuofia. He raises this boy and eventually Ikemefuna starts addressing Okonkwo by “father,” after years of living under Okonkwo’s rule.

Okonkwo’s fear of being like his father has terrorized his mindset and influenced him to the extent of opposing anything that pertains or causes him to be perceived as woman like. Okonkwo believes that a man is “not really a man” if he is unable to rule his family members (45). Hence Okonkwo developed a bad side to his personality - an aggressive manner that causes his family to greatly fear him. Okonkwo demonstrates his fiery temper through his persistent violent actions which include him beating his wife in the Week of Peace, and murdering Ikemefuna when he advised not to. Okonkwo’s violent actions cause him to be portrayed as different from the initial heroic description given of him.Okonkwo’s aggressiveness is not only recognized by his family members - the people of Umuofia also recognized Okonkwo as a person who uses aggressive words and brusqueness to “kill a man’s spirit” (9). Okonkwo’s actions demonstrate that Okonkwo has a conflicting

The brutal and abrupt killing of Ikemefuna quite obviously has large consequences, as well as a major affect on Okonkwo’s life. As the relationship between Okonkwo and

Okonkwo’s violent actions and the bad events he caused shows that he is disrespectful of both rank and privilege. As the article “Characteristics” states, “he rejects the values and moral codes of society and because of this he is often unrepentant by society’s standards”. This is shown when Achebe states, “But Okonkwo was not the mawn to stop beating somebody half-way through, not even for fear of a goddess” (25). This quotation from chapter four demonstrates that Okonkwo is someone that is going to finish his job, even if people from from a higher rank is trying to stop him. He shows this when he beats his wife during the week of peace. This trait is clarified by his motivation of not showing weakness like his father did. In conclusion, Okonkwo’s violent