How To Respond To Conflict Is Inevitable Essay

Okonkwo shows throughout the book Things Fall Apart that he fears weakness and failure. Often times he also shows that he is bitter and gets angry easily. This bitterness and fear leads to some consequence such as exile and death. After several encounters with failure Okonkwo realizes his weak points and gains sympathy from that. There are ways that Okonkwo shows theses things throughout the book and evidence that makes them true.

In life, we all have fears whether it’s spiders, darkness, or even death. In Things Fall Apart, we see the fears of many of the main characters being shown especially in Okonkwo. Okonkwo was not born into power and wealth and it was up to him whether he was going to make something out of his life. His choice was to disregard his father’s ways and work as hard as possible so that he can become one of the most powerful men in his village of Umuofia. His work ethic and passion for success drive him towards this better life, but as a person, he is no honorable man. Okonkwo’s ongoing fear of ending up like his lazy father makes him obsessed with building up his reputation so much so that, once tarnished, Okonkwo loses himself.

In the novel, Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe, Okonkwo, the hero, a warrior and a group pioneer and should never demonstrate non-abrasiveness or shortcoming. Not at all like his dad who is fainthearted and shocking man, who passed on in disgrace. In the novel, Okonkwo has numerous obligations from being a father, agriculturist, and pioneer. Be that as it may, his reality breaks apart when he needs to slaughter Ikemefuna, a kid he assumes responsibility of when his tribe wins a settlement with another tribe, and when he shoots Ogbuefi Ezeudu's 16-year old child. Which vanishes him from his tribe.

Everyday we have plenty opportunities to get angry, but what we do with those negative emotions is up to us. In “Things Fall Apart” Okonkwo is perceived as a self-made, well-respected man who much of his life is dictated by internal fear by becoming his father. Often the author focuses on Okonkwo’s image by making him seem like a normal village man who’s purpose in life is to become a superior man who many can idolize and respect making the reader understand the value of men in the village. As the story goes on you see a side of Okonkwo that many see which is what makes Okonkwo an unsympathetic character in the story especially how he treats Ekwefi and Ojiugo. First off, Okonkwo treats women as objects not as human beings.

In Things Fall Apart,Okonkwo is a complex character who is very self-reliant, abusive and prideful, and willing to take any measures to resist any changes in his life . As a respectful warrior in the Umuofia tribe, Okonkwo is a strong, masculine, and independent figure to the surrounding people. Although his whole life is dictated by the fear of becoming his own father, whom he considers to have many “feminine” characteristics, Okonkwo uses it as a motivation to be different from him. Having to go through hunger as a child drives Okonkwo

Now despite all his good qualities Okonkwo had a pretty troubled past with his dad Unoka. Coming from the book “Things Fall Apart” it is mentioned that “When Unoka died he had taken no titles and was heavily in debt. Any wonder then that his son Okonkwo was ashamed of him?” This quotation from Chapter One demonstrates how Okonkwo felt about his father, even after his death. This trait is represented by how hard he tries to be number one, and his hatred towards his father. He is strongly motivated to not be like his father in anyway, Okonkwo uses the past to push for the best and to be the best.

In the novel Things Fall Apart the main character Okonkwo deals with some decision making that would affect his life dramatically. Okonkwo wanted to shake the reputation of his father and start his own reputation. The only thing stopping him was his anger and his inability to express himself without using his fist. He has to make a very tough decision. He either has to give in and follow his dad's past or fix his anger and create his own legacy.

The only emotion that he ever showed was anger; he hardly ever showed compassion towards those around him, including his three wives or many children. His temper and his longing for respect from those around him get him into trouble throughout the book. The first time being when he beat his wife during their week of peace, in which no violence is supposed to take place. Okonkwo makes sacrifices, pays his debt and he feels that all is forgiven; however his pattern of violence continues. He attempts to shoot his wife Ojiubo after she makes a remark about his inability to use his gun, once again giving in to his anger and insecurity. Okonkwo sees compassion as weakness and this drives him to constantly respond to things that upset him with anger. When he is told that Ikemefuna, a young boy who was placed into the care of Okonkwo’s family, is to be killed, he is also told that he must not interfere or take part in the killing. But when it comes time for the boy to be killed Okonkwo is so afraid of looking weak that he himself stabs and kills Ikemefuna. Later in the book, Okonkwo accidently shoots and kills a fellow tribe member, who is a young boy. Okonkwo is then exiled from his tribe for seven years, and is overcome with depression because he can never be in a place of power in his tribe. When he realizes that he will never get the respect he deserves Okonkwo fully falls apart and takes his own

The most ironic thing about Okonkwo’s resolve to not be his father is his last act in Things Fall Apart, his suicide. After a life of hard-work to become the opposite of his father, Okonkwo’s demise is weak, much like the person he was trying to get away from. In the end, Okonkwo ended up doing something his father would’ve done. Instead of staying to face whatever lied ahead of him, Okonkwo chose to flee.

Though his positive qualities gained him respect, the novel essentially shows that rules overpower respect. The accident of Okonkwo shooting the child led him to exile with his family and guided his future decisions as

Okonkwo is impulsive, he often acts before he truly thinks about the consequences because all that matters in his mind is to not be anything like his weak and failure of a father. “Okonkwo’s gun had exploded and a piece of iron had pierced the boy’s heart” (Achebe 124). His quick and violent impulsions eventually led to the accidentally death of a clansman and Okonkwo’s exile. Okonkwo’s passion to never turn out like his father led him to become violent and demanding which eventually leads to his exile and

Even though Okonkwo and Obierika had very different personalities, this brought them together rather than dragging them apart. The two men liked having someone to talk to about their problems, and it gave them great comfort to know that someone would always have their back. Okonkwo was not afraid to hurt people and had a very firm hand. Rather than speaking a great deal, Okonkwo expressed himself with his actions. He aided in killing his adopted son, Ikemefuna, after the Oracle had sentenced Ikemefuna to death because of an act of murder that Ikemefuna’s biological father had comitted. (Achebe 61) Okonkwo did this because he “was afraid of being thought weak.” (Achebe 61) This goes to show that Okonkwo did not want anyone to look down on him or think that he was a coward. He raised himself into that of a man and a warrior, and expected to be thought of one as well. In his article on Things Fall Apart, Nnoromele writes, “Perhaps Okonkwo was not a cruel

character from the book Things Fall Apart is Okonkwo. Okonkwo’s personality is one of a leader. He is a hard worker and he expects other people to work hard too. He is a determined man to be the best and most powerful person in the village. Okonkwo provides food for his own family and also for his parents.

My current understanding of conflict management is I have always been afraid of conflict and the word “conflict” was negative. The understanding of conflict was someone would be harmed because they were violent verbally or physically. If the conflict was job related someone was going to be terminated. My current understanding of conflict, it is an opportunity for growth, effective communication, and management development.

Atticus accepted a case to defend a African-American man named Tom Robinson and he was innocent but since he was black no one wanted to accept the case because there was no chance of winning even with all the evidence that proves him innocent. Atticus was performing an act of heroism because even tho no one believed in what he was doing and told him not to do it he was doing what he thought was right. The case was about a women named Mayella and she claims that she was raped and beaten by Tom Robinson. But the real case was that Mayella’s father, Bob beat her for kissing/liking a black man that helped her out everyday for free and that black man was Tom. Mayella was a insecure and perfidy women because she came onto Tom and kissed him while he was picking up a box from her closet because she couldn't get it.