Ikemefuna's Death

Language and details of this passage echo references to the biblical accounts of Abraham and Isaac. By cutting down his son in the face of fear with a machete, we see that Okonkwo is looking to preserve his faith in his culture by adhering to tradition. From this passage, we already see allusions to the binding of Isaac from the Bible. Both stories show a strong relationship between father and son. Like Okonkwo wanting to stick to values, Abraham wants to keep God’s promise of multiple descendants in exchange for loyalty. Abraham puts God’s commandments above his personal feelings and almost sacrifices his son until he is stopped by an angel. Okonkwo looks to show loyalty to the village and preserve tradition by sacrificing his adopted son. Okonkwo, unlike Abraham, actually kills his son. Although they both have their differences the sacrifice of Ikemefuna definitely alludes to the biblical story of Abraham and Isaac.

“{Ikemefuna} had become wholly absorbed into his new family. He was like an elder brother to Nwoye, and from the very first seemed to have kindled a new fire in the younger boy. He made him feel grown-up, and they no longer spent the evenings in his mother's hut while she cooked, but now sat with Okonkwo in his obi, or watched him as he tapped his palm tree for the evening wine. Nothing pleased Nwoye now more than to be sent for by his mother or another of his father's wives to do one of those difficult and masculine tasks in the home, like splitting wood, or pounding food. On receiving such a message through a younger brother or sister, Nwoye would feign annoyance and grumble aloud about women and their troubles.” [38] Before Ikemefuna came into their lives, Nwoye didn’t talk to his father very much, while he usually spent most of his time helping his mother in the kitchens. He was also a very emotional and ‘weak’ little boy. “Later in the day {Okonkwo} called Ikemefuna and told him that he was to be taken home the next day. Nwoye overheard it and burst into tears, whereupon his father beat him heavily.” [41] “...Okonkwo drew his machete and cut him down… As soon as his father walked in, that night, Nwoye knew that Ikemefuna had been killed, and something seemed to give way inside him, like the snapping of a tightened bow. He did

Okonkwo grows to love Ikemefuna like he is his own son and Okonkwo’s real son Nwoye admires and looks up to him as a real brother as well. Yet, Okonkwo does not show any affection of how he feels toward Ikemefuna and how he actually views him as if he is his own. Despite how he feels about Ikemefuna, Okonkwo will not let any type of weakness show, especially not in front of others. So, Okonkwo does not protect Ikemefuna but instead is a part of his murder by stabbing his un-biological son with a machete. Doing this brakes Okonkwo down inside and makes him very weak becoming saddened and depressed for a generous amount of time. This is probably one of the few moments in Okonkwo life that he let his guard down to show a different emotion besides anger, to him crying and mourning is a sign of weakness but after the foul actions he took a part of he can no help but show it. Along with anger comes violence, which Okonkwo often

            While Okonkwo, Nwoye, and Ikemefuna are feasting upon the locusts, a man named Ezeudu pays Okonkwo a visit. Achebe describes Ezeudu’s visit on page 50, writing, “He refused to join in the meal, and asked Okonkwo to have a word with him outside…When they were out of ear-shot, he said to Okonkwo: “That boy calls you father. Do not bear a hand in his death…Yes, Umuofia has decided to kill him.” Achebe implies that Ezeudu brings bad news by describing the caution Ezeudu takes to avoid being overheard and his decision to not partake in the meal.  Also, now Okonkwo is forced to decide what actions he is going to take and how far he should be involved in Ikemefuna’s death. Okonkwo’s fears result in his taking great effort in order to avoid appearing weak or feminine, yet the decision Okonkwo faces is whether or not he will allow his insecurities to take precedence over the advice that Ezeudu has given them. Achebe uses Okonkwo’s dilemma as a way to convey a sense of tension. The next day, Okonkwo tells Ikemefuna that he is returning to his own home. Achebe describes Ikemefuna’s reaction on page 51, writing, “He still missed his mother and his sister and would be very glad to see them. But somehow he knew he was not going to see

-When Nwoye is informed of Ikemefuna's death, the narrator states, "a deathly silence descended on Okonkwo's compound...throughout the day,

After a village elder had found what crime Okonkwo committed, he told Okonkwo that, “you are not a stranger in Umuofia. You know as well as I that our forefathers ordained that before we plant any crops in the earth, we should observe a week of peace in which a man does not say a harsh word to his neighbor” (30). The elder proceeded to give Okonkwo instructions on how to attempt amends with the goddess. After a single action was taken, his proceeding efforts were nearly non-existent. Any attempt to fix the situation were minimal, as were efforts to learn from his mistakes. Furthermore, Okonkwo advances to partaking in the death of Ikemefuna. The relationship between the two is complicated, but is closest description is that of a boy and his step-father. Killing Ikemefuna is not an evil against the earth, as beating a wife during the week of peace was, but a crime against himself. He is unhappy with himself, and still does nothing to fix his ways, continuing on to single handedly killing a boy at a funeral. Although accidental, Okonkwo was still the man behind the gun. “It was a crime against the earth goddess to kill a clansman, and a man who committed it must flee from the land….he could return to the clan after seven years” (124). Okonkwo had no choice but to leave for the seven years, perhaps upon his return

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.

He believed that his father’s actions were feminine and therefore worked hard to become a warrior. Along with not wanting to appear feminine, Okonkwo does not think his actions through. When Ikemefuna was brought into Okonkwo’s family, he accepted him and the two became very close. But after three years Ikemefuna was sentenced to death and Okonkwo was sent out with him. As the man raised up his machete Ikemefuna run to Okonkwo, “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). In this split second Okonkwo lets his emotions and fears of appearing weak win and did not allow himself time to think. Achebe utilizes Okonkwo to display the principle of cause and effect. Okonkwo is very proactive and does things on a whim. By doing so he makes hasty decisions that will be regretted in the long run. Okonkwo’s suicide was caused by a hasty decision and the responses of the tribesman. “He heard voices asking: “Why did he do it?”(Achebe

-Ikemefuna is uncertain of what the future has ahead for him, which causes him to be worried and scared. He doesn’t understand the whole concept on why he was separated from his family. All he wants is to be home, however, that is not happening at this time.

When Ikemefuna came to Umuofia, Okonkwo “became very fond of the boy- inwardly of course… He therefore treated Ikemefuna as he treated everybody else- with the heavy hand. But there was no doubt that he liked the boy” (24). This establishes that Okonkwo loves Ikemefuna but because he wants to look strong and demonstrate power he shows little to no emotion of love towards him. Correspondingly, when Ikemefuna is facing his death, he runs to Okonkwo asking for help. As this happens Okonkwo, acting on impulse, slays Ikemefuna with his machete. Okonkwo try’s to act like he does not have affection for Ikemefuna, but the reader sees the reality when, after Ikemefuna’s death, “Okonkwo did not taste any food for two days…He drank palm-wine from morning till night…[and] did not sleep at night” (55). In other words, Okonkwo is mourning over the loss of Ikemefuna and. Though this is the case a close reader might see that Okonkwo’s impulse of killing Ikemefuna was because he wanted to seem strong but the evidence shows the reality of his emotion. One might conclude that Okonkwo can be loving and compassionate, but because of his need to look masculine his relationship with Ikemefuna is

The excerpt serves to tragic death of Okonkwo. From the beginning of the novel Okonkwo has been described as a great man worthy of a large funeral. Achebe even goes to the extent of providing an example of what a

First, Achebe reveals that Okonkwo's fear goes deeper than his fear of weakness or failure. Achebe states, “Okonkwo’s fear was greater than these. It was not external but lay deep within himself, lest he should be found to resemble his father” (Achebe 13). Okonkwo focuses on not becoming a man who doesn’t have a title (agbala) like his father. This leads him to failure; he compares his success towards his father’s failures. He makes the wrong choices in his life. For example, the death of Ikemefuna (the boy he allowed to stay in his home), a boy who he treats like a son and Ikemefuna thinks of him as a father. Okonkwo kills him, because he is afraid of  other’s thinking that he is weak. This ties into the fear of not being similar to his father because he is able to kill someone that made a positive impact on his

Ikemefuna is very well-liked by Okonkwo and his family, and becomes a mentor and best friend to Nwoye. Okonkwo feels dismay that Nwoye is taking on the torpid characteristics of his grandfather, Unoka, and is quite pleased that Nwoye is thriving and maturing under Ikemefuna’s guidance. “Okonkwo was inwardly pleased at his son’s development, and he knew it was due to Ikemefuna” (Achebe, 1958, p. 52, para. 2). Okonkwo’s pride, and fear of demonstrating any perceived sign of weakness, does not allow him to show any favorable emotion to Ikemefuna; he treats him with the same severity he does the rest of his family. “Even Okonkwo himself

Okonkwo fears for his disturbingly weak son, Nyowe, and teaches him with his stories- "masculine stories of violence and bloodshed." (p. 53) But Nyowe prefers the stories of his mother- stories which teach wisdom rather than action. Nyowe knows that it pleases his father to listen to his stories, but it is apparent that Nyowe is a thinking person. As Nyowe absorbs the shock of Ikemefuna's death, we feel the first break in the solidarity of the clan. ."Nyowe knew that Ikemefuna had been killed, and something seemed to give way inside him, like the snapping of a tightened bow." (p. 61) Nyowe is forming his own impressions of the rituals of his society.

Throughout the clan Okonkwo was respected for his strength, his success, and his skills. Okonkwo had killed five enemies in clan wars and thrown the cat in a wrestling match showing his strength to the clan. His success was defined by Okonkwo having three wives and a plentiful amount of yams. After the clan settles a dispute with another clan, Okonkwo is given the important job of caring for the child that was part of the exchange, “The elders of the clan had decided that Ikemefuna should be in Okonkwo’s care for a while.” (Page 27) This displays the trust and respect the elders feel toward Okonkwo. Furthermore, Achebe makes it clear that Okonkwo carried enough titles and created an identity that gave him the chance to take on this immense honor of caring for Ikemefuna. Okonkwo had also gained enough of a presence to be like one of the elders for the clan, “The elders and grandees of the village sat on their own stools brought there by their young sons or slaves. Okonkwo was among them.” (Page 46) Okonkwo is like the elders, because he is able to sit with them during clan events. This illustrates Okonkwo’s identity throughout the clan, being viewed by people of lower rank in the clan, while beside the most respected of the clan. In addition Okonkwo viewed himself as one of the high members of the clan, by challenging himself to be unlike his father and gain titles to contradict his father.