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

The first point to consider, Okonkwo had a strong sense of determination when it came to his status in the clan. Determination is firmness of purpose; the controlling or deciding of something's nature or outcome. Okonkwo’s father, Unoka has driven him to succeed. He created a strong will that he can be better than his father in every way possible. Okonkwo wanting to make a name for himself, tries to take as many titles as possible in his clan. For example, “Age was respected among his people, but achievement was revered. As the elders said, if a child washed his hand he could eat with kings” (Achebe pg.8). If you can obtain many achievements as a child/young adult it will help you in the future. Okonkwo was able to do this through his hard work and determination so he succeeded to be like the elders who had more power and a higher rank. A bond was created between Okonkwo and his elders and the clan within they lived Another instance, “Afraid? I do not care what he does to you. I despise him and those who listen to him. I shall fight alone if I choose.” (Achebe pg.201). Okonkwo proudly declares his courage to fight whoever he wants, even if he is fighting a losing battle. He has the mind that he will take out anything or anyone in his way

Okonkwo lost himself after losing everything he had. He didn’t have a real enough sense of self to adapt to all the changes that hit him like a whirlwind.

Okonkwo is a prideful man who does not like admitting when he is in the wrong, because he is like this he decided he would take his fate into his own hands. Okonkwo was so upset that he killed himself. He thought that by killing himself, he would control his own destiny instead of letting the Europeans control him. “I will never let a white cheeked man control my life.” (Achebe 96). This is ironic, because suicide in the Ibo tribe is known as sin, and is a cowardly way to die. Okonkwo's life ambition was to prove himself as a man and to show the clan and tribe members that he was nothing like his “lazy feminine father” (Achebe 18) but when he killed himself nothing that he did his whole life really mattered,

Throughout Okonkwo’s youth, he had a very troubling life. His father, Unoka, was a failure in every sense of the word. Unoka was a drunk and had an enormous amount of debt to his name that he never paid back. The only things that Okonkwo's father had going for him was his music. He was a tremendous flute player and that's all he really was known for other than being a poor, cowardly

Okonkwo loses his son, Nwoye, to the white men because he converts to Christianity. Okonkwo believes this to be an act of fate, he states, “Why…should he, Okonkwo…be cursed with such a son?” (Achebe 152). This shows that Okonkwo falls victim to his father’s actions, as he was not taught how to be a good father and for this reason Okonkwo is deemed as aggressive towards his children, especially Nwoye , who is quite similar to his grandfather. Consequently, Nwoye drifts apart from Okownkwo, further reinforcing the idea of cause and effect. Okonkwo despised his father, therefore his son Nwoye began to hate him. Furthermore, Okonkwo is “afraid of being thought weak” (Achebe 61), thus he kills Ikemefuna, despite the fact that he was warned by Ezeudu to not be a part of the killing. This results in Okonkwo “accidentally” killing Ezeudu’s son, hence he is banished for seven years. Okonkwo’s exile is a direct result of his fear of weakness and his need to portray loyalty and strength towards his clan. Ultimately, Okonkwo is portrayed as a victim of karma, as it was the clan who had brought Ikemefuna to Umuofia, and Okonkwo had been compelled to provide Ikemefuna with shelter, due to his prosperity. This prosperity was a direct repercussion of Okonkwo’s hatred towards his father and his fear of failure, because he had to prove himself as a non-failure to the clan. Both of these incidents depict Okonkwo’s victimization as a result of both his fathers, and the clan’s bad karma.

In the book, Okonkwo was the tribe leader in Umuofia and wants to carry on the traditions that have been in his tribe for years. While he is known as being a leader, the character struggles daily with not wanting to be like his father who is lazy, and weak. Therefore he avoids everything possible to not be like him. Which leads into more of a bigger issue that is not being weak in front of anyone.

In the Igbo tribe, Okonkwo was a man of significant power. Focused on being a strong man and not falling into his father’s past of misfortune, Okonkwo held the great role of a leader among the society. However, his determination took over, provoking him to become harsh and mean towards the members of the tribe. He was determined “to be a true, strong man, causing him to lose love, compassion, patience and wisdom” (Miller).

Okonkwo was very zealous in achieving his goals and becoming stronger. He was always trying to be successful so he would not end up like his father Unoka, who was a failure at what he did and became known as Agbala. When the White men (Western Ideas) came in he had rebuked them even when some of his friends including his son had converted to their ways. Okonkwo had felt like a failure

All he wants when he returns is, “to rebuild his compound on a more magnificent scale” (171). Like the old Okonkwo, he wishes to be the best in the village and have the most impressive household. Okonkwo is upset about his son Nwoye converting to Christianity and joining the white men so he tells people, “If you turn against me when I am dead I will visit you and break your neck” (172). Okonkwo feels that the Christians have now completely taken over and there is nothing he can do about it. His people no longer have the mentality to fight and there are not many people on his side to help him fight.

Okonkwo mainly wanted to know why. Why should a man suffer so inadvertently?...” Okonkwo felt as if the right punishment had been put into place. He felt alienated and separated. He was once leader of the tribe and now he was nothing.

had been ruled by a great passion-to become one of the lords of the clan. That had

Okonkwo’s a wealthy respected warrior of a lower Nigerian tribe call the Umuofia clan. Some may say Okonkwo’s world fell apart because of his father, or even the amount of wives he had. One would suggest his world fell apart due to manly values and Christian values. Things exist in Okonkwos mind that he refuses to share with others. This could explain why Okonkwo was so angry and violent throughout the novel, leading up to his death.

Okonkwo works extremely hard to gain titles for himself. Okonkwo is worried about his reputation in the tribe because his father was a lazy man who never came to anything but debt. Okonkwo does not want to be like his father by having a lot of debts and bad titles.Even though Okonkwo fears failure. Okonkwo has a tendency to not make the best decisions.

“Okonkwo ruled his household with a heavy hand”(Achebe pg.13). Some might say that Okonkwo is a cold man who cares for no one else, while others say that he is a bit of a softie. Through the story we are able to see two main sides to Okonkwo, a sympathetic and unsympathetic side. Okonkwo lived a difficult life. His father was a lazy man, who owed many others heavy wages. Okonkwo knew that in order to become a strong, respected man in the village he had to prove himself to not be like his father. He worked hard to get to where he wanted to be and on the way developed a somewhat cold hearted attitude towards things. All he cared about was being successful unlike his father. Unfortunately, due to this he pushed his sympathetic feelings aside. Okonkwo’s family relationships make him a sympathetic character because