Okonkwo Character Analysis

Okonkwo is a very prosperous and well-respected man throughout Umuofia, but his life is ruled by fear. His father was very weak and poor, and Okonkwo constantly fears that he will end up the same. Okonkwo fears being seen as less of a man, and this drives him to use harsh and abusive behavior towards his family. Okonkwo sees Nwoye as a boy that is prone to laziness, so he constantly torments his son, in hopes that he will be shaped into a man. Okonkwo’s main fear is that he should end up resembling his father. His father, Unoka, was tall but very thin and had a slouched posture. He had a worn out and mournful look on his face at all times, except when he was drinking. Unoka was very poor, and his family hardly had enough to eat; people laughed at him and his family because he was lazy. Unoka had a way with people that caused them to continue lending him money, even though he never ended up paying back them back. Unoka died without taking any of the village’s possible titles and was very deep in debt (4-8). Okonkwo was teased as a child because of Unoka’s weaknesses, and he is determined to be very different from his father. He became famous throughout the villages at a young age because of his wrestling accomplishments, and is a very wealthy farmer with two barns full of yams. Okonkwo has three wives and many children, and he has already taken two of the village’s titles. He has shown great valor during two inter-tribal wars. Although age is respected throughout the nine