Okonkwo’s worst fear was to be the kind of man his father was, so he tried his best not to let his fear become a reality. With a father like Unoka, Okonkwo didn’t get the start as most young men in the village; however, he worked his way to the position of leadership of the clan. There was only one emotion that Okonkwo showed, and it was anger. This was his only emotion because it was how he expressed his feelings. Okonkwo had to leave his fatherland, but after returning home, he found his home unrecognizable.
“A true hero isn't measured by the size of his strength but by the strength of his heart” This quote was said by a recognised hero in literature, hercules. By this definition Okonkwo the main character of Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe is not a hero. Not only is Okonkwo not a hero by hercules’s standard, but also by Aristotle’s too. Aristotle said that a hero is a noble figure which Okonkwo was not. All that Okonkwo ever accomplished was from fear of becoming his father, which means that he was only thinking of himself and not of others like a hero should.
But much to the anguish of Okonkwo, Nwoye embodied most of his grandfather’s traits and this enraged Okonkwo deeply. Okonkwo dreads that Nwoye will blot the acclaim and honour he has worked so hard to achieve. Nwoye’s “incipient laziness” was causing Okonkwo great deal of distress and he sought to correct him by “constant nagging and beating” and as a result Nwoye was “turning into a sad-faced youth” (Pg. 13). Nwoye is aware that he should adopt the more masculine traits of his tribesmen, as desired by his father but he still prefers his mother’s company.
Okonkwo is supposed to fight back for his village and not stop until he gets it done. In the story Achebe quotes, “He was a man of action, a man of war. Unlike his father he could stand the look of blood.” (Chapter 2). Okonkwo loved action and violence. That is how he believes things should get done.
Okonkwo was not able to focus on other events because he was busy trying to feed and support his family. Okonkwo did not start his life as everybody else did (Achebe, 16). He had to work extra hard to get his barn and wealth because Okonkwo did not have anything to inherit from Unoka. Since Unoka was an unsuccessful person, Okonkwo made up his mind that he would never grow up to be like his father. He disliked everything Unoka
People owe their lives to the earth so committing suicide is a sin and Okonkwo must have knew this. But his loyalty to the ways of Umuofia are so strong that he'd rather die with being apart of his culture and own beliefs than conform to being a christian. To me Okonkwo is a tragic hero because he fights for a cause he believes in with the tragic flaw of fear of being like his father and even tho some think he died of a shameful death like his father, he died on his own terms and still believing his own
Q1: Explain how Okonkwo’s father, Unoka, influenced his life. A1: Okonkwo’s father, Unoka, influenced Okonkwo’s life because he had been a failure in life. Unoka was a lazy and improvident debtor. In his youth he lived a carefree life and would visit different villages and market to play on his flute and feast. However, Unoka the grown-up was a failure.
These characteristics are those of which he avoids throughout his entire life. Okonkwo accepts the fact that Ikemefuna is a good influence on his son, this shows the reader that Okonkwo may understand that he cannot always control his thoughts and feelings. This extract may also indicate a sense of self-realisation, Okonkwo may have the ability, unwillingly, to indicate affection towards others and not only
Okonkwo had not allowed his father, Unoka to form a personal bond with him. Unoka was considered an Agabal; woman, by the tribes men. Unoka’s lack of merit and utter laziness caused Okonkwo to want to be better than Unoka, and immerse himself in their cultural roles, by becoming a man. The fuel that had fed Okonkwo’s motivation to be a better man was his fear of failure. The author describes this theme, “ Okonkwo was well known throughout the nine villages and ever beyond.
Okonkwo fears that Nwoye will be like his father. This makes him even harder on Nwoye when he is not acting the way he wants him too. Okonkwo wants Nwoye to be like him, but their characteristics are not at all similar. Okonkwo is angry and masculine, and Nwoye is still a child that loves his mother’s bedtime stories. He did not want to be