He even characterized his father as being woman like. Okonkwo got angry very easily when dealing with things that he didn’t like such as a weak man. Showing love and affection wasn’t something that he did very often, not even to his family. He thought that it would make him look weak if he showed affection. Okonkwo portrays really violent stubborn and irrational behavior so he isolates himself.
Things Fall Apart -Chinua Achebe Okonkwo is a man whose fame is spread throughout the nine villages as he wins a competition with ‘Amalinze the Cat’. Okonkwo is a man who fears weakness and failure. He hated everything his father, Unoka, did which by the way was being gentle and idle, so he tended to be harsh just to not appear like his father. He, on the other hand, is a very respected warrior and has a great family, but he tends to get too overconfident in his way of thinking and beliefs. Okonkwo passes lots of life events that make him become very impending to his consequences.
An instance of this is when Okonkwo killed Ikemefuna, who was basically his adoptive son and whom he had grown very fond of but had been sentenced to death, “dazed with fear, Okonkwo drew his machete and cut him [Ikemefuna] down. He was afraid of being thought weak” (Achebe, 44 Online). In that moment he feared that if he didn’t kill his son he would be seen as weak, so he executed his son just to prove his devotion and strength. Ikemefuna’s execution exemplifies Okonkwo’s
Okonkwo contravenes the tribe rule and beats his youngest wife during the week of tranquility and almost shoots his second wife who notes on his gun skill. He kills Ikemefuna, Nwoye's close friend who asks for Okonkwo's help because he was afraid of being weak (Achebe, 1958, p. 43). By trying to be a strong person and deciding to kill Ikemefuna and thrash his wives, Okonkwo not only decline his relationship with his wives and Nwoye, but also impairs himself psychologically. Despite these worsening, it is not until when Okonkwo kills one of the five British court members, that he discovers his tragic
Joseph Conrad 's Heart of Darkness is the story of Marlow whose job is to transport ivory down the Congo. Through his journey, Marlow develops an intense interest in investigating Kurtz, an ivory-procurement agent, and Marlow is shocked upon seeing what the European
(Acehebe, 1958) Though Okonkwo proves an ambitious hero, he is affected by his internal fear that has ruled his entire life. Infact, He deeply fears nothing but himself just because he don’t want to have the feminine and weak qualities like his father Onoka. He is compelled to kill of his step son (Ikemefuna), just
Marlow accidently with the help of his aunt finds an opportunity to replace a captain killed as a result of fighting with the local tribes in Congo. The company is for Seafaring and ivory gathering. Marlow embarks one-month journey to Congo where he described the African shores as welcoming but also they are dark and desolate in spite of the active work of the people. As soon as he arrived, Marlow has been informed the death of the company employee who has committed suicide; and the sad story of gangs and misery of the
In their clan, killing a clansman is a crime against their earth goddess. That crime was of two kinds, male and female. Okonkwo had committed the female crime, because the murder was an accident. He is exiled for seven years with his family. That night Okonkwo collected his most valuable belongings in heapfuls.
Once the white missionaries arrive in the village of Igbo they immediately start criticizing the natives religion. One missionary even told the people that “they worshipped false gods, gods of wood and stone.” completely invalidating their beliefs and intelligence (145). When a whole civilization of people bases their entire life around a religion and then another group comes and tells them what they believe is nonsense, then the disrespect creates an unwavering hatred toward the foreign group. Okonkwo is affected the most by the newcomers and their strange new religion, that he is irate when he finds out his son Nwoye went to a christian mass. “Nwoye turned round to walk into the inner compound when his father, suddenly overcome with fury, sprang to his feet and gripped him by the neck.” (151).
After returning from exile, the missionaries have grown in strength and control. Being the only one left who wants to overthrow the missionaries, Okonkwo is driven to kill himself. Many of the things Okonkwo does in his life tend to make things worse for him. Okonkwo’s actions before and after the cultural collision he experiences when the missionaries come show that violence only leads suffering and one must adapt to change instead. Okonkwo has a tendency to act badly very early on.