Chinua Achebe's Things Fall Apart

618 Words2 Pages

The Bible says that for everything there is a season. That means that things will change as time passes and there is no way to stop the advancement of time. This idea is clearly shown in the novel Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe. This novel, set in West Africa in the late 1800s, details the violent events that occur when colonization by the white man begins and the resulting ripple effects start to spread across Nigeria. The West African protagonist is a mighty warrior named Okonkwo who has trouble accepting how his clan will never be the same after the white man’s arrival. A few other characters show strength during the chaos too. Therefore, the three strongest characters in this novel are Okonkwo, Ikemefuna, and Uchendu.
Okonkwo, the protagonist, is the first strongest character. He is the first strongest character that gets angry very quickly, but does care about his family, which makes him a tragic hero. Okonkwo was well known after he defeated Amalinze the Cat in the nine villages. “It was this man that Okonkwo threw in a fight which the old men agreed was one of the fiercest since the founder of their town engaged a spirit of the wild for seven days and nights” (Achebe 3). Okonkwo is strong to defeat …show more content…

He is the second strongest character that helps Okonkwo about something he is having problems with when coming from his fatherland. Okonkwo came from his fatherland because he kill a messenger on purpose. Uchendu explains why he came to his motherland by saying “Your duty is to comfort your wives and children and take them back to your fatherland, but if you allow sorrow to weigh you down and kill you, they will all die in exile” (134). Uchendu really helped out Okonkwo’s problems and he extends why he should not have anymore problems to help out. Uchendu’s strength is unstoppable because he helps Okonkwo so much that no one can even do the problem that he

Okonkwo's Self-Destructive Masculinity in Things Fall Apart
2752 Words | 6 Pages
Okonkwo is known throughout Umuofia to be extremely masculine. He rarely shows signs of fear or weakness. This is because Oknokwo promised himself he would be the complete opposite of his father Unoka. Unoka had passed away ten years prior to when the story takes place but he has always been remembered as a weak, lazy, poor man who could barely provide for his family. He was always in debt and didn't care to work, he would play his flute all day everyday if he was able to. "People laughed at him because he was a loafer, and they swore never to lend him any more money because he never paid back" (5). Unoka was the laugh of the town and Okonkwo would never allow himself be that.
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Okonkwo Unsympathetic Character
705 Words | 2 Pages
Okonkwo is on two ends of a stick. Sometimes he can be shown to be a caring, sympathetic character, but others he is shown as a ruthless person that is very unsympathetic person. Okonkwo is a man of action that would rather solve things with his fists rather than talking it out. He is a great wrestler hailing from the Umuofia clan that has thrown Amalinze the Cat. Okonkwo is also a very good farmer, where he has been able to grow two barns worth of yams. He is someone that doesn’t know how to control themselves when they get angry as he will then resort to violence. Okonkwo’s family relationships make him a sympathetic character because of his caregiving nature and hospitality and he is shown to be an unsympathetic character because of his
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Chinua Achebe's Things Fall Apart
1060 Words | 3 Pages
"He had already chosen the title of the book, after much thought: The Pacification of the Primitive Tribes of the Lower Niger."
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Okonkwo A Sympathetic Character
563 Words | 2 Pages
In these few chapters that we read, we have already learned a lot about Okonkwo, his life, and how he shows sympathy to some, but to others he is heartless. Okonkwo is other wise known as an unsympathetic person. Okonkwo is a clan leader of umuofia who holds many titles and is well known among his people. Okonkwo's daily life consists of tending to the three yam farms he has produced and to make numerous offerings to numerous gods and to help himself and his family. Okonkwo's personality is hard driven, since his father did not provide for him and his family Okonkwo had to start man hood early and this led him to be very successful in his adulthood, Okonkwo is an unsympathetic character who only shows sympathy rarely because he believes it's a sign of weakness Okonkwo's family relationships make him a sympathetic character because when his children show signs of manliness or do their jobs right he shows sympathy towards them. He is an unsympathetic character because whenever he get a little mad he has to take his anger out on something and that is usually vented by beating his wife's.
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Okonkwo Masculinity
773 Words | 2 Pages
In Things Fall Apart the lead role, Okonkwo, the strongest man in all nine villages struggles to maintain his power and masculinity, for example when he kills Ikemefuna he becomes sentimental and calls himself a woman. Towards the end of the story the reader is able to acknowledge what were the reasons Okonkwo kill himself and why he was not as strong as everyone depicted him to be. Okonkwo's last action alive was looked down upon by the people from his village because it was against their custom and religion. His last action was an abomination to his own culture and religion to whom he followed and lived by. Things started to fall apart for Okonkwo when a series of events took place.
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The Stubborness of Okonkwo
389 Words | 1 Pages
Okonkwo, a fierce warrior, remains unchanged in his unrelenting quest to solely sustain the culture of his tribe in the time of religious war in Achebe's book, Things Fall Apart. He endures traumatic experiences of conflict from other tribes, dramatic confrontations from within his own family, and betrayal by his own tribe.
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Influence Of Culture In Things Fall Apart
775 Words | 2 Pages
Overall, Okonkwo is a crucial part to the story Things Fall Apart, for he represents African culture, and helps demonstrate how colonization can change everything. Through this book we see how colonization changed history, and how it is important for groups, tribes, societies to stay together in times of invasion, in order to protect their own customs and traditions; and how crucial a sense of unity would've been for the Umuofian tribe. Okonkwo was the sense of unity of the tribe, doing everything he could could to protect it. His collection of honorable titles, his love for his tribes culture, his drive and passion, and even his booming pride all contribute to his district character, a true hero in my eyes.
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Chinua Achebe's Things Fall Apart
865 Words | 2 Pages
Planet Earth harbors seven billion independent human minds, living seven billion independent, equally complex lives. Even more impressive, each mind contains unique perspectives and opinions. With so many different minds interacting, conflict between individuals’ perspectives and opinions becomes inevitable. Unfortunately, no single perspective, held by a single mind or a group of minds, dominates as the correct perspective. In Chinua Achebe’s Things Fall Apart, the meeting of different cultures creates conflict between perspectives, in which both parties assume righteousness but neither is entirely correct. Though Okonkwo may draw a readers’ sympathy for his role as the tragic hero, the author’s sympathy sits with Obierika, who is positioned between the missionaries and Okonkwo as the most humane balance of the two cultures.
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How Is Okonkwo Selfish
251 Words | 1 Pages
Okonkwo is a very strong wrestler and because of that, he is well respected by the village. Though he is not the nicest person alive he respects manly men, unlike his father who which he is afraid of representing. Although he is a good man the wrongs outweigh the rights, making him not very sympathetic.
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Change In Chinua Achebe's Things Falls Apart
1155 Words | 3 Pages
Humans go through changes as they move on with their lives. Throughout history, changes have occurred and will continue over time. In Things Falls Apart, Chinua Achebe shows that people can change their reaction toward things. Nwoye had viewed the world like his father, Okonkwo. He shifts from obeying his father and the rules of the Igbo culture.
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Chinua Achebe's Things Fall Apart
904 Words | 2 Pages
In the book “Things Fall Apart”, evidence of a social structure was apparent within the Igbo community. This rigid social structure served as a purpose to balance the life of the people within the society, as well as promoting the downfall of the clan. The social structure was important in keeping a centralized society and preventing any sign of corruption within their clan. The social structure had advantages in keeping a balanced and equal society, supporting a division of labor, providing a surplus of food, individual huts, a communal society, and the development of some kind of government. In contrast, this social structure led others to reject to cooperate with the new religion and aided the lack of unity among the people. It also promoted a more patriarchal society, the inferior rank of women, and the lack of strong bonds between family members.
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Chinua Achebe's Things Fall Apart
1246 Words | 3 Pages
In the novel, “Things Fall Apart” by Chinua Achebe the author illuminates generational change overtime, in order to present progression throughout cultures within a society. To point out, the intent of change altered decisions and religious beliefs within the novel that hindered the function of Umuofia’s society. This deeply affected Unoka, Okonkwo, and Nwoye as each character fell into the division of their generational perception. That is to say, “Our dead fathers are weeping because of the shameful sacrilege they have all seen with our eyes.” (Ch.24/Pg.174).
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Things Fall Apart Book Report- 11 Pages Long. I Got An A
2728 Words | 6 Pages
Okonkwo - Okonkwo is a clan leader in Umuofia. He has a large family, yet is very stubborn and known for his violent personality. He became well known through all of the seven villages by throwing “The Cat” during a wrestling tournament.
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Change And Tradition In Chinua Achebe's Things Fall Apart
723 Words | 2 Pages
Throughout Chinua Achebe’s novel, Things Fall Apart, struggle between change and tradition is one of the most relevant issues. The Igbo villagers, Okonkwo, and his son Nwoye all experience this problem in many different ways. The villagers have their religion defied, Okonkwo reaches his breaking point and Nwoye finally finds what he believes in. People have struggled to identify and cope with change and tradition throughout history, and will continue to struggle with this issue in the
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Essay on the Downfall of Okonkwo in Chinua Achebe's Things Fall Apart
816 Words | 2 Pages
The greatest opponent in life is the one that is created inside the mind. As Okonkwo grows up, he decides to be the absolute antipodes of his father Unoka. Okonkwo perceives his father as a culmination of the weaknesses in man. In this erroneous view, Okonkwo buries his feelings deep within himself. When these emotions emerge, he views them as a sign of weakness. When Okonkwo participates in Ikemefuna's killing, he is deeply affected as he has ended the life of one who he grew to love as a son. Okonkwo is excessively depressed after the slaying, "not tasting any food for two days." (61) As he notices his confusion, he calls himself weak like a shivering old woman. In his emotionless show of strength after Ikemefuna's death, Okonkwo actually proves his frailty by hiding what he feels. Okonkwo is dominated by his private fear of appeari...
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Chinua Achebe's Things Fall Apart

Okonkwo's Self-Destructive Masculinity in Things Fall Apart

Okonkwo Unsympathetic Character