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Things Fall Apart Analysis Essay
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Things fall apart by Chinva Acheloe is a historical fiction book set in Nigeria it is about Okonkwo a man who belongs to an Igbo clan. The clan is the most powerful clan in the area and is feared by all, it highly values its traditions, strength, power in medicine and masculinity. Okonkwo was someone who if they had a picture of masculinity he would be it. He was famed to be the best wrestler in his prime he became famous when he was able to put the one with the title of cat on the ground, he was called cat as only his feet had ever touched the ground before Okonkwo wrestled him. He was a great farmer of the yam, the yam was the symbol of masculinity and was considered a “man’s food” he started his farm from scratch but before long it was one …show more content…
Now this was partly due to another shortcoming, an uncontrollable temper, but he also thought that a man should not be looked down on by a women. You see when he found his wife not cooking his dinner he threatened to shoot her and when she murmured under her breath that he could not hit anything with that gun, he rushed out for his gun and proceeded to shoot at her, luckily for her he was a horrible shot. This caused an uproar in the clan, even a high-ranking priest came into his house and belittled him for his …show more content…
Ikemefuna called Okonkwo father and Okonkwo treated Ikemefuna like a son he had him do things only the eldest son would do. It had been several years since Ikemefuna had come to stay with them but the elders had finally decided his fate, Okonkwo was forewarned not to partake by a wise man. Okonkwo being the man he is ignored the wise advice and went with them. Deep in the forest Ikemefuna was assaulted by his traveling companions and called out to Okonkwo “Father they have killed me”. Okonkwo filled with the fear of being thought “womanly” brought down his machete and cut off his head. The elders had decided to kill Ikemefuna and Okonkwo being the man he was went along with their
Okonkwo has a very harsh personality where things need to be done the way he likes it. Okonkwos’s temper has been shown in the novel to get the better of him sometimes and it ends up getting him into trouble. Also Okonkwo has a masculinity complex that makes him feel the need to do anything that doesn’t make him seem feminine, even if that may be to kill somebody like Ikemefuna. The last lines of Ikemefuna in the novel were “My Father, they have killed me!”(Achebe 61) before Okonkwo drew his machete and took Ikemefuna’s life. Okonkwo said that he did this because he didn’t want to seem weak and feminine. Okonkwo was also warned by Ogbuefi Ezeudu not to take part in Ikemefuna’s death but he does it anyway. Okonkwo was also exiled because of an accidental murder of Ogbuefi Ezeudu’s daughter because Okonkwo’s gun went off without him actually shooting it. He had to leave Umofia for seven years and according to Okonkwo, when he left the clan became weak and eventually fell to the Christian...
Even though Okonkwo loves Ikemefuna and in some ways thinks more highly of him than his own son, he participates in his death because the oracle has decreed it, and he also does not want to be perceived as weak. After that, it was a sullen moment for him: “Okonkwo did not taste any food for two days after the death of Ikemefuna. He drank palm wine from morning till night, and his eyes were red and fierce like the eyes of a rat when it was caught by the tail and dashed against the floor”(Achebe 63). The death is absolutely traumatic to Okonkwo as it shakes his faith in the traditions that he has built his entire life and existence around. It conflicts many things he believes about himself in terms of his manliness and bravery. Achebe describes Okonkwo’s emotions in order to display a sense of hopelessness and despair to the
Unlike his father, Okonkwo is a hard worker with little debt and a driven personality. His internal fear leads to his decision to beat his wife during the week of peace and to take part in the mandatory action of killing his beloved son, Ikemefuna.
“They will take him outside Umofia, as is the custom, and kill him there. But I want you to have nothing to do with it. He calls you his father. (57)” This quote explains that Ogbuefi expresses concern for Okonkwo, because the Oracle explains how it would be wrongful of Okonkwo to kill Ikemefuna. “Dazed with fear, Okonkwo drew his machete and cut him down. He was afraid of being thought weak. (61)” This quote portrays that Okonkwo completely disregarded what Ogbuefi and the Oracle cautioned him about, because he was too concerned about his status of what others thought of him. “At last the man was named and people sighed “E-u-u, Ezeudu is dead.” A cold shiver ran down Okonkwo’s back as he remembered the last time the old man had visited him. (121)” At this point in the story, it appears that Okonkwo is starting to realize his wrongdoings, primarily because he takes religion and his spiritual life very seriously, in regards towards the Oracle. Okonkwo begins to lose trust within his family, especially with Nwoye. (As mentioned in the previous paragraph.) In the beginning of the book, Okonkwo relied on Ikemefuna to help Nwoye become more masculine and tough. After Ogbuefi warns Okonkwo about taking part in the murder, Okonkwo thinks about what could happen to him once the gods find out. Once again, Okonkwo lets his emotions
Okonkwo is supposed to be comforting to his children, but instead he hurts them. “Nwoye overheard it and burst into tears, whereupon his father beat him heavily. As for Ikemefuna, he was at a loss. His own home had gradually become very faint and
Okonkwo’s determination to succeed in life and to not fail leads to his fatal downfall in the end of the novel. His inability to adapt to colonization and his failure to follow the morals of many of the morals of the Ibo culture also are an important key leading to his downfall. Okonkwo was willing to go to war against the missionaries, with or without the clan. He made it clear that he believed the missionaries were in the wrong for trying to change Umuofia. Since the clan wanted no part in the war with the missionaries, Okonkwo took action into his own hands and murdered the head messenger. During the killing of the messenger, Okonkwo had a moment of realization: “He knew that Umuofia would not go to war. He knew because they had let the other messengers escape. They had broken into tumult instead of action” (Achebe 205). Okonkwo finally understands that he doesn’t have support from his fellow clansmen anymore and he feels as if he loses his place in society. Instead of backing up Okonkwo and his decision to murder the messenger, the clan stood in both confusion and disorder and questioned, “ ‘Why did [Okonkwo] do it?’ ” (Achebe 205). Okonkwo’s impulsiveness causes the clansmen to question Okonkwo’s violent actions against the messenger. Throughout the entire novel, Okonkwo struggles to accept the missionaries and the changes that they
but Okonkwo had seen “signs of laziness” in Nwoye. Ikemefuna is one of the only people that Nwoye idolizes the most. But when the time of killing Ikemefuna, Okonkwo had killed “his” own son, showing no emotion. Nwoye felt a “vague chill had descended on him”(62) when his father came home. Knowing that Okonkwo had killed Ikemefuna, Nwoye had felt the same feeling when he saw the twin were thrown out in the forest.
Then, everything changed; told that they were going back to his original home, Ikemefuna was taken out of the village by Okonkwo and some other villagers. Once they were a comfortable distance away from the village, the villagers and Okonkwo murdered Ikemefuna, with Okonkwo dealing the killing blow. As soon as Okonkwo came home that night, the author writes that, "Nwoye knew that Ikemefuna had been killed, and something seemed to give way inside him, like the snapping of a tightened bow. He did not cry. He just hung limp" (Achebe 61).
"That boy calls you father. Do not bear a hand in his death," advises Ezeudu, the oldest and most respected man in the village (Achebe 57). Although he treats the boy as a son (28), Okonkwo’s greatest fear is to be thought effeminate. He ignores Ezeudu’s advice and accompanies the party that takes Ikemefuna to his death. Ikemefuna feels safe, not believing that harm will come to him while his fos...
Okonkwo is beyond livid and takes immediate action by killing a clansmember. However, he soon finds out that the tribe and leaders will not stand by with him in war. Okonkwo has committed suicide, a great sin in their religion. So, when the district commissioner comes and asks for Okonkwo, he is giving the information in exchange of a favor. The favor is revealed as taking Okonkwo’s body down from the tree he has hung himself and be buried by strangers, as they cannot touch due to it becoming evil.
The novel Things Fall Apart, written by Chinua Achebe, details the life of a Nigerian tribesman named Okonkwo. Things Fall Apart radically challenged Western Ideals of African culture. Achebe’s novel reveals the tribes advanced and intricate way of life. However, as in many cultures, masculinity is prized above all else. Okonkwo is the living embodiment of toxic masculinity as defined by the documentary The Mask
What if a person’s relationship with his father determined if he lived or died, or if he would ever see his mother or siblings again? For the children of Okonkwo in Things Fall Apart it did. Things Fall Apart takes place in Nigeria in the early nineteenth century. The novel focuses on the life of Okonkwo, a man famous for winning a wrestling match against the greatest wrestler in all the local villages, when he was just eighteen years old. Okonkwo’s family consisted of his three wives and ten children, they lived in a village called Umuofia. Okonkwo didn’t have very good relationships with most of his children, and most people in general. Okonkwo had different relationships with all of his children because they were all individuals, their relationships with their father constructed all of their futures in diverse ways.
This is an unwise act on behalf of Okonkwo, and as a result, he suffers emotionally in the next few days. He enters a stage of depression and cannot eat or sleep as all he can think about is what he has done to Ikemefuna. It is at this point that things start to fall apart for Okonkwo.... ... middle of paper ... ...
The Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe is a straight to the point story, embedded with interesting elements that capture readers’ attention. In my view, when I read the story, I found many interesting things about the theme of the book. But The Masculinity Okonkwo was what captures my attention. The story opens up to a Traditional Igbo lifestyle, a theme which is highly stylized from its ritual to the actions performed for certain ceremonies. Most of the action Igbo tribe has been an attempt to show respect to the gods, for example, when ikemefuna became sick and his stomach swelled up their traditions says that he take them to the evil forest and kill him. The story also seems to focus on gender, family, respect and reputation, and religion. In fact, Gender which in Igbo tradition, sets standards and roles between Igbo women and men. Women in Igbo Culture are the weaker sex, but are endowed with qualities that make them worthy of worship, like the ability to bear children. Men in Igbo Culture are the stronger sex, which gives them the ability to provide for their family and has prowess on the battlefield. In Igbo culture, building a nice and respectable family is important and titles in their culture gives them respect and builds reputation in the ‘‘Umuofia’’ village playing a big role in Igbo tradition. Nothing plays a bigger role in Igbo tradition than religion, the ‘‘Umuofia’’ village worship the goddess of the earth are always careful to avoid committing sins of their goddess with a fear of vengeance that might wipe out an entire generation. In the story, the men of the Umuofia village seem to care a lot about masculinity, when Okonkwo is hosting a party he takes it very seriously and ...
The novel "Things Fall Apart", by Chinua Achebe, was an eye-opening account of the life and eventual extinction of an African tribe called the Ibo. It focuses on one character, Okonkwo, who at a very early age set out on a quest of self-perfection. Coming from a family ruled by a man who was lazy and inconsistent with everything he did, Okonkwo vowed to never accept the fate of his father. Okonkwo and his family suffered through many hard times in their lives, but usually managed to come out on top. Through terrible crop seasons and bad judgement calls, Okonkwo usually prevailed, until the day came when he was faced with a situation that could not be resolved by his strength and character alone.