How Is Okonkwo Weak

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Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe
Chinua Achebe’s Things Fall Apart is an intense, yet beautiful novel on African colonial life in its entirety. Achebe guides his readers through the complexity of living as tribal members paying homage to his very own ancestors. The main character is Okonkwo whom is physically dominant and very ambitious. Okonkwo is in the Umuofia clan of the Igbo tribe. The novel focuses on his life in Umuofia with his three wives and children, his banishment from his village, and his struggle with the colonialism of the British culture and Christian missionaries. Okonkwo’s character is very tough and fears weakness of any kind. His eminent fear in weakness and failure were positive traits to have at most times throughout the novel. However, these traits caused him a many troubles in the end. In this novel, Achebe describes Okonkwo’s resistance towards weakness and the cultural and political issues plaguing the clans due to the religious struggles with the white society.
In the novel, Achebe makes it a point to thoroughly describe Okonkwo and is life. Okonkwo saw his father as being weak because he was lazy, careless with money, and he neglected his wife and children. …show more content…

While reading, I observed the many differences between American culture and the African culture. The American culture is based on democracy therefore, everyone has a voice. In contrast, the African tribes were not able to voice their thoughts and act according to their own beliefs because of the government system. In the novel, Okonkwo and his family were sent away to exile because of an accidental shooting. He had no choice in the matter, he was forced to leave for seven years to appease the gods he had offended. The African culture’s religious outlook differs from the American culture as well, being that Christianity is the most prevalent in

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