Fear, an emotion with unimaginable power, can cripple your thoughts and strongly inhibit a myriad of potential success. Though these hindrances appear rather intimidating, the possession of fear in moderation invokes numerous desirable qualities, such as obedience, self-motivation, and productivity. Au contraire, these qualities do not directly and exclusively come because of fear. The negative consequences of fear-driven action far outweigh the positive, and fear succumbs to its antagonistic nature . Life driven by fear appears functional from afar, but when examined closely, even fear in moderation ultimately leads to demoralization and the extensive loss of preferable values. Many examples of fear-motivated living appear in the novel Things Fall Apart, by Chinua Achebe. Among examples in the novel, the development of positive aspects by means of fear occasionally emerges. Okonkwo, the main character in the novel, provides a great example of fear driven life that occasionally results in positive qualities. Achebe explains that “[Okonkwo’s] whole life was dominated by fear, the fear of failure, and of weakness [...] It was not external but lay deep within himself. It was the fear of himself, lest he should resemble his father” (13). The fear Okonkwo has of becoming like his father inspires him to flourish in determination, hard …show more content…
One of the biggest encumbrances derived from fear that Okonkwo exerts is violence. In fact, Okonkwo became frequently called the “roaring flame” because of his violent habits (Achebe 153). The problem with this, Okonkwo finally realizes, is that “Living fire begets cold, impotent ash” (Achebe 153). This quote describes the fact that his violent actions do not empower his son Nwoye or anyone else, nor do they make them stronger. Rather, it leaves them powerless and pathetic, unable to recover from the damage
From birth Okonkwo had wanted his son, Nwoye, to be a great warrior like him. His son instead rebelled and wanted to be nothing like Okonkwo. Okonkwo would not change so that his son would idolize him, as he had wanted since his son's birth. He chose not to acknowledge his son's existence instead. This would weigh heavily on anyone's conscience, yet Okonkwo does not let his relationship with his son affect him in the least bit.
Fear is a feeling no one wants to admit they have. A young child, though, will say what they are afraid of, but as one gets older the more they want to be looked as a tough person. Zack Wamp puts it perfectly, no one should be scared or afraid to go into the future, but yet be intrigued into stepping into a new light of knowledge and learning. In Chinua Achebe's book Things Fall Apart he shows the Ibo people and their fear, superstition, response to fear and the British.
Change is a word that the world does not like to hear. Whether it is politics, family, or even the climate, change is a factor of life that people fear. The world has tradition and a set pace of culture. One place this tradition and culture is prominent is in the underdeveloped regions of Africa. Chinua Achebe wrote a novel, Things Fall Apart to put on display the culture of a group called the Ibo from Nigeria. These Ibo people are a perfect example of how change does not occur and how tradition prevails in some places. The story is of their everyday life and specifically follows one character named Okonkwo, who is the ultimate example of a fear of change. Events in his life that do change him and his family allow for a dramatic story of a
Okonkwo’s first and most distinctive flaw is his fear of failure. Many people would agree that this flaw is driven by the fear of becoming his father, but Okonkwo takes this fear too far. Okonkwo’s father, Unoka, was known for being a very lazy and carefree man. He also had notoriety of being “…poor and his wife and children had barely enough to eat.” (Achebe 5). A big tradition in Umuofia is having a father who is supposed to teach his children right and wrong. In Okonkwo’s case, these lessons had to be self-taught. Okonkwo had to commit to his own understandings of what defined a “good man” and to him that was the exact opposite of his father. Because of his fear to be seen as weak, Okonkwo even murders a child that calls him father. Ikemefuna was sent to live with Okonkwo because someone was murdered in a nearby village. An example of Okonkwo’s ill-hearted actions are shown in the following quote: “As the man drew up and raised his machete, Okonkwo looked away. He heard the blow. He heard Ikemefuna cry, ‘My father, they have killed me!’ as he ran towards him. Dazed with fear, Okonkwo drew his machete and cut him down. He was afraid of being thought weak.” (Achebe 61). The fact that he kills Ikemefuna shows that his reputation is more important than the life of a child. Okonkwo’s fear permits him to receive more respect from his tribe, but only because it inclines him to do better than anyone else.
Okonkwo is “a man of action, a man of war” (7) and a member of high status in the Igbo village. He holds the prominent position of village clansman due to the fact that he had “shown incredible prowess in two intertribal wars” (5). Okonkwo’s hard work had made him a “wealthy farmer” (5) and a recognized individual amongst the nine villages of Umuofia and beyond. Okonkwo’s tragic flaw isn’t that he was afraid of work, but rather his fear of weakness and failure which stems from his father’s, Unoka, unproductive life and disgraceful death. “Perhaps down in his heart Okonkwo was not a cruel man. But his whole life was dominated by fear, the fear of failure and weakness….It was not external but lay deep within himself. It was the fear of himself, lest he should be found to resemble his father.” Okonkwo’s father was a lazy, carefree man whom had a reputation of being “poor and his wife and children had just barely enough to eat... they swore never to lend him any more money because he never paid back.” (5) Unoka had never taught Okonkwo what was right and wrong, and as a result Okonkwo had to interpret how to be a “good man”. Okonkwo’s self-interpretation leads him to conclude that a “good man” was someone who was the exact opposite of his father and therefore anything that his father did was weak and unnecessary.
When fear is in the driver’s seat, many lash out. In Chinua Achebe’s novel Things Fall Apart, the protagonist, Okonkwo is fearful of change and being seen as unmanly. When these things are in question he physically harms his family and emotionally beats himself up. When change comes into his life he just thinks of the old ways. He is unwilling to change because in his mind the newer ways are womanly and cowardice. When his eldest son turns to the European Christians, this is the hardest blow to Okonkwo because this shows the people of the tribe that he cannot control his own family, which puts any of the possible positions into jeopardy. Interpretation of manliness and struggling to change are two major themes that relate to Okonkwo and the
Okonkwo wanted to become one of the greatest men in the Ibo tribe, but three unfortunate events occur bringing him closer to his end. Okonkwo was a proud, industrious figure who through hard work was able to elevate himself to a stature of respect and prominence in his community. The one major character flaw was that he was a man driven by his fear to extreme reactions. Okonkwo was petrified of inadequacy namely because his father was a complete and utter failure. This fear of shortcoming made him hate everything his father loved and represented: weakness, gentleness, and idleness. Who was Okonkwo, well Okonkwo was a hero and also he...
Fear is an unpleasant emotion caused by the belief that someone or something is dangerous, likely to cause pain, or a threat. The power of fear can lead to one’s destruction. In Chinua Achebe’s novel, Things Fall Apart, he uses fear to demonstrate the evolution of the protagonist- Okonkwo. Achebe uses conflict, irony to demonstrate the influential aspect of fear in his well-known novel which is examined by Robert Bennett in a literary criticism.
Chinua Achebe’s novel, Things Fall Apart, follows the tragic life of Okonkwo, a man who suffers a miserable fate due to the fear of failure that controls every action he makes. Though the fear of failure acts as motivation to become a successful and respected man at first, it later cripples Okonkwo in such a way that failure ultimately defines his life. Okonkwo is constantly afraid of being a victim of weakness and desperately tries to remain a strong and unyielding man. It is his overwhelming fear of weakness that causes things to fall apart in his life, as his attempts to avoid failure and weakness eventually lead to the ultimate defeat: his shameful suicide. Fear of failure and weakness dominates Okonkwo throughout his life.
His wives, especially the youngest, live in perpetual fear of his fiery temper” (9). Okonkwo temper and aggression gave him dominance and control over his family to the extent that no one could question his authority.
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.
In accordance to defining a tragic hero, the protagonist is conflicted with opposing forces. In the novel, Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe, the main character Okonkwo, is the depiction of a tragic hero. Okonkwo is a man who accomplished his success by hard work and the motivation to be stronger. In the beginnings, Okonkwo created his own farm by borrowing yam from the rich village man named Nwakibie. His strong willed and the dedication to never end up to be like his father, made Okonkwo strong and power. Okonkwo grew up from poverty to wealthy enough to support three wives, and many children. He was well respected by his clansman from his village. Although, Okonkwo has many great aspect in his life, his tragic flaw is the fear of becoming
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.
Before colonialism Okonkwo was seen as a strong and confident man who was known as a fierce warrior whose barns were bursting with yams. “ His whole life was dominated by fear, the fear or failure and of weakness.”(pg 9) He had a fear of failure and being seen as weak which was mostly dominated by watching his father as a young boy who himself was a living embodiment of Okonkwo’s fear. Ultimately though Okonkwo suffered a fate very similar to that of his father.
Okonkwo’s fear of unmanliness is kindled by his father, who was a lazy, unaccomplished man. Okonkwo strives to have a high status from a young age and eventually achieves it. He has a large family, many yams and is well known throughout the village for his valor. He raises his family by his mentality of manliness and is ...