GRRQ 1 Okonkwo Okonkwo was broken when he was sent away from his “fatherland”. Mbanta was his “motherland”, which he took refuge for committing a “female”. He committed one of the two crime in Umofia “There are two types of crimes, male and female. Okonkwo has committed a female crime because the murder is an accident”(124). The reason Okonkwo fled to his “motherland” was because the accidental firing of his gun which killed Ekeudu's son. Okonkwo’s actions upset himself because “His life had been ruled by a great passion to become one of the lords of the clan. That had been his life spring. And he had all but achieved it. Then everything had been broken. He had been cast out of his clan like a fish on to a dray, sandy beach, panting. Clearly his …show more content…
Their village was destroyed and burn to the ground and numerous people were killed by the white man because “‘they killed the white man and tied his iron horse to their sacred tree…’”(138). Okonkwo and Uchendu had similar thoughts on the foolishness of the Abame clan but explained in different ways. Okonkwo’s take on the situation was “‘They were fools’…’They had been warned that the danger was ahead. They should of armed themselves with their guns and their machetes even when they went to the market’”(140). Okonkwo states they members of Abame should of prepared for the danger and fight them off instead of killing a white man and not being prepared. Uchendu thought on the situation was “‘Never Kill a man who says nothing. Those men of Abame were fools’…’There is something ominous behind the silence’…’There is nothing to fear from someone who shouts’”(140). Uchendu take on it was similar to Okonkwo’s rather than retaliate he explained that the members of Abame should of been suspicious about the man and should of been wiser about the situation as he illustrated in a story. Both stated the members of Abame were fools for what they did and explained what they should of done
Not only was Okonkwo being displaced from his community an alienating experience but it was also an enriching one. Okonkwo's kinsmen in Mbanta receive him and his family kindly. Uchendu, Okonkwo's mother's younger brother, is now the eldest surviving member of that family. In the novel, Achebe states that, “Okonkwo was well received by his mother’s kinsmen in Mbanta. The old man who received him was his mother’s younger brother, who was now the eldest surviving member of that family. His name was Uch...
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
“Then everything had been broken” Okonkwo felt sorrow for his village after seeing what the white man did to it. Seeing his village fall under the control of the white man, his religion, and Government was one of the factors that caused Okonkwo to fall into a deep depression. Not only this but his son Nwoye betraying him and his cultural beliefs for the white man’s beliefs. Before the white man came Okonkwo was seen as strong, confident, and fierce man during colonialism this image faded of himself and he started to lose confidence of himself.
He was in great conflict with the ideas of the white men and the missionaries. Okonkwo saw that their beliefs had not only changed the daily life of the Ibo, but it also changed the people themselves: “He mourned for the warlike men of Umuofia, who had so unaccountably become soft like women” (Achebe 183). The author uses strong diction to compare the men before and after colonization. This quote also portrays Okonkwo’s opinion towards the cultural collision. He values strength and masculinity immensely because of his fear of appearing weak like his father Unoka. When he describes that the men of Umuofia changed to be soft like women, this shows how much he dishonors the Western ideas and how it has taken over the village. He made an attempt to get rid of the Western influence by urging the tribe to fight like men, but they refuse to. He was determined and still attempted to furthermore encourage the people of Umuofia to revolt against the new culture. He realizes that his attempts to return the village back to the way it was before were futile. He knew that Christianity was tearing his people apart, but knew he was incapable of making change to help his people. Okonkwo then starts to feel hopeless and abandoned by his clan, which causes him to commit suicide by hanging himself: “Obierika… turned suddenly to the District Commissioner and said ferociously: ‘That man was one of the greatest men
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.
In Things Fall Apart, during Okonkwo 's seven years exile, he went back to his motherland. "It 's true that a child belongs to its father. But when a father beats his child, it seeks sympathy in its mother 's hut. A man belongs o his fatherland when things are good and life is sweet. But when there is sorrow and bitterness he finds refuge in his motherland." (Things Fall Apart 48) Okonkwo accidently killed a clan member, his personal rank changed from a respected warrior to an exile. And his societal conditions also changes, sine he is being punished, he cannot live in his own clan, he is forced to moved, a societal change occurred around
Okonkwo was deeply grieved. And it was not just a personal grief. He mourned for the clan, which he saw breaking up and falling apart, and he mourned for the warlike men of Umofia, Who had so unaccountably become soft like women.
Who would you assume responsible for someone’s suicide? Would you blame the events that caused it? Or would you blame the suicide victim themselves? In the story “Things Fall Apart” by Chinua Achebe, The main character, Okonkwo, hangs himself after many events. He may have killed himself, but he is not responsible for his own downfall.
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
Okonkwo is not all that he may seem; as there is more than what meets the eye. Okonkwo is the primary protagonist within the book Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe. Okonkwo is a cruel yet kind man who has everything yet has nothing, which in turn creates a sympathetic character. A character such as Okonkwo has many facets; or masks if you will. Then we have his many influences: the Ibo culture; his father Unoka and of course his own personality. Then there is a staggering list of achievements. Okonkwo is a strong character but thinks only inwardly - especially towards his father - which will be discussed further in this essay.
In the novel, Things Fall Apart, written by Chinua Achebe, Okonkwo is a sympathetic and unsympathetic character in regards to his family relationships with his adopted son, Ikemefuna, his daughter, Ezima, and his father, Unoka, as a result of he appears to genuinely care about his family; but, the pride within himself prevents his expression of such pride and concern openly. The protagonist, Okonkwo demonstrates his sympathetic character solely to himself, personally, and infrequently not in the eyes of others. During the plotting of Ilemefuna’s death, Okonkwo was hesitant to make the boy aware of his fate and also hesitant to take part in his death. “‘I cannot understand why you refused to come with us to kill that boy,’ he asked Obierika” Okonkwo was aware that the adopted boy from an opposing tribe thought of Okonkwo, not only as an authority figure and high-ranking tribal member/warrior, but also as a father—his father. Until the death of Ikemefuna, Okonkwo continued to show Ikemefuna kindness due to feeling that “his son’s development was due to Ikemefuna.”
The above passages were taken from the end of chapter three, part one. After finishing reading this book and then going back through it, I found these passages very ironic in regards to how the story eventually ended. Okonkwo believed that because he was such a fierce fighter, he could conquer anything life threw at him. However, it was his fierce, proud, fighting attitude that was his demise in the face of uncontrollable circumstances in the end. Okonkwo believed that war and brute fighting would fix everything. He was a proud and stubborn man constantly struggling to improve his standing in the tribal community. Okonkwo also had intense pride for his tribe and way of life. He believed it was the right way of life and not to be questioned. Everyone was supposed to fear war with Umofia due to their fierce warriors and greatness in battle. When the white men not only did not fear them, but openly threatened the tribal way of life, Okonkwo prepared to handle the situation the only way he knew how. He wanted to got to war against the new white invaders, chasing them from tribal lands and ending the threat of different ways of life.
Okonkwo is an interesting character that experiences many changes throughout the novel. He is a self made member of the Umuofia community unlike his father. His father’s cowardliness and laziness never provided for him or the rest of his family. Growing up, he developed a fear of becoming like his father and that is why it became his influence and purpose in life is to live successfully. This is one of the reasons he reaches troubling times along with his Chi. The concept of Chi plays a big role in his destiny and it was can be interpreted two ways after reading the book. It is possible that Chi may have caused his difficulties, but I believe that he caused them himself because of his strong-willed nature.
As you see, Okonkwo was a deprived man after hearing about the whites expanding their beliefs and customs to Umuofia. Being unable to contain it, he had no choice but to give in. Okonkwo wanted to go to war and fight the invading Europeans, but he soon realized that he was the only one hungry for war. “I shall fight alone if I choose” (Achebe 201). Being the only one seeking for revenge, he had no choice but to behead the head messenger who was trying to end a clan meeting. Letting the other messengers escape, Okonkwo’s visual was the truth. “He knew that Umuofia would not go to war” (Achebe 205). Everything that he stood for was now distant. His once powerful and running clan was now weak and resistant to fight off enemies. What was the point to live when everything else had failed him and he could do nothing to resolve it? He struggled with the changes occurring in the tribe. He was known as a very strong and honorable tribesman, but when the whites arrived promoting Christianity and other tribe members began to change as a result, even his own son, he could not bear the change. While viewing the others as weak, like his father, he tries to remain strong against change however he is the only one. Killing the messenger was the last attempt to try and save the tribe from the influence of the white man. Seeing the others not join in his action, he loses hope and in desperation ends his life
In our class, the discussion mainly took place on the broad points of fear, gender, and religion. Although I agreed with most of the discussion that took place, I had some disagreements in some of the points that people touched upon. The first question that started the discussion was “Why did Okonkwo kill himself?”. The answer that many people responded with was that Okonkwo lost faith in his clansmen and that he and his people were weakened by the white men who colonized their village. Many people stated that Okonkwo’s act of committing suicide was a cowardly act, however I feel like that he had too much pride in himself to be under the white men who divided their village and families. Another question that we came across as a class was Okonkwo’s