Okonkwo is the central character in the novel. He is the leader of the clan in Umuofia. He grows up with a considerably lazy father who was known throught his village as a failure. Okonkwo considered him to be a complete embarrassment and vowed to never be like him. He vowed to hate what his father once loved, never borrow money, or stop working. .
Okonkwo is a masculine man that has an ill-temper and gets violent at times. He is known throughout the seven villages for defeating "the cat" in a wrestling tournament. His worst fear is to be known as being feminine. He once went with a group of men into the woods to kill Ikemefuna, a boy sent to live with Okonkwo's family for three years, after Okonokwo had grown attached to the boy. He actually took part in the killing, delivering the final blow, because he was afraid of being thought of as weak. He did this after being told not to bear a hand in Ikemefuna's death from his friend Ogbuefi Ezeudu. .
Okonkwo got violent with his family on several occasions. He beat his second wife Ekwefi for merely cutting a few leaves off a banana tree to wrap some food. He then shot at her and missed. He was not a great hunter. He beat her another time for lying to him during the "weak of peace." It was forbidden to harm anyone during the "weak of peace" so Okonkwo had to bring the shrine of Ani one she-goat, one hen, one length of cloth, and one hundred cowries. He would often beat his oldest son, Nwoye, for being to sensitive. He thought Nwoye was lazy for his age and was especially hard on him. .
Toward the end of the first half of the book, the oldest man in his village, Ezeudu, died. He had taken three titles in his life, which was rare, so there was a big ceremony for him. When the burial was near, guns fired the last salute and the cannon rent the sky. Okonkwo's gun had exploded and a piece of iron entered the heart of the dead man's sixteen year old son who had been dancing the traditional farewell to his father.
Okonkwo's father, Unoka, was a lazy and wasteful man. ... By watching the way his father was when he was a young boy, Okonkwo decided to be everything his father wasn't "Okonkwo was ruled by one passion to hate everything that his father loved. ... Okonkwo despises and resents his father's gentle and idle ways. ... Okonkwo had become a wealthy and respectable man. Okonkwo gained all his success on his own. ...
Okonkwo is one of the most powerful men in the Ibo tribe. ... Because of his fear of being seen as weak, Okonkwo even strikes down a child that calls him father: " as the machete came down Okonkwo looked away. ... Okonkwo [draws] his machete and ... ... Okonkwo is very hard on his son Nwoye. ... Okonkwo tries to encourage his values on how to live as a man to his son, and to Okonkwo, crying is very womanly, and so Nwoye is punished for it. ...
When he was a child, a boy called Okonkwo's father an agbala. ... Okonkwo saw Nwoye weak and lazy from an early age. ... Secretly, Okonkwo grew fond of Ikemefuna, "Even Okonkwo himself became very fond of the boy-inwardly of course. ... Okonkwo refused to integrate with the new visitors. ... Okonkwo's life was controlled by his fears. ...
As Umuofias leader, Okonkwo is portrayed as a hard working and successful man from the perspective of the clan; however, Achebes use of language shows the reader Okonkwos tragic flaw, which is the fear of failure and looking weak like his father, Unoka. ... Okonkwos fear is reflected through his temperamental guise, for he associates masculinity with violence; however, it is clear to the reader that on the inside, Okonkwo is compassionate, but by allowing his fear to run his life, he comes off as aggressive. ... Although Okonkwo does everything in his will to not end up like his father, Unoka...
In Chinua Achebe's book Things Fall Apart, the main character, Okonkwo, is such a character. ... But the narrator gives the reader insight into Okonkwo's feelings, which Okonkwo has become very adept at hiding from the other members of the tribe. It is revealed that Okonkwo has a strong liking for Ikemefuna and for Ezinma. ... Okonkwo wishes to fight them and drive them away, and he has a just reasons to do so. ... Okonkwo is the embodiment of a tragic hero. ...
Okonkwo, then, becomes violent, courageous, and very wealthy. ... Okonkwo soon hangs himself to death. ... Okonkwo's life and death follow the mold of a tragic hero. ... This is similar to Okonkwo's life. ... Okonkwo's fate was inevitable. ...
Throughout the entire story, Okonkwo is driven by the fear of being weak. ... "Dazed with fear, Okonkwo drew his machete and cut him down. ... It is the same fear that drives Okonkwo to kill himself. ... This trait is also mentioned when Okonkwo is described. "Okonkwo was not a cruel man. ...
Okonkwo's fear of weakness ultimately results in his aiding in the death of Ikemefuna and his son Nwoye's repulsion of Okonkwo and his violent nature. ... Okonkwo's use of his power in the clan borders on abuse. ... Surely, Okonkwo's fatal flaws lead to the devastation of his clan. Okonkwo typifies the tragic hero. ... Okonkwo realizes that "things had fallen apart."...
His dignity is also challenged by his son, Nwoye, in whom Okonkwo sees a resemblance to Unoka, which Okonkwo fixes by beating Nwoye and forcing him to be manly and strong. ... "Okonkwo was not a man of thought but of action" (59). ... Okonkwo is also set on finding his proper location in his tribe. ... Okonkwo's whole life was "dominated by fear, the fear of failure and of weakness" (12). As a strong man, Okonkwo's success is visible through many aspects of his life. ...
