The character of okonkwo in the novel things fall apart

A quick view of the context that led to the author writing the novel Things Fall Apart and a character analysis of the character of Okonkwo.

1. Things Fall Apart- Chinua Achebe 1958.
Lecture by Mr Mji.

Reasons that led to the writing of Things Fall Apart.
What inspired Achebe to write the novel Things Fall Apart?
• Novel Focuses on the breakdown of traditional African culture in the face of European
colonization in the late nineteenth century.
• It reflects on this crucial historical encounter from the point of view of Africans, the subjects
of colonization.
• Achebe published Things Fall Apart partly to what he considered distortions and fabrications
by Eurocentric (favoured Europe) novels, such as Joseph Conrad's Heart of Darkness that
treat Africa as a primordial cultureless foil to Europe.
• As a text, Things Fall Apart is set in the 1890s and portrays a pre-colonial African society and
its subsequent encounter with British colonialism. It shatters the stereotypical notions about
Africa and Africans.
• Achebe depicts a traditional African society as a complex with advanced social institutions
and traditions before its contact with Europeans.
He conveys a fuller understanding of African culture, thus giving voice to an underrepresented and
previously denigrated colonial subject.

Flaws of the Igbo tradition in the novel:
What flaws do the traditions of the Umuofia village have?
• The idea of twins being taken and left in the forest.
• "Nwoye had heard that twins were put in earthenware pots and thrown away in the forest,
but he had never yet come across them" chapter 9 last page, p27
• The outcasting of people:
"And he told him what an Osu was. He was dedicated to a god, a thing set apart--a taboo forever,
and his children after him. He could neither marry nor be married by the free-born. He was an
outcast, living in a special area of the village, close to the Great Shrine. Wherever he went, he carried

2. with him the mark of his forbidden caste--long, tangled, and dirty hair. A razor was taboo to him. An
Osu could not attend an assembly of the free-born, and they, in turn, could not shelter under his
roof. He could not take any of the four titles of the clan, and when he died, he was buried by his kind
in the Evil Forest" chapter 18, pg. 66.
Tradition: Strengths
What are some of the essential traditions of the village of
Umuofia?
The Umuofia clan practices traditional gender roles for males and females. Women are strictly
responsible for cooking, and the group's prosperous folk tales are passed from generation to
generation by women. Umuofian men, on the other hand, are warriors and the primary
breadwinners. Only men are permitted to farm yams, while women can grow 'women's crops' like
beans and cassava.
• Before a man allows his daughter to marry, the bride price must be paid. The male relatives
of the potential bride and groom meet to establish the bride price. This is accomplished by
passing short broomsticks back and forth in the act of wordless negotiation.
• Once a settlement is reached, the women enter with foo-foo, soup, and palm wine to
celebrate the engagement. If the bride runs away from her husband after they are married,
however, her family must return the bride price.
Some traditions are for hosts and guests. When a neighbour comes to visit, we see an etiquette
ritual that involves breaking a kola nut and honouring the gods and ancestors.
The idea behind the strengths and flaws of the Umuofia village.
Achebe created a story that shows Okonkwo as part of a community with both strengths and flaws
in terms of their traditions. Unlike Joseph Conrad, who continuously insults Native Africans in his
novel Heart of Darkness. Why?
• Achebe wanted to communicate that there was more to Africa than what had been written
about it.
• He wanted to show that Africa is the same as every continent; it has its traditions, cultures,
and beliefs.
• Nevertheless, he did not stop there as he showed that Africa, just like Europe, has its flaws;
it is not perfect.

Character study of Okonkwo.
Okonkwo is a tragic hero. Okonkwo's tragic flaw is his fear of weakness and failure.

3. Okonkwo was a man of action, Powerful, fearless, well-respected member, successful farmer, and
warrior and renowned as a leader of his tribe.
• Okonkwo Belonged to a low-income family.
• Okonkwo hated his father.
• Muscular and strong.
• The Breaking of the church.
• Imprisoned.
Okonkwo
• Even though Okonkwo only portrays sternness and power to the world, all his life is dictated
by fear.
• This fear is rooted in him not wanting to be like his father.
• Okonkwo is a character who is determined not to be like his father in any way – what are the
implications of this?
• Okonkwo, like his father, does not find himself in agreement with his community – irony!
• Okonkwo succeeds in that he grows wealthy, with 3 wives and many children. However, he
cannot adapt in two ways: on a personal level when he thinks that his actions will be
interpreted as weak or unmanly (the killing of Ikemefuna) and secondly, when the colonizers
arrive community decides to survive by not fighting. This combination of personal and
contextual issues leads to tragedy.
• Achebe has created a very human picture of a tragic time in history – in contrast to Conrad
Continued....
• Okonkwo is a tragic hero in that his version of masculinity is defined as anything opposite to
his father. He cannot express his emotions, reacts with anger and violence and will not back
down, even in the face of community disapproval.
• He is also very complex. Even though he insists on killing Ikemefuna himself, he loves the
boy against the elders' instructions.
• Through the narrator, we can see that he secretly follows Ekwefi into the forest to find
Ezinma, showing the reader that he is also just a worried father. The community only sees
his indifferent façade.
• This narrative technique builds his characterization as almost two different people: the outer
indifferent dominant man vs the inner fears and emotions that are more tender or soft. He is
complicated in ways that others do not see or understand.

4. • He is also very concerned about his community in the face of colonial impositions. We know
that history will prove him correct in his mistrust of the Europeans.
• However, history will also show that his community is correct in that they need to survive in
the face of this overwhelming enemy. Once again, the impossible context of colonial
impositions for the colonized is rendered in all its complexity