(2) Explore the power of fear in the novel.
Fear was quite a powerful factor in this novel. It was the root of most, if not all, changes in the novel Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe. Fear caused many things in this book, one of which being the outcome of this book. Fear drove Okonkwo, the leading character in this book who is known for his strength and grit, to take his own life at the end of the novel. Okonkwo knew “that Umuofia would not go to war” against the colonizing Christians (205). Because of this, Okonkwo feared that his clan would allow the Christians to take over the governmental, social, economic and religious systems in Umuofia. With that, if the Christians were to take over, his chances of gaining many titles of high status …show more content…
It makes people believe that they have more power or more privilege than another individual. An individual’s ego influences their decision making in order to protect their reputation and image to remain being seen as important. Okonkwo, in the novel Things Fall Apart, had an enormous ego. He felt as if he and his reputation was more important than the life of Ikemefuna, a boy that Okonkwo raised and loved in his own home. Okonkwo’s ego made him become “afraid of being thought weak” so, it impacted his decision to draw “his machete and cut” Ikemefuna “down” (61). Okonkwo believed that his masculinity would be damaged if he didn’t kill Ikemefuna himself or stopped the people of Umuofia from killing him. Okonkwo felt as if he needed to preserve his image of masculinity by joining in on the killing of a boy that called him his …show more content…
Along with fear, Christianity was the root of half of the conflicts in the book. “Okonkwo's cousin, Amikwu,” wouldn’t have seen “Nwoye among the Christians” (54). Nwoye, Okonkwo’s son, converted to Christianity because he felt safer among the Christians and away from his father’s madness. Without Christianity existing there, Nwoye would not have left his family for the religion and would have become a breadwinner, like his father, and continued the cycle of patriarchy in Umuofia. Umuofia wouldn’t have begun to fall apart under the newly found control of the white men. Umuofia would not have undergone a educational, governmental and cultural reconstruction, which gave the white men major power to control Umuofia, based on the ideologies of the Christian men and would have continued about with their previous systems that held their village together. And, ultimately, Okonkwo would not have killed himself. He wouldn’t have had anything to fear. He wouldn’t have had to fear losing his power and titles because there would not have been a group of Christians colonizing Umuofia and obliterating the hierarchical
Fear was quite a powerful factor in this novel. It was the root of most, if not all, changes in the novel Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe. Fear caused many things in this book, one of which being the outcome of this book. Fear drove Okonkwo, the leading character in this book who is known for his strength and grit, to take his own life at the end of the novel. Okonkwo knew “that Umuofia would not go to war” against the colonizing Christians (205). Because of this, Okonkwo feared that his clan would allow the Christians to take over the governmental, social, economic and religious systems in Umuofia. With that, if the Christians were to take over, his chances of gaining many titles of high status …show more content…
It makes people believe that they have more power or more privilege than another individual. An individual’s ego influences their decision making in order to protect their reputation and image to remain being seen as important. Okonkwo, in the novel Things Fall Apart, had an enormous ego. He felt as if he and his reputation was more important than the life of Ikemefuna, a boy that Okonkwo raised and loved in his own home. Okonkwo’s ego made him become “afraid of being thought weak” so, it impacted his decision to draw “his machete and cut” Ikemefuna “down” (61). Okonkwo believed that his masculinity would be damaged if he didn’t kill Ikemefuna himself or stopped the people of Umuofia from killing him. Okonkwo felt as if he needed to preserve his image of masculinity by joining in on the killing of a boy that called him his …show more content…
Along with fear, Christianity was the root of half of the conflicts in the book. “Okonkwo's cousin, Amikwu,” wouldn’t have seen “Nwoye among the Christians” (54). Nwoye, Okonkwo’s son, converted to Christianity because he felt safer among the Christians and away from his father’s madness. Without Christianity existing there, Nwoye would not have left his family for the religion and would have become a breadwinner, like his father, and continued the cycle of patriarchy in Umuofia. Umuofia wouldn’t have begun to fall apart under the newly found control of the white men. Umuofia would not have undergone a educational, governmental and cultural reconstruction, which gave the white men major power to control Umuofia, based on the ideologies of the Christian men and would have continued about with their previous systems that held their village together. And, ultimately, Okonkwo would not have killed himself. He wouldn’t have had anything to fear. He wouldn’t have had to fear losing his power and titles because there would not have been a group of Christians colonizing Umuofia and obliterating the hierarchical