How Is Okonkwo A Sympathetic Character

A man named Gordon Sparks once said, “At first I wasn't sure that I had the talent, but I did know I have a fear of failure, and that fear compelled me to fight off anything that might abet it.” Okonkwo is a character from Things Fall Apart and is portrayed as a well respected and hardworking member of his tribe. On the other hand Okonkwo is a very controlling, aggressive and abusive man to his family. Okonkwo’s family relationships make him a sympathetic man because he watches over and make sure his family is always safe, but also an unsympathetic character because he loathes his father for just his tribe status. First of all, Okonkwo is a sympathetic man because he always protects his family from others. “Go home and sleep,” said Okonkwo. “I shall wait here.” (Achebe 108) When this quote was established it was when Okonkwo followed one of his …show more content…
“Whenever the thought of his father’s weakness and failure troubled him he expelled it by thinking about his own strength and success.” (Achebe 66) Okonkwo’s father had a status that would equal a woman’s. Which in this culture is immensely looked down upon. His father’s weak status bothers him so much that the only way to make him feel satisfied is when he thinks of how much better he is than his father. Another quote from the book is, “He neither inherited a barn nor a title, nor even a young wife.” (Achebe 18) From father to son, within this culture and tribe, when a son becomes a man a father traditionally passed down them down something similar passing down their status. And to show how rich or poor one is. Okonkwo holds resentment towards his father for being so poor that he could not pass a single thing to him, so he had to build up and get these things himself. I believe that Okonkwo does not have a valid reason for being so unsympathetic and sounds similar to a bratty