How Is Okonkwo Justified In Things Fall Apart

In the novel Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe, Okonkwo is one of the main characters and he is seen as a strong man. Since Okonkwo is respected by people in Umofia, he is somewhat justified for the things he does. He beated one his wife two times during the week of peace when he shouldn’t be allowed to commit any violence but nobody seemed to cared. When the British missionaries joined their tribe, they thought that they were uncivilized people because of their customs. At the end of the novel he does something unexpected, he hangs himself because he felt upset about himself being expulsed out of his tribe for about seven years and also for slashing a messenger’s throat with a machete.

In the novel’s last chapter, the Commissioner arrived at Okonkwo’s compound accompanied by soldiers and messengers looking for Okonkwo but Obierika was there instead and he showed them where he was. When they all arrived, Obierika was upset because Okonkwo was one of his close friends and he blames his death on white people. They believe that it is evil if you touch him to bring him down and strangers could only help them. Okonkwo cannot be buried as everyone else because he committed suicide and only strangers could touch him and bury him. In the Igbo culture, suicide is a sin, it’s against their culture and earth. …show more content…
At first only the missionaries were teaching them their religion and some of the igbo people accepted them but some people like Okonkwo was against them and also British people think that they are uncivilized so they want to influence them. Okonkwo’s death has no significance for their culture because he committed suicide which is a