Okonkwo's Strength

In Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe, the protagonist Okonkwo is a large, male figure that consistently desires power and seeks to gain power over others. From an early age, Okonkwo attempted to be a very manly man after watching his father, who he described as lazy and soft, emulate opposite ideals. Although he was embarrassed of his father, he took these strong feelings and transformed them into energy that would help him succeed in being entirely opposite. He first gained recognition as a young man when he wins his villages respect for wrestling. “Okonkwo was well known throughout the nine villages and even beyond. His fame rested on solid personal achievements. As a young man of eighteen he had brought honor to his village by throwing Amalinze the Cat. Amalinze was the great wrestler who for seven years was unbeaten, from Umuofia to Mbaino.” (pg. 1) We can already tell how important it is for Okonkwo to have fame and the attention of a large audience to reinforce his high thoughts of himself. If we fast forward to Okonkwo’s adulthood, we can see that he successfully became a wealthy, strong and industrious man who is capable of leading his tribe. …show more content…
Okonkwo has a fear of failure and this often works in his favor as motivation but also gets him into trouble when he considers himself to be above the rest of the Igbo community. This community is a very complex society which has its own customs, processes and rituals. This complex Umofian tribe often works against Okonkwo, although they allow him to be a leader he is not always able to fully express himself and after the arrival of the Europeans, the environment becomes even less compatible with Okonkwo’s