Suicide In Chinua Achebe's Things Fall Apart

Okonkwo’s choice of suicide is a result of his fear; he would rather die than admit to sure failure, than live in a village and world of weakness. During the novel, Okonkwo and his fellow villagers struggle with a new change that has come to their clan, Christianity and its believers; the white men. Slowly, throughout the story the villagers succumb to the influences of the missionaries and, to Okonkwo’s horror, his son is among those who convert. “Okonkwo was deeply grieved. And it was not just a personal grief. He mourned for the clan, which he saw breaking and falling apart, and he mourned for the warlike men of Umuofia, who had so unaccountably become soft like women.”(170, Achebe). Here is Okonkwo’s view on the changes taking place in his clan. Okonkwo is horrified and saddened …show more content…
But they do not, they stay in their places, confused and in panic about what Okonkwo had just done. They did not see the point in chasing away the missionaries with war. And with this, Okonkwo realizes that his clan would not fight to keep what was theirs, they would not fight for their culture. Okonkwo realizes that they are all weak, and that due to their weakness they are doomed to fail as a clan. And they will live on as weak and as failures. So Okonkwo saw no point in living his life anymore. He would have been forced to live as a failure and as a weak man for giving in to the the invaders. Okonkwo saw no use in living in a world of weakness and of failure. And there was no other option for him to take, he could no longer avoid failure and weakness, he could no longer avoid his father’s defining characteristics. Okonkwo’s fear of failure and of weakness lead to his ultimate choice, to commit suicide. His fear drives him to take that final step and put into action, what he thinks, was the only option left for