In the novel, Things Fall Apart, by Chinua Achebe, Okonkwo is the victim of gender roles, and these expectations ruled his life, making into the Okonkwo he is throughout chapter 1-12. Akueke’s life is also r affected by the gender expectations throughout chapters 1-12. Gender roles in Things Fall Apart, affected the development of the protagonist, Okonkwo, by making his masculinity become noticed to those around him, along with Akueke through beauty standards. Okonkwo obeys the expectations given to each gender, he follows these rules because he does not want to be like his father. It avowed in the novel:
Perhaps down in his heart Okonkwo was not a cruel man. But his whole life was dominated by fear, the fear of failure and weakness. It …show more content…
The text asserted, “And so Okonkwo was ruled by one passion – to hate everything that his father Unoka had loved” (13). He made the gender roles impact him by making sure he was not seen as a weak person, but one full of masculinity. To be seen as the best in this village that focuses on hegemonic masculinity, Okonkwo wins a battle. Achebe stated, “Okonkwo was well-known throughout the nine villages and even beyond. His fame rested on solid personal achievement. As a young man of eighteen he brought honor to his village by throwing Amalinze the Cat” (1). There are battles that occur against nine villages, the story’s protagonist won a battle against a someone of another village who won seven years in a row. Since masculinity is how men get to the top of the social strata, Okonkwo made it from the bottom of it to the top by defeating the Cat. Okonkwo chose the action to kill someone who once called him “father” to show how manly he was. The text avowed, “Okonkwo did not taste any food for two days after the death of Ikemefuna” (63). This quote is ironic because although he wanted to show the villagers how manly he was, he still felt emotions. He forces himself to not show any type of …show more content…
Achebe asserted, “His anger thus satisfied, Okonkwo decided to go out hunting. He had an old rusty gun made by a clever blacksmith who had come to live in Umuofia long ago.” (38) The protagonist's second wife, Ekwefi, made an insult that Okonkwo could not shoot. However, a phallic symbol is used in these two sentences. Okonkwo could not bear with the fact that Ekwefi murmured him not being able to shoot his gun, so he had to prove how he was good. These sentences Ekwefi averred, hit Okonkwo mentally hard because as a man, he believes he should do good in this type of state. Okonkwo is willing to do anything to be seen as strong to prove his masculinity. So, he did by showing his second wife what he is capable
Perhaps down in his heart Okonkwo was not a cruel man. But his whole life was dominated by fear, the fear of failure and weakness. It …show more content…
The text asserted, “And so Okonkwo was ruled by one passion – to hate everything that his father Unoka had loved” (13). He made the gender roles impact him by making sure he was not seen as a weak person, but one full of masculinity. To be seen as the best in this village that focuses on hegemonic masculinity, Okonkwo wins a battle. Achebe stated, “Okonkwo was well-known throughout the nine villages and even beyond. His fame rested on solid personal achievement. As a young man of eighteen he brought honor to his village by throwing Amalinze the Cat” (1). There are battles that occur against nine villages, the story’s protagonist won a battle against a someone of another village who won seven years in a row. Since masculinity is how men get to the top of the social strata, Okonkwo made it from the bottom of it to the top by defeating the Cat. Okonkwo chose the action to kill someone who once called him “father” to show how manly he was. The text avowed, “Okonkwo did not taste any food for two days after the death of Ikemefuna” (63). This quote is ironic because although he wanted to show the villagers how manly he was, he still felt emotions. He forces himself to not show any type of …show more content…
Achebe asserted, “His anger thus satisfied, Okonkwo decided to go out hunting. He had an old rusty gun made by a clever blacksmith who had come to live in Umuofia long ago.” (38) The protagonist's second wife, Ekwefi, made an insult that Okonkwo could not shoot. However, a phallic symbol is used in these two sentences. Okonkwo could not bear with the fact that Ekwefi murmured him not being able to shoot his gun, so he had to prove how he was good. These sentences Ekwefi averred, hit Okonkwo mentally hard because as a man, he believes he should do good in this type of state. Okonkwo is willing to do anything to be seen as strong to prove his masculinity. So, he did by showing his second wife what he is capable