In the novel “Things Fall Apart”, Okonkwo, the main character, is regarded as a hero to his village. Through his strength and bravery, Okonkwo has battled in many wars and won. To his people, he has brought peace by making his village look like a force not to be reckon with. He make it seem as if any village were to go to war with them, they would lose. Okonkwo shares many values as a hero along with comparable traits. Chinua Achebe, the author, makes a very unique character who faces challenges against his elders, his family, and their religious figure who is connected to the people through the oracle.
Some character traits that Okonkwo shares with a modern day hero is his inspirational figure. To become the strong and brave person he is today, he had to correct the wrongs of his father, who can be described with the quote, “In his day he was lazy and improvident and was quite incapable of thinking about tomorrow”(Achebe, pg.4). Another problem Okonkwo faced was the fact that his father was a debtor who owed everyone money. One of Okonkwo’s challenges was to pay back everyone of whom his father owed money to. In addition to these problems, he also had to shape his children so that they do not end up like his father, but soon finds failure when his oldest son shows rebellion by converting to Christianity.
Many villagers regarded him a hero for saving his family name by fixing the problems his father laid out on them. Another instance of heroism was with his great power. Okonkwo was a fearless wrestler and fighter who has contributed to the victory in battle for his village, but, can he still be regarded as a hero when he performs such savagery actions such as taking the head of one of his enemies and drinking out of it? There are many clues that can classify Okonkwo as a villain. The way he beat his third wife during a Week of Peace was regarded as an abomination among the other clan members. Okonkwo usually treated his family with cruelty. However, there are moments when we see that Okonkwo cares deeply about his family. When one of his daughters Ezinma, was carried away by the priestess, he did not sleep and soon went after the priestess where he found the mother of his daughter waiting outside the cave and he stayed there until she came back with his daughter.
2/23/16
Jasper Gong
I would agree that he is a hero, especially by the way his town views him, and how he views himself. He is courageous and brings a sense of security to his town.
ReplyDelete-Sandra Bashore
Okonkwo is a hero. It doesn't matter if he did some villainous acts because all heroes have flaws. A real life example would be Martin Luther King. He was a civil rights leader but he had many flaws like cheating on his wife and we still call him a hero.
ReplyDeleteIt depends on what your definition of hero is. As the perception of Okonkwo is different fore everyone. As readers you might feel that what he does is not in the characteristics of hero. While, the ibo people might see him as a hero for standing up for the village.
ReplyDeleteThat makes sense. People have their own opinion in what a hero is. It depends on the perspective of that specific person and how they feel about him/her.
ReplyDeleteI do not agree Okonkwo is a hero. You can fight and kill as many people as you want, but a hero is built upon morals and reasoning. Okonkwo killed his own son, which kills every aspect of hero in him. A hero should be internally moral.
ReplyDeleteOkonkwo is an existential hero. He belives in his values until his death.
ReplyDelete