tragic hero okonkwo essay

• Things Fall Apart

Chinua Achebe

• Literature Notes
• Book Summary
• About Things Fall Apart
• Character List
• Summary and Analysis
• Part 1: Chapter 1
• Part 1: Chapter 2
• Part 1: Chapter 3
• Part 1: Chapter 4
• Part 1: Chapter 5
• Part 1: Chapter 6
• Part 1: Chapter 7
• Part 1: Chapter 8
• Part 1: Chapter 9
• Part 1: Chapter 10
• Part 1: Chapter 11
• Part 1: Chapter 12
• Part 1: Chapter 13
• Part 2: Chapter 14
• Part 2: Chapter 15
• Part 2: Chapter 16
• Part 2: Chapter 17
• Part 2: Chapter 18
• Part 2: Chapter 19
• Part 3: Chapter 20
• Part 3: Chapter 21
• Part 3: Chapter 22
• Part 3: Chapter 23
• Part 3: Chapter 24
• Part 3: Chapter 25
• Character Analysis
• Reverend James Smith
• Character Map
• Chinua Achebe Biography
• Critical Essays
• Major Themes in Things Fall Apart
• Use of Language in Things Fall Apart
• Full Glossary for Things Fall Apart
• Essay Questions
• Cite this Literature Note

Character Analysis Okonkwo

The protagonist of Things Fall Apart , Okonkwo is also considered a tragic hero. A tragic hero holds a position of power and prestige, chooses his course of action, possesses a tragic flaw, and gains awareness of circumstances that lead to his fall. Okonkwo's tragic flaw is his fear of weakness and failure.

In his thirties, Okonkwo is a leader of the Igbo community of Umuofia. Achebe describes him as "tall and huge" with "bushy eyebrows and [a] wide nose [that gives] him a very severe look." When Okonkwo walks, his heels barely touch the ground, like he walks on springs, "as if he [is] going to pounce on somebody." Okonkwo "stammers slightly" and his breathing is heavy.

Okonkwo is renowned as a wrestler, a fierce warrior, and a successful farmer of yams (a "manly" crop). He has three wives and many children who live in huts on his compound. Throughout his life, he wages a never ending battle for status; his life is dominated by the fear of weakness and failure. He is quick to anger, especially when dealing with men who are weak, lazy debtors like his father. However, Okonkwo overcompensates for his father's womanly (weak) ways, of which he is ashamed, because he does not tolerate idleness or gentleness. Even though he feels inward affection at times, he never portrays affection toward anyone. Instead, he isolates himself by exhibiting anger through violent, stubborn, irrational behavior. Okonkwo demands that his family work long hours despite their age or limited physical stamina, and he nags and beats his wives and son, Nwoye, who Okonkwo believes is womanly like his father, Unoka.

Okonkwo is impulsive; he acts before he thinks. Consequently, Okonkwo offends the Igbo people and their traditions as well as the gods of his clan. Okonkwo is advised not to participate in the murder of Ikefemuna, but he actually kills Ikefemuna because he is "afraid of being thought weak." When the white man brings Christianity to Umuofia, Okonkwo is opposed to the new ways. He feels that the changes are destroying the Igbo culture, changes that require compromise and accommodation — two qualities that Okonkwo finds intolerable. Too proud and inflexible, he clings to traditional beliefs and mourns the loss of the past.

When Okonkwa rashly kills a messenger from the British district office, his clansmen back away in fear; he realizes that none of them support him and that he can't save his village from the British colonists. Okonkwo is defeated. He commits suicide, a shameful and disgraceful death like his father's.

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Home — Essay Samples — Literature — Tragic Hero — Analysis Of Okonkwo As A Tragic Hero

Analysis of Okonkwo as a Tragic Hero

• Categories: Chinua Achebe Things Fall Apart Tragic Hero

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Published: Feb 8, 2022

Words: 696 | Pages: 2 | 4 min read

• Jeyifo, B. (1993). Okonkwo and his mother: Things Fall Apart and issues of gender in the constitution of African postcolonial discourse. Callaloo, 16(4), 847-858. (https://www.jstor.org/stable/2932213)
• Adade-Yeboah, A. (2016). The tragic hero of the modern period–The African concept. (http://ir.csuc.edu.gh:8080/xmlui/handle/123456789/439)
• Iyasere, S. O. (1990). Okonkwo and the Execution of Ikemefuna in Chinua Achebe's Things Fall Apart: A Study of Ignoble Decisiveness. English Studies in Africa, 33(2), 131-142. (https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/00138399008690874?journalCode=reia20)
• Okolie, M. J., & Uzoma, G. C. (2019). Okonkwo’s reincarnation: a comparison of Achebe’s Things fall apart and No longer at ease. (http://scholar.sun.ac.za/handle/10019.1/123478)
• Dannenberg, H. (2009). The many voices of Things fall apart. Interventions, 11(2), 176-179. (https://www.semanticscholar.org/paper/THE-MANY-VOICES-OF-THINGS-FALL-APART-Dannenberg/84051cf8deb2b206360677e6e0963828d347ceac)

Should follow an “upside down” triangle format, meaning, the writer should start off broad and introduce the text and author or topic being discussed, and then get more specific to the thesis statement.

Provides a foundational overview, outlining the historical context and introducing key information that will be further explored in the essay, setting the stage for the argument to follow.

Cornerstone of the essay, presenting the central argument that will be elaborated upon and supported with evidence and analysis throughout the rest of the paper.

The topic sentence serves as the main point or focus of a paragraph in an essay, summarizing the key idea that will be discussed in that paragraph.

The body of each paragraph builds an argument in support of the topic sentence, citing information from sources as evidence.

After each piece of evidence is provided, the author should explain HOW and WHY the evidence supports the claim.

Should follow a right side up triangle format, meaning, specifics should be mentioned first such as restating the thesis, and then get more broad about the topic at hand. Lastly, leave the reader with something to think about and ponder once they are done reading.

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Home Essay Examples Literature Tragic Hero

Okonkwo As A Tragic Hero

• Category Literature
• Subcategory Literary Genre
• Topic Tragic Hero

The first Aristotle’s criterion of the tragic hero requires that the character must be noble or a man of high status. In that sense, as described by Achebe, “Okonkwo was well known throughout the nine villages and even beyond. His fame rested on solid personal achievements” (Achebe, 3). Starting as a sharecropper with no inheritance from his father, Okonkwo works very hard and makes his way to a wealthy and respected man of titles in Umuofia. From his hard work, Okonkwo has 3 wives with many children, a large compound with obi for each of his wives and a large stock of yams. Okonkwo earns himself respect from people both inside his clan and outside his clan through many of his achievements. When he is a young man of eighteen, he brings honor to his village by throwing the Amalinze the Cat, a wrestler who is undefeated for 7 years. In addition, Okonkwo is one of the nine Egwugwu, a respected judge in the community who is believed to be the spirit of the ancestor. Furthermore, Okonkwo is also chosen by his village to be their representative to negotiate with Mbaino village about the murderer of an Umuofia girl in Mbaino market. With ease, Okonkwo successfully brings back a boy and a virgin as compensation and ends the conflict peacefully, without any confrontation.

Similar to other tragic heroes, Okonkwo also has a tragic flaw, which is a fear of weakness and failure. While the fear of failure and weakness drives Okonkwo to work hard and helps him earns his fame and achievements, on the other hand, it also causes him many problems. Many times throughout Okonkwo’s life, his fear of failure and weakness leads him to act harshly, violently and impulsively toward other people, including his family members. Okonkwo is always harsh and violent with his family members because he doesn’t want to be seen as a weak person. Okonkwo solves his problems only by the use strength and violence and it is this attitude that leads Okonkwo to several conflicts within his family, his failings and ultimately, his downfall. For instance, Okonkwo violates the clan rule and beats his youngest wife during the week of peace and almost shoots his second wife who comments on his gun skill. Moreover, Okonkwo kills Ikemefuna, Nwoye’s close friend whom Nwoye calls “brother” who asks for Okonkwo’s help because “He was afraid of being thought weak” (Achebe, 43). By trying to be a strong person and deciding to kill Ikemefuna and beats his wives, Okonkwo not only weaken his relationship with his wives and Nwoye, but also hurts himself mentally. Most important, his violent and impulsive characteristics lead him to kill a court messenger from during the clan meeting which soon after leads Okonkwo to the discovery of his own tragic fate.

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The last Aristotle’s criterion for being a tragic hero requires that the character must discover his fate by his own actions. Okonkwo’s self-realization starts when he comes back to Umuofia after his seven years exile with a great plan. However, after his arrival, he realizes that Umuofia is much changed and he is not as important and famous as he used to be before his exile. His arrival doesn’t attract as much as attention as he expect and he loses his place in the Egwugwu to the another man as soon as he leaves the clan. Moreover, he also has to wait for another two years to imitate his two sons into the ozo society. But most important, Okonkwo discovers that the white men have settled down in the village. The white men establish a church and a school in the village, and then start converting Igbo people into Christian and attacking Igbo customs and faith. Okonkwo is strongly unhappy with this situation and by his violent nature; he persuades his clan to use violence to drive the white men out of the village. However, the clan disagrees and reminds Okonkwo that the white men also have some of the clan members supporting them. Although there is no war between white men and Igbo people, the conflicts between these two groups still often occur, including the unmasking of Egwugwu, the burning of the church and the deceptive meeting held by the white men which results in the capture and humiliation of the five clan members, including Okonkwo. However, despite these failings, it is not until when Okonkwo kills one of the five court members, who are sent to stop the clan meeting that he discovers his tragic fate. When Okonkwo beheads the messenger during the clan meeting and sees that none of his clan members go after the escaping white men, “He knew that Umuofia would not go to war” (Achebe, 144). He realizes that he will never be able to drive the white men out of Umuofia because his clan will not fight with him. Realizing that he is defeated and cannot save his village from the white men influences, Okonkwo decides to hang himself, which is consider as an abomination in Igbo culture.

Okonkwo’s character greatly fits the Aristotle’s definition of the tragic hero. From nothing, he rises to the honorable and successful leader of Umuofia. He also has a tragic flaw of a fear of weakness and failure that leads to him to several failings and ultimately, his suicide. Finally, he discovers his own tragic fate because of his impulsive murderer of court messenger during the clan meeting. Although Okonkwo starts his life as a successful man of Umuofia but because of his violent and impulsive characteristics, even the most successful man like Okonkwo can still falls from his grace.

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Character Analysis

• Oedipus Rex,

Tragic Hero

• Words: 1240

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Okonkwo, the Tragic Hero

Okonkwo, the protagonist of Chinua Achebe’s novel, Things Fall Apart, is one of the greatest examples of a tragic hero. A tragic hero, in literature, is a character who makes a judgement error or has a fatal flaw that, when combined with fate and external forces, leads to their suffering and defeat. A tragic hero possesses multiple character traits.

Some characteristics exhibited by a tragic hero include being of noble birth, possessing a fatal flaw, experiencing a downfall due to this flaw, and being accountable for their own fate. This essay will examine Okonkwo as the archetypal tragic hero. One significant trait of a tragic hero is their association with nobility. Okonkwo exemplifies this attribute. Despite being in his thirties, he is already a prominent figure in the Umuofia Igbo community. As a formidable warrior, he has already proven his mettle in two wars and claimed the lives of numerous adversaries.

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Okonkwo, as an eighteen-year-old, had earned the respect of his village for defeating the undefeated wrestler Amalinze the Cat. Amalinze, who had not been beaten for seven years, was renowned from Umuofia to Mbaino. In addition to his wrestling accomplishments, Okonkwo excelled in farming yams, which was considered a masculine occupation. He had three wives and his compound housed him and his numerous children in huts. Described as a formidable figure with a commanding presence, Okonkwo’s towering stature, bushy eyebrows, and broad nose gave him a stern appearance. Consequently, he was highly regarded and held prestigious titles.

However, Okonkwo was not always powerful. His father, Unoka, was described as “lazy and improvident and was quite incapable of thinking about tomorrow.” Unoka was also known as “a debtor, and he owed every neighbor some money.” Instead of his father, Okonkwo supported the family during his upbringing. In Okonkwo’s eyes, Unoka was considered a failure. Okonkwo made a vow to never acquire his father’s perceived feminine and disgraceful qualities. He worked diligently to become one of the most esteemed men in Umuofia and successfully achieved this goal. Another crucial aspect of a tragic hero possessed by Okonkwo is that he has a characteristic that ultimately leads to his downfall.

Okonkwo possesses the characteristic of being fixated on presenting himself in the most masculine and aggressive manner possible, along with his impetuosity and inclination to resort to violence. He perceives his father, Unoka, as feeble and effeminate, and his father’s inadequacies instilled in him a strong aversion towards indolent and feeble men. Okonkwo made it his mission to refrain from displaying any emotion, instead opting to be an aloof, resilient, masculine individual. Despite his efforts to conceal it, there are still occasions where one can perceive feeling within Okonkwo, such as his affection for Ikemefuna and Ezinma. Amongst all of his children, he holds the greatest love for Ezinma.

Okonkwo always wished that she had been a boy. When he follows Ekwefi into the forest in pursuit of Ezinma, the loving-father side of Okonkwo is evident. The same sentiment applies to Ikemefuna, as Okonkwo preferred him over some of his own children. However, despite this fondness, Ikemefuna must be executed. Okonkwo feels compelled to accompany the men who take Ikemefuna to be executed out of fear of appearing weak. In the end, Okonkwo ends up being the one to kill Ikemefuna. In contrast to his father’s interest in music and conversation, Okonkwo despises conversations.

He was a man of action and war who disliked discussing matters. Upon the arrival of white men and their Christian beliefs to Umuofia, he opposed them as he believed they were eroding the Igbo culture. These changes necessitated compromise and adaptation, qualities that Okonkwo despised. Filled with pride, Okonkwo attempted to hold onto traditional beliefs. When the white men sent a messenger to halt a gathering, Okonkwo, driven by his excessive pride and desire to appear masculine, resorted to his familiar course of action: engaging in impulsive acts of violence.

He beheads the messenger. However, his fellow tribesmen back away in fear, leading him to realize their lack of support. This quickness to resort to violence, accompanied by his obsession with manliness and pride, eventually leads to his downfall and suicide. Like many other tragic heroes, Okonkwo was destined to make a judgment error. As previously mentioned, Okonkwo’s impulsiveness and rashness led him to believe that the only means of control was through violence. “Okonkwo ruled his household with a heavy hand,” and violence was the only method he knew to maintain control.

His wives, particularly the youngest, constantly feared his hot temper, as did his young children. He particularly abused his twelve-year-old son Nwoye, who already worried his father with his laziness. In his father’s eyes, Nwoye’s behavior called for constant nagging and physical punishment. Okonkwo despised his father, as well as lazy men and any traits resembling his father’s, such as music, emotions, conversation, and compromise. Violence was the only approach he understood; he had no inclination for peaceful resolutions or compromise.

Okonkwo, from the beginning, is destined to exhibit his typical violent behavior by reacting aggressively to anything he perceives as a threat to his culture and people. He deals with his own family in a similar manner, using violence as the only means of asserting authority. In an attempt to convey a message of unwelcome to the Christians in Umuofia, Okonkwo takes extreme measures and beheads the messenger. This action seals his own fate and ultimately leads to his downfall. Similarly, Oedipus Rex, the tragic hero in Sophocles’ play, also shares certain qualities such as their respected positions within society as leaders.

Both Okonkwo and Oedipus held significant roles in their respective societies, with Okonkwo being a revered wrestler and warrior and Oedipus occupying the throne of Thebes. These characters were greatly respected and feared by others in their literary works. Despite their divergent backgrounds, a shared trait binds them together – they were both the authors of their own destinies. The downfall of Okonkwo and Oedipus can be attributed to the tragic flaw they possessed – an excessive amount of arrogance and impulsiveness. Additionally, both individuals had a tendency to dwell excessively on past events.

Okonkwo was distressed by the gradual disappearance of the Igbo society due to the arrival of Christians. He thought that beheading the messenger would have the support of his people, as it always had in the past. However, he found out that his actions were not approved and finally understood that he couldn’t stay in the past anymore. Okonkwo decided to end his own life, filled with sadness and mourning for the impending demise of his beloved Igbo society. His downfall was ultimately caused by his arrogance, ignorance, and refusal to accept reality.

Both Okonkwo and Oedipus exhibit the same traits of arrogance and resistance to accepting the truth. Similar to how Tireseas confronted Oedipus, it was a challenge to convince Okonkwo that he was not as superior as he believed himself to be. However, eventually both characters acknowledged their wrongdoings: Oedipus admitted to murdering his father and committing incest with his mother, while Okonkwo recognized his own responsibility for his downfall. Both characters displayed humility by setting aside their pride and embracing their destinies. They even resorted to violence – Oedipus gouged out his eyes as a consequence of his actions, while Okonkwo met an undignified death. By comparing them, it becomes evident that just like Oedipus Rex, Okonkwo embodies the characteristics of a tragic hero.

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