Okonkwo Cultural Collision
In the book, Things Fall Apart, the author Chinua Achebe emphasizes cultural collisions dramatically. Okonkwo, the protagonist, a warrior and a clan leader and must never show softness or weakness. Unlike his father who is cowardly and dishonorable man,who died in shame. In the novel, Okonkwo has many responsibilities from being a father, farmer, and leader. But his world falls apart when he has to kill Ikemefuna, a boy he takes charge of when his tribe wins a settlement with another tribe, and when he shoots Ogbuefi Ezeudu’s 16-year old son. Which vanishes him from his tribe. Over all, Okonkwo tries get back on his feet, but he ends up suiciding and Obierika then says that no one can move or touch his body because it is a grave sin; thus, according to custom. Then a district commissioner finds Okonkwo’s story to be interesting and makes a story of it and calls it The Pacification of the Primitive Tribes of the
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as he ran towards him. Dazed with fear, Okonkwo drew his machete and cut him down. He was afraid of being thought weak.” Okonkwo’s response to my first evidence is that he feels that he doesn’t want to show no weakness, but his culture pressures him and forces it mentally upon him to kill a boy who he felt was a son. My second evidence to his cultural collision is this excerpt from the novel, “Okonkwo was deeply grieved. And it was not just a personal grief. He mourned for the clan, which he saw breaking up and falling apart, and he mourned for the warlike men of Umuofia, who had so unaccountably become soft like women.” Okonkwo’s response to this evidence is sorrow because over the time that the “white men” have came and affected there culture, Umofia’s men have been changed from strong tough men to soft like women. This affects okonkwo’s identity by showing that it no longer matters being a man. Which Okonkwo has been showing and portrays through out the
as he ran towards him. Dazed with fear, Okonkwo drew his machete and cut him down. He was afraid of being thought weak.” Okonkwo’s response to my first evidence is that he feels that he doesn’t want to show no weakness, but his culture pressures him and forces it mentally upon him to kill a boy who he felt was a son. My second evidence to his cultural collision is this excerpt from the novel, “Okonkwo was deeply grieved. And it was not just a personal grief. He mourned for the clan, which he saw breaking up and falling apart, and he mourned for the warlike men of Umuofia, who had so unaccountably become soft like women.” Okonkwo’s response to this evidence is sorrow because over the time that the “white men” have came and affected there culture, Umofia’s men have been changed from strong tough men to soft like women. This affects okonkwo’s identity by showing that it no longer matters being a man. Which Okonkwo has been showing and portrays through out the