Relationship Between Okonkwo And Nwoye

After I finished reading Things Fall Apart, my mind was left pondering certain aspects of the book. The major issue that continued to nag at my thoughts was the relationship between the main character Okonkwo and his son Nwoye. We see through the book that these two characters, with their vastly different character traits, can never seem to get along. But is the conflict between parent and child something exclusive to the Ibo culture? I don't believe so, as even in our day in age and culture we still face the same conflicts, like that of Okonkwo and Nwoye's.

From the start of the book we can already comprehend the conflict between Okonkwo and Nwoye. It starts with simplicity, in that Okonkwo is merely concerned that his son is seeming weaker …show more content…
Of course the major difference between the conflicts portrayed in the novel compared to the book would be that in "The Breakfast Club" we are dealing with issues like a child being used as a weapon in the fight of divorce. Whereas in the novel we see a relationship that is living in a time when if a certain tribe member says someone is to be killed, then they are killed no questions. We see that when Nwoye converts to Christianity it is not accepted and must lead to Okonkwo disowning his son simply because they do not share the same beliefs. I feel in some parts of the book that Okonkwo should just love Nwoye because he is his son, regardless of their different beliefs, but because Okonkwo needs to portray himself as strong this could not happen. I found this connection an interesting one, yet surprisingly accurate. The conflict between parent and child is something that occurs everywhere, any time. …show more content…
Although the relationship with my father differs from that of Okonkwo and Nwoye because the conflict was caused through actions rather than built upon a disagreement in beliefs, I can still relate. In many ways I feel like this book is about relating to the reader, like even though I'm an American girl and not a boy from an African culture taking place more than a century ago, I still feel connected because of the basic fact that parents will not always have these perfect relationships with their offspring. I feel as thought the reason the author put so much detail into the conflicted relationship between Okonkwo and Nwoye is because he knew it is something that regardless of where you are coming from, everyone can always relate to. Furthermore thee fact that Achebe can make anyone feel connected to these people who are totally different from themselves is