Things Fall Apart Essay: Okonkwo the tragic hero Essay

A tragic hero is an individual of remarkable qualities and status, who suffers a reversal of fortune as a result of major character flaws. Inside the novel, Issues Fall Apart, Achebe portrays his own portrayal of a tragic hero through Okonkwo, the key character.

Just like typical tragic heroes consist of literature, this individual suffers a terrible death in the long run. Despite his honorable and respectable cultural status, Okonkwo’s tragic faults, fear of inability and anger, bring about his own break down. Okonkwo is among the most powerful guys in the Igbo tribe: “Okonkwo was well known throughout the 9 villages and beyond…he got brought honour to his village by simply throwing the Cat” (3). This suggests that in his society, power can be attained simply by achieving greatness and popularity, either through preventing or fumbling.

Okonkwo likewise works and tends to his crops in a zealous vogue, which hard disks everyone about him to get as diligent as him. Because of this, he earns his place as one of Umuofia’s most respectable leaders. Though he isn’t usually please along with his children and wives, they will bring him a sense of take great pride in and esteem since possessing a large relatives means that the top of the is able to support all of them. Okonkwo fails to cost-free himself via his major character defects, which ultimately brings about his tragic demise. Okonkwo’s 1st prominent drawback is his fear of failure, which is considerably influenced by simply his dad, Unoka, an extremely lazy and carefree gentleman.

He had a reputation of becoming “poor fantastic wife and children got barely enough to eat…he was a loafer” (4). Ashamed of his incapable father, Okonkwo felt that anything that resembled Unoka or anything that his father loved was weak and pointless. Because of his fear to appear as weak, Okonkwo actually strikes down a child that calls him father: “…Okonkwo drew his matchet and cut [Ikemefuna] down. Having been afraid of staying thought weak” (43).

Getting rid of the child illustrates Okonkwo’s fear of weakness which to him, reputation is more important than the life from the child. This flaw eventually brings about his downfall by the end when he continues to fight stubbornly against the white-colored Christians seeing that he thinks giving up displays weakness. Okonkwo’s uncontrollable anger is another catch that inhibits him from true greatness and ultimately damages his your life.

To self-discipline Nwoye, this individual becomes extremely rough in the son. For instance , when Nwoye overhears that Ikemefuna was to be “taken home the very next day, [Nwoye] rush into hears, whereupon his father defeat him heavily” (40). Okonkwo’s inability to control his infuriation eventually pushes his boy away to participate in the “enemies” and even deny his own family.

This particular frame of mind causes much hatred in Okonkwo towards missionaries towards the point of him murdering one: “Okonkwo’s matchet originated twice and the man’s brain lay beside his uniformed body” (144). His abhorrence and trend in this scenario led him to his downfall. Though his feeling can be justified, it is obvious that this individual cannot control his immediate rage fantastic quick-tempered actions.

Okonkwo’s committing suicide at the end with the novel proves the life of your tragic main character. His fear of failure and sudden anger lead him to this kind of actions that cannot be ameliorated and turned. Despite his several honourable characteristics fantastic high position in the Igbo society, he fails to appropriate his tragic flaws and ultimately suffers a terrible downfall. Bibliography: Achebe, Chinua.

Things Break apart.: Heinemann Foreign Literature & Textbooks, 1993.

Tweet