(855) 4-ESSAYS

Type a new keyword(s) and press Enter to search

Okonkwo


            
             Okonkwo is the central character in the novel. He is the leader of the clan in Umuofia. He grows up with a considerably lazy father who was known throught his village as a failure. Okonkwo considered him to be a complete embarrassment and vowed to never be like him. He vowed to hate what his father once loved, never borrow money, or stop working. .
             Okonkwo is a masculine man that has an ill-temper and gets violent at times. He is known throughout the seven villages for defeating "the cat" in a wrestling tournament. His worst fear is to be known as being feminine. He once went with a group of men into the woods to kill Ikemefuna, a boy sent to live with Okonkwo's family for three years, after Okonokwo had grown attached to the boy. He actually took part in the killing, delivering the final blow, because he was afraid of being thought of as weak. He did this after being told not to bear a hand in Ikemefuna's death from his friend Ogbuefi Ezeudu. .
             Okonkwo got violent with his family on several occasions. He beat his second wife Ekwefi for merely cutting a few leaves off a banana tree to wrap some food. He then shot at her and missed. He was not a great hunter. He beat her another time for lying to him during the "weak of peace." It was forbidden to harm anyone during the "weak of peace" so Okonkwo had to bring the shrine of Ani one she-goat, one hen, one length of cloth, and one hundred cowries. He would often beat his oldest son, Nwoye, for being to sensitive. He thought Nwoye was lazy for his age and was especially hard on him. .
             Toward the end of the first half of the book, the oldest man in his village, Ezeudu, died. He had taken three titles in his life, which was rare, so there was a big ceremony for him. When the burial was near, guns fired the last salute and the cannon rent the sky. Okonkwo's gun had exploded and a piece of iron entered the heart of the dead man's sixteen year old son who had been dancing the traditional farewell to his father.


Essays Related to Okonkwo


Got a writing question? Ask our professional writer!
Submit My Question