Things Fall Apart

10 Pages 2434 Words

Okonkwo: Achebe’s Fallen Hero



In Chinua Achebe’s most celebrated novel Thing’s Fall Apart, the central character has become the study of numerous literary critiques. Okonkwo, Achebe’s fallen protagonist, is often compared to the great tragic heroes of ancient Greek literature. His journey consists of both the rise and fall to greatness. Achebe centers his modern tragedy on a character that has been dubbed a hero. However, Okonkwo’s failure at the end of the novel leads readers to wonder why the author would allow the hero to fail. The last depiction of the strong protagonist illustrates a weak man coming short of being defined heroic. For many analysts, Okonkwo’s suicide may be the greatest tragedy in Achebe’s acclaimed novel (Nnoromele 1). So, this leads to the question: what causes Okonkwo’s downfall and eventual failure? Is Okonkwo’s suicide a heroic failure or simply a commentary on his culture’s expectations of a hero? The most important literary aspects to analyze throughout Things Fall Apart when contemplating Okonkwo’s failure or heroism are the innate character strengths and weaknesses of the protagonist, the transformation of the Umuofia way of life, and the Umuofia definition of a hero. In the end, Okonkwo must be viewed as a fallen hero and not as a failure.

The necessary elements to research Okonkwo’s heroic nature should be his deep-rooted character strengths and weaknesses and the events that led to his eventual downfall. It must be noticed that one of Okonkwo’s greatest strengths, his aggressive nature, happens to be one of his greatest weaknesses as well. The sometimes violent personality of Okonkwo stems from his paternal heritage. Literary analyst Emeka Nwabueze finds that the protagonist’s foremost challenge in life is to defy everything his father had become in life (3). This revolt against his father leads Okonkwo to seek greatness and p...