Loyalty and Ambition

By Andrew G.  

          Things Fall Apart begins and ends with its protagonist Okonkwo. Set in a fictional town called Umuofia in Nigeria, the novel begins with a description of Okonkwo. He is prominent, powerful, and praised for his wrestling ability, having defeated the famous Amalyse the Cat in a wrestling bout. Considered a fast riser in social prestige, Okonkwo seems to be on the fast track for success. The novel goes at length to describe Okonkwo's motivation for his “status seeking,” starting with his father Unoka. Unoka was a lazy man who owed many Umuofians money yet was content to wallow in his debt and relative poverty. Vowing to never be like his father, Okonkwo works hard from his youth to become wealthy and becomes successful, owning three houses and having a large family of three wives and eight children. He also has an obsession with being manly to the point of being cruel—this is in response to his father's gentle personality. The book starts rolling when Okonkwo is forced to adopt a hostage from another village named Ikemefuna. Eventually Okonkwo comes to love Ikemefuna, but he struggles to demonstrate his feelings because of his desire to be manly. After three years of being Ikemefuna's father essentially, Okonkwo is approached by Umuofian elders, demanding the death of Ikemefuna. Okonkwo accompanies and actually unintentionally takes part in the murder of his adopted son in order to save his image of machismo. Okonkwo is torn apart by guilt inside yet shows no outward feelings. From that point, Okonkwo's life begins to decline. Attending a friend's funeral, Okonkwo accidentally shoots a boy and is exiled from Umuofia for seven years. He goes to live in the nearby town of Mbanta and learns of the intrusions of the white people in their region there. The white men establish a government in the area, making many of their African customs irrelevant; moreover, white missionaries bring Christianity to the tribes and win over many converts, including Okonkwo's first son Nwoye. Enraged by his son's conversion and disregard for tribal customs and religion, Okonkwo becomes bitter, realizing that all he has worked for his entire life is quickly becoming meaningless. Okonkwo moves back to Umuofia—his seven years are done—and quickly becomes embroiled in the mounting tension between the tribe and the Christian converts. After the church is burned down, Okonkwo and other insurrectionist ringleaders are rounded up and imprisoned for a short time. Upon their release, Umuofia holds a meeting to decide on a plan of action—Okonkwo is one of the strongest advocates for violence. A court messenger interrupts the meeting, ordering its ending, and Okonkwo promptly beheads him. Realizing that Umuofian people are not going to rebel based upon their reaction to the messenger's death, Okonkwo hangs himself in exasperation.
           Family plays a pivotal role in Things Fall Apart as Okonkwo continued to place social obligations over his family. From the very outset of the novel, Okonkwo places his dreams of social prominence over the lifestyle of his father, completely undervaluing and disrespecting the merits of his father. His disregard for his father gives him initial success yet sets him up for failure later in the novel—his worldview is so narrow minded that he is unable to adapt to change. The most obvious of Okonkwo's family fiascoes, Ikemefuna's murder, is the most straightforward example of Okonkwo placing social acceptance over family in the whole book. He kills his adopted son because he did not want his fellow tribesmen to think him “weak.” His actions are heartless even in the eyes of some of his tribesmen, let alone readers of the novel. Faced with the choice between the life a family member and the demands of the rest of the tribe, Okonkwo unequivocally puts his desires over his duty to protect his loved ones. He does not even show outward grief at the murder of his son because he is afraid of the opinions of his peers and obsessed with his own social advancement. Despite murdering his son for social prestige, Okonkwo's efforts are in vain; he is thwarted by the conversion of his eldest son and heir—Nwoye. Nwoye, who becomes a Christian, enrages Okonkwo so much with his decision that Okonkwo disowns him. This is just another case of Okonkwo placing his obsession before the obligations he has to his family. He knows that he cannot embrace or tolerate Christianity and also gain tribal power, and Okonkwo is so set on his worldview that there is no room for family or cultural change for that matter. Fittingly, Okonkwo commits suicide when he learns that his own people have abandoned the customs he lived his life for because of the impact of white civilization. Not only did his whole lifestyle of power-seeking become meaningless, but his family sacrifices were for nothing. It would have been better for him to accept Nwoye's decision, and perhaps he would have found his place in the rapidly changing Umuofian society. Nwoye's disinheritance was for nothing. Ikemefuna's death was for nothing. And ultimately his rejection of his father's gentle mannerisms for the harsh idiosyncrasies of masculinity left him with nothing.  
          Things Fall Apart is a frustrating story where at times the choices of the protagonist make readers want to scream in exasperation. However, the novel teaches a worthwhile message on the dangers of ambition, and the bad choices of Okonkwo help readers to find worth in overlooked values such as family commitment and love.