Okonkwo's Change In Things Fall Apart By Chinua Achebe

Abstract:

The novel, ‘Things fall apart’ by Chinua Achebe, highlights the inability of Okonkwo to change with the society. Okonkwo starts off as a perfect macho man who is well off, strong and stern. In the course of the novel he constantly tries to resist the changes which came his way. He feels helpless when his tribe is ready to accept Christianity and leave behind their culture. As the title suggests, soon Okonkwo's world starts falling apart. Reluctant to change, he commits suicide leaving back his family. On the other hand, Nwoye, Okonkwo's son chose to change his attitude and accepted Christianity. Similarly, in ‘Pride and Prejudice’ the reader can clearly see personalities of characters like Elizabeth and Darcy evolve. Both of them
Her quick wit allowed her to rise above the general nature of the people belonging to the same class as her. Elizabeth was very proud of who she is, about her position and her ability. Nevertheless, her sharp tongue and tendency to make hasty judgments often lead her astray. Mr. Darcy had strikingly similar personality traits as that of Elizabeth. He was almost like a male counterpart of Elizabeth. When Elizabeth first met Mr. Darcy at the Meryton ball, her first impression of him was that he was the most proud and rude man, present in the room based on his demeanor and attitude. Darcy conversed and danced only with his friends or people he knew, refusing to meet anyone new, which she assumed reflected his arrogance. It is true that Darcy, to a certain extent felt that the society was beneath him, but his assessment was based on the intellectual standards of Mrs. Bennet who wanted young people to dance. He even said that there wasn't a single woman in the room that "would not be a punishment" for him to dance with. When Bingley encouraged him to dance with Elizabeth, Darcy replied that she was "not handsome enough to tempt" him . He further declared that he was "in no humor at present to give consequence to young ladies who are slighted by other men" (Ch. 3. Vol.1). Darcy’s pride and prejudice about ‘young ladies’ like Elizabeth are clearly visible in the above examples. As the story progresses, both Elizabeth and
Okonkwo was the most powerful and respected man of his tribe. All his life, Okonkwo tries to be a perfect macho man unlike his father Unoka, who according to him and tradition of his ancestors that he believed in, was poor, cowardly and effeminate. His son Nwoye was very much like Unoka and hence, Okonkwo wasn’t really fond of him. Throughout the novel the readers are introduced to the ‘Igbo life’ including several traditions and rituals like the abandonment of the twins or the sacrifice of Ikemefuna. Okonkwo being a respected and responsible leader of the clan participated and enforced these traditions even if he wasn’t convinced of them. Particularly the sacrifice of Ikemefuna, because even though he was very fond of Ikemefuna, he killed him because it was a ritual. But when the missionaries entered the village, Okonkwo struggled to prevent a cultural loss. He watched helplessly as many young people joined the new religion and rejected the strong macho principles of the traditional religion. Gradually, the people of his clan converted to Christianity while Okonkwo continued to resist the change. Nwoye didn’t want to be a part of a culture where a man had to be strong, perfect and couldn’t express his true feelings. Therefore, Nwoye chose to accept the change. Nwoye’s decision to leave his culture behind hurt his father more than anybody else’s. Okonkwo realized that the Igbo tribe existed because