Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe

Things Fall Apart

All classical heroes have tragic flaws. In the case of Okonkwo, the protagonist in Chinau Achebe's novel Things Fall Apart, heroism is demonstrated by his position of leadership and power in his community and his allegiance to tradition. However, Okonkwo's flaws haunt him, his family and his clansmen throughout the tale. Okonkwo's key flaws are his intense pride and anger. These tragic flaws lead to the death of two children and to his committing suicide at the end of the book. Okonkwo's excessive need to prove his worth over that of his lazy father and his consequential expectations and projections onto his son and community cause his downfall and are the source of his tragic flaw.

Ironically, it is the young men of his clan, especially his son and Ikemefuna, that most inspire Okonkwo to act as a true leader and hero. Okonkwo hopes to embody an illusory sense of masculinity. The author conveys Okonkwo's stance on masculinity by weaving Igbo words into the novel. For example, "agbala" refers to a man without title, and is also a word meaning "woman." Okonkwo's suicide is in part motivated by his failure to inspire the male ideal in his sons. However, the suicide is more directly related to his fellow clansmen's inability to act aggressively to preserve their clan traditions.

The missionaries and colonialists, symbolized throughout the novel by the locusts, provide an archetypical enemy for the hero Okonkwo to contend with. One of the reasons the protagonist commits suicide is because he realizes that the white men successfully destroyed the Igbo through religious conversion and reclamation of community resources. His pride irreparably injured, Okonkwo kills himself rather than give in.

Like many tragic heroes, Okonkwo often feels at the mercy of fate or supernatural powers. Represented by "chi," Okonkwo's fate is not always in his hands. However, Okonkwo also needs to take responsibility for his actions. When he takes part in Ikemefuma's death, Okonkwo acts out of pride, but blames the tragedy on forces beyond his control.