known for. Through this, is where his suffering stems off of. Our main character Okonkwo had to start all the way from the bottom of the social class and he had to rise up by his own self-fortitude and perseverance. “Okonkwo’s prosperity was visible in his household. He had a large compound enclosed by a thick wall of red earth… Each of own wives had her own hut.” (14) He toiled and endured all of the egregious tasks and that through all of this, he is seen as one of Umuofia’s greatest warriors. A title that was seen as being a god. His many faults are what ultimately loses himself. That's is his unwillingness to strive and his nature of solidity. You see, before the white colonists came, Okonkwo was considered as a high ranking individual capable of many brutal feats that he is mainly feared of. He is extremely loyal to his religious beliefs and his traditions but all that changed when he became banished. Being “solid” is Okonkwo’s nature, as in the unwillingness to change. Speculation suggests that his aversion to change stems from his own hometown: Umuofia. Coming from a tribe of single minded people, Okonkwo has only known his religion, gods, and traditions his whole life. Furthermore, everyone in his entire tribe had the same belief system, same stories, and same background which had no diversity. Okonkwo’s actions upon murdering his own beloved son was not of manly demeanor but of insanity and cruelty. “whenever the thought of his father’s weakness and failure troubled him he expelled it by thinking about his own strength and success. And so he did now. His mind went to his latest show of ‘manliness’. I cannot understand why you refuse to come with us to kill that boy” (20-21). This shows Okonkwo’s first act of disgrace and cruelty and shows his first actions of madness within the story. Being of such high authority within his village, Okonkwo strongly shows his own masculinity. He joins in the murder of his own son just to show that he was never like his lazy and good for nothing father. Bearing in mind that a traditional characteristic of a father figure is someone who protects his own family. However, Okonkwo’s murder of Ikemefuna might just be sadistic and horrid, rather than masculine. Overcame with emotions, Okonkwo can do quite outlandish acts which further his path to madness through his exaggerated ideals.
“Afraid? I do not care what he does to you. I despise him and those who listen to him. I shall fight alone if I choose” (240). Okonkwo mainly talks about Egonwanne the town crier. Egonwanne’s nature of having a persuasive voice alerts Okonkwo’s plan of fighting against the “tyrannical” nature of the white men and their new religion. Okonkwo proudly declares his courage to fight whoever he wants eventually gets him into even deeper into his beliefs of masculinity and towards his religion. Upon his discover that everyone is resilient to change Okonkwo is even more driven to hatred. This evidence was mainly foreshadowing his gruesome
fate. When the colonists came, Okonkwo had no choice but to go against them. He hated their religion for he thinks it is evil set forth to attack him and his favored village. However, dismay soon cropped up into our intrepid hero when he was placed in Jail. Unable to escape he is harassed by the authorities within the prison, soon giving him signs of whipping when he was eventually freed. Okonkwo then goes to a meeting with his fellow tribesmen from all across the nine villages. During their congregation, however, a group of men from the church was ordered by the commissioner to stop the meeting. Angered, Okonkwo beheads them, looks around to see that everyone within the hut was dumbfounded by the fact that Okonkwo killed them. Upset, Okonkwo left and retreated to his house. After the whole debacle within the meeting area, the commissioner demands to see Okonkwo, threatening him that if he does not comply with him, he will eventually imprison everyone that Okonkwo knows. He then finds Okonkwo’s dead body, having lifeless from a tree. Through Okonkwo’s actions and beliefs has him finally pull the final straw and killed himself. Suicide is the act or an instance of taking one’s own life either voluntarily or intentionally. Okonkwo killing himself shows that with his unwillingness to change and his deep-rooted attitudes to his culture and his beliefs shows that Okonkwo although a loyal knight, committed the worst sin within his village. Conclusively taking himself and his radical views too far.