How Does Okonkwo Influence Things Fall Apart

King Lear was one of the play of Shakespeare’s which written in 1605 and was famous for its tragic. Things Fall Apart was completed in 1959 and it was considered as the first novel which written by the Nigeria writer Chinua Achebe. It was praised as the first novel that written in English language by a native African writer and has captured readers attention throughout the world. In King Lear, the old Lear wanted to step down from his throne, so that he planned to divide his territory equality to his three daughters. However, he putted his three daughters into a test that asked them to praise him before he distributed his territory to his daughters. His eldest daughter, Goneril, and second daughter, Regan flattered him with
overblown words where Goneril praised her father that: “Sir I do love you more than word can wield the matter.” (King Lear, ACT 1. SC. 1, Line 60) But his youngest and favorite daughter, Cordelia only expressed her sincere love and respect to her father with simple words without any flattering. Lear was unsatisfied with his little daughter so that he disowned Cordelia, so that he gives his territory to Goneril and Regan. This is the beginning of the tragedy of this large family. The King gave very high expectation to his first two daughters and hoped that his generous action will be paid, even in different forms. However, the time of everything have been changed. The overblown words without any real action was meaningless. After get the territory from their father, Goneril and Regan changed their manner quickly and began to treat their father cruelly. Edmund had done several conspiracies to frame up Lear. In a storm night, Lear was refused outside of doors and has no place to go, except for the thunderstorm. Under this circumstance, he met a disciple who comfort him. He confessed to the disciple that he has misunderstood his youngest daughter, Cordelia, and he expressed his desperation. But the disciple comfort him that his little daughter love him all the time. In fact, the disciple was disguised by Cordelia. She came back for revenge on her sisters but still worried about her father, the old Lear. At last, Cordelia’s revenge was defeated, and was arrested and killed by Edmund. The old Lear died due to deep sorrow of Cordelia’s death. Things Fall Apart was a story about Okonkwo hold his principles for years and had never been changed throughout his life although he has been deeply influenced by his life experiences.
Okonkwo was born in a poor family. His father was a coward and did not want to do his form work. Their family was mocked by their neighbors because of the poverty. As the book expressed “with a father like Unoka, Okonkwo did not have the start in life which many young men had. He neither inherited a barn nor a title, nor even a young wife.” (Things Fall Apart, Chapter 3, Page 13) However, Okonkwo was eager to be the excellent one, this is his natural instinct. He determined to be a real man that be respected by his neighbors through his hard working where it says, “But in spite of those disadvantages, he had begun even in his father’s lifetime to lay the foundations of a prosperous future. It was slow and painful.” (Things Fall Apart, Chapter 3, Page 13) Despite of suffering process to being a successful person, Okonkwo kept his target and overcome his goal in the end. He got asserts that envied by others. He praised the value of labor because he believes that it is fair that people able to succeed through their hard working. In the funeral of Ezeudu, Okonkwo killed the deceased person’s sixteen-year-old son. Although it is natural to uses his rest of life to pay for the life killed by him, but he was released under the protection of the local convention. After that, he went to the relatives of his mother as a refugee and was allowed come back after seven
years. Okonkwo came back to hometown with his ambition after seven years. But everything in his hometown was changed because of white colonist when he has great hope for the future. Nwoye, the oldest son of Okonkwo, was not satisfied with his father’s way of life so that he began to comfort the missionary. Although Okonkwo was very angry but he has no choices. He hanged himself because he cannot withstand the insult by the colonists Both of the characters in King Lear and Things Fall Apart have been deeply influenced by the trends of change. The old Lear was the one who owns the greatest power in his territory, however, he was betrayed by his first two daughters and has suffered the greatest pain in the world: the loss of his beloved daughter, the loss of his territory, and the loss of honest followers. Meanwhile, the same change of fate happened as well in Things Fall Apart. Okonkwo’s principles was highly accordance by his clansman so that he get great success and receive reputation in his society at the beginning. However, after he came back after seven year, the white colonists invade their tribe, he found that everything have changed and the praised convention has been abandoned by his clansman. He handed himself on a tree. But the most miserable thing in his tribe is the behavior of suicide was intolerable by the belief of their clansman. The people in his tribe were even not allowed to touch his remains, so that his body must be removed by one person from the white colonists. The balance was broken and Okonkwo was began to turning worse because of the white colonist: Okonkwo was a strong and welcomed supporter of the belief in his hometown, but his remains was abandoned by his followers now. On the whole, the destiny of ones will simple changed by any conditions on the road.