Jonathon Iwegbu In A Civil Peace

Jonathon Iwegbu is the main character in the story A Civil Peace. He would be classified as the protagonist throughout the reading, meaning he is the leading character throughout the story. The first description that is observed of Jonathon is that he feels to be a very lucky man in the face of a grave disaster. ‘He had come out of the war with five inestimable blessings” (Achebe). He survived the war himself, and all but one member of his family survived. It doesn’t state if the loss of his son was due to the war, but instead of focusing on the missing member of his family, he celebrates the people he has left. He also has his bike intact which allows him an opportunity to provide for his family. Jonathon is a very optimistic man who focuses wholly on what he has in the moment rather than what he does not.
The attitude Jonathon has towards adversity is that it could be worse, he is blessed by what he has. When the robbers showed up at his house, his family was scared. Maria, his wife, was screaming for the police that never comes, and Jonathon stays calm in the moment. He is very afraid yet stays strong and controls the situation. He does not worry about the money that is demanded, he worries instead about the safety of the ones he loves. After he was robbed, he told his sympathizers that “I count it as nothing” (Achebe). Meaning he didn’t consider it to be something to sulk on because again, his family was not brought to harm, and he has ways to support his family. The morning after the robbery life went back to normal, he went out to work, and his wife began making the akara balls as usual. They were unfazed by the terror of the night because they still had blessings to count. Money is money, the things that matter in life are the things that God