Okonkwo as a Tragic Hero-Things Fall Apart
OKONKWO AS A: TRAGIC HERO Aristotle once said “A man doesn’t become a hero until he can see the root of his downfall.” The protagonist of the book “Things Fall Apart” by Chinua Achebe, Okonkwo demonstrates characteristics of being an Aristotelian tragic hero. According to Aristotle, a Tragic Hero is one who exhibits a tragic flaw that causes a reversal of fortune to him in his own error of judgment. Okonkwo is a leader and a hardworking member of the Igbo tribe of the village of Umofia whose tragic flaw is his immense fear of appearing emotionally weak in his community.
Achebe introduces Okonkwo to us as a self-established and hardworking man. After the death of his carefree and indolent father, who left him with undue debt he took the responsibility of providing for his family. Even though there happened to be a drought the first season and heavy nonstop rain throughout the second season, which resulted in complete wastage of the crop, Okonkwo persevered and kept working hard on the field. His hard work and endurance through difficult circumstances eventually pay off; he turns out to be affluent, has earned several titles, holds a high-ranking position in the community and is also known for his skills as a wrester:
“Okonkwo was clearly cut out for great things. He was still young but he had won fame as the greatest wrestler in the nine villages.”(Pg. 8)
Personifying qualities of strength and agility that are most required in wrestling, Okonkwo has won quite a few wrestling matches since a young age. A predominant match in wrestling took place when he threw Amalinze the ‘Cat’ who had been undefeated for seven years. This particular incident played a major part in raising his stature amongst the tribe. His actions majorly revolve around the fear that any kind of visible weakness in him could turn out to be a negative for him i.e. make him lose control over his family and his status in the village Umofia.
“Age was respected among his people, but achievement
Achebe introduces Okonkwo to us as a self-established and hardworking man. After the death of his carefree and indolent father, who left him with undue debt he took the responsibility of providing for his family. Even though there happened to be a drought the first season and heavy nonstop rain throughout the second season, which resulted in complete wastage of the crop, Okonkwo persevered and kept working hard on the field. His hard work and endurance through difficult circumstances eventually pay off; he turns out to be affluent, has earned several titles, holds a high-ranking position in the community and is also known for his skills as a wrester:
“Okonkwo was clearly cut out for great things. He was still young but he had won fame as the greatest wrestler in the nine villages.”(Pg. 8)
Personifying qualities of strength and agility that are most required in wrestling, Okonkwo has won quite a few wrestling matches since a young age. A predominant match in wrestling took place when he threw Amalinze the ‘Cat’ who had been undefeated for seven years. This particular incident played a major part in raising his stature amongst the tribe. His actions majorly revolve around the fear that any kind of visible weakness in him could turn out to be a negative for him i.e. make him lose control over his family and his status in the village Umofia.
“Age was respected among his people, but achievement
Bibliography: "Okonkwo in Chinua Achebe 's Things Fall Apart." 123HelpMe.com. 16 Jan 2015 <http://www.123HelpMe.com/view.asp?id=162766>