How is okonkwo different from his father

His fear of being feminine leads him to assist in the murder of Ikemefuna whom he loved, to beat his wives, be emotionally distant from his children, and to disown his oldest son.

His three wives are there to serve him his food and raise his children. By seeing them as his subjects, Okonkwo can justify his brutal behavior against them. He can beat his wives without guilt. He can threaten Ekwefi with a gun when she talks back.

Though he does have qualms about killing Ikemefuna, they are not qualms about whether or not he has the right to do it. Okonkwo feels complete ownership over his family. There is, however, the problem of love and intimacy. He feels his father was a failure because he was poor and his family barely had enough to eat. He was taken from his family, and given as an offering from the Mbaino tribe to Umuofia as an apology for their crime.

Unlike his father, Okonkwo is aggressive, masculine, and revered. Okonkwo is not only an accomplished warrior but also earns titles and is viewed as a leader of Umuofia. Similarity 1: Both Okonkwo and Unoka died without titles. All of his struggles as a young man lead him to be one of the most repected clan leaders in his tribe.

His greatest, overwhelming worry is that he will become like his father — lazy, unable to support his family, and cowardly. Perhaps down in his heart Okonkwo was not a cruel man. But his whole life was dominated by fear, the fear of failure and of weakness. Though he is a talented musician, he is lazy and irresponsible, falling into debt and bringing shame upon his family.

The most notable one is the Okonkwo has with his father Unoku. Hamlet regrets his previous actions which caused tremendous pain to Ophelia and her family. Peter is angry and has fear at the same time. He is trying to establish himself in a society that does not accept him and it is killing him. Consequently Brother pushes Doodle to his limit and Doodles heart fails and he dies. This shows that selfish choices can hurt those who care about you.

In this case, society meant it as a man who is short-tempered, hard to control, and has difficulty controlling his negative emotions. Okonkwo fails to notice that, so he believes he is receiving praise for being inhumane, when really he is just being ridiculed. Okonkwo has been shamed by society numerous times for taking physical action against family members, whether it be beating his wife on peace week or firing at someone during a funeral.

After awhile, he was exiled from society for the latter. Still, he could not grasp that his exile was a consequence of one of his malicious daily antics. Notes The last chapter is filled with irony.

Although there is talk of peace, Baumer cannot feel hopeful. He has been granted a rest because of gas poisoning and uses the time to reflect on the fact that he is the only one of his classmates who has survived the war; but he worries about his own future and the future of his generation, which has been stripped of hope and spirit by the devastation of the war. With bitter irony, Baumer is killed one month before the armistice. His physical death is not actually described, for it is anti-climatic; the real death for Baumer came with the departure of his friends.

From the beginning Okonkwo knew he did not want to grow up like his father and worked hard to generate a prosperous future. Along with not wanting to appear feminine, Okonkwo does not think his actions through. But after three years Ikemefuna was sentenced to death and Okonkwo was sent out with him. Dazed with fear, Okonkwo drew his machete and cut him down. In this split second Okonkwo lets his emotions and fears of appearing weak win and did not allow himself time to think.

Achebe utilizes Okonkwo to display the principle of cause and effect. Okonkwo is very proactive and does things on a whim. By doing so he makes hasty decisions that will be regretted in the long run.

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