Manhood Issues in Igbo (Things Fall Apart Literary Analysis Essay Example)

Someone can tell what the culture is like based on conflicts by comparing conflicts to  something the reader can relate to. The title is Things Fall Apart and the genre is historical fiction. The author is Chinua Achebe. Things Fall Apart is mainly about how imperialism, or the outside, can change people's hoods. The main character is called Okonkwo, a man who wants to be a lord, and wants to become something his dad never was. Nwoye is his son, the person Okonkwo is trying to teach on how to be manly. Nwoye and Okonkwo both have one common issue, looking further there are other conflicts that both deal with that are not in common. Nwoye has trouble being a “man” and Okonkwo is trying to pretend to be a man, hiding his emotions. This really shows the toxic expectations that the Igbo people have set amongst men. 

Okonkwo deals with many conflicts, some with his father, his tribe, and others are from people who looked up to him. For example, Okonkwo's father had always been a permanent mark on him, and was described as a “lazy and improvident and was quite incapable of thinking about tomorrow” (Achebe pg 2). This is very significant to Okonkwo because it is his main  stride/motivation, to be manly. This shows where Okonkwo’s desire to be successful comes from. This shows that the Igbo traditions that they desire an idealistic man, a man who is not lazy, who is smart. Another conflict that occures is when okonkwo had to deal with a murder, where a daughter and wife were murdered. This shows how heartless and emotionless the tribe is because “everybody knew they would, that the girl should go to Ogbueɹ Udo to replace his murdered wife” (Achebe pg 7) This conflict informs the reader further to assume that the igbo people, no offense, are heartless/emotionless. This informs the reader where Okonkwo’s thoughts and beliefs come from, heartlessness. This conflict informs the reader further to assume that the igbo people, no offense, are heartless/emotionless. This informs the reader where Okonkwo’s thoughts and beliefs come from, heartlessness. Knowing this we can come to an educated assumption that the Igbo customs aren’t very kind, thinking more about the “happiness” of the people rather than ethics. Lastly Okonkwo had to deal with someone that had called him his father. Okonkwo fearing he wouldn’t look manly he “Okonkwo drew his machete and cut him down”. This quote really emphasizes the point that men, no matter what, can not show mercy/emotion. A blank canvas, a slab of stone, no emotions and no thoughts about others. The final nail in the coffin, this quote verifies our previous assumptions that the Igbo people are heartless. Your manhood is key to your success within the tribe. Understanding that the Igbo tribe doesn’t treasure mens emotions makes it so the reader can understand why many conflicts occur, such as Okonkwo killing Ikemefuna. 

Nwoye had dealt with many issues in his personal life, one of them being not being seen as manly enough, not being treated very well, and having known his brother had been killed by his dad.  For example, nwoye was a lot like Okonkwo’s dad. Due to this it stressed Okonkwo out because “[Nwoye] incipient laziness”. (Achebe pg 19) Developing this sense of laziness puts further stress on Nwoye to become a better man. This shows the Igbo people believe that there is no such thing as a lazy man, just like Okonkwo's father.  Another sad example of not being treated well by his family, Nwoye can be described as having “ moments of sadness and Depression” (Achebe pg 20) This is very significant because it sticks with Nwoye, and it really helps the reader sympathize with  Nwoye's loss. This shows that even though sadness, and emotion in general , is not welcomed many people still feel grief and sadness. Lastly, nwoye can be seen almost always talking with his best friend, ikemefuna. After Ikemefuna's death Nwoye was in extreme grief even “remember[ing] this period very vividly till the end of his life. He even remembered how he had laughed when Ikemefuna told him the proper name for a corn cob” This further confirms to the reader about Nwoye’s sadness and overall unhappiness with his culture. This reveals how the Igbo people, or at least some, feel emotions, sure they might be hidden but it still shows that emotion is felt amongst some men. The difference between Okonkwo and Nwoye is that the reader can see the difference point of views of the Igbo culture, some people hide their emotions like Okonkwo while others express them like Nwoye. 

These quotes really show how Nwoye and Okonkwo have the same issue, man hood, but are expressed in a different way.Okonkwo being seen as constantly trying to hide his emotions, trying to sustain his man hood. While  Nwoye is constantly expressing his emotions, evading his man hood and instead is shilling it out. In conclusion, Both Okonkwo and Nwoye deal with the same issue, man hood, but they express their issues with manhood in different ways. It is very similar to western culture, in a sense that people hide their culture in fear of being prayed upon, while others express their culture having no fears. At the end of the day it's all about expressing your thoughts, having fear and keeping your emotions to you is extremely unhealthy and will keep you in fear forever, express yourself.