That year, the harvest was mournful and brought many farmers to tears as they unearthed the wretched and decaying yams. In the midst of it all, one man took his own life by tying his cloth to a tree and hanging himself. Okonkwo carried the memory of that tragic year with him for the rest of his days, always experiencing a cold shiver upon recollection. It astonished him in retrospect that he did not succumb to overwhelming despair.
He was aware of his fierce fighting abilities, but that particular year had been enough to shatter even the strongest lion’s spirit (Achebe 2947). “Having made it through that year,” he would often proclaim, “I can endure anything.” He relinquished his unwavering determination. During that devastating month of harvest, his father, Unoka, who was suffering from illness, had assured him: “Do not lose hope. I am confident that you will not lose hope. You possess a courageous and honorable heart.”
“The pride of a proud heart allows it to survive a general failure, as such a failure does not hurt its pride. It is more difficult and bitter when a person fails alone.” (Achebe 2947) Achebe’s novel, Things Fall Apart, is an epic that shares similarities with stories about heroes in various cultures. These heroes are exceptional individuals whose success and fate are intertwined with the prosperity and destiny of their society. Through their great accomplishments for themselves and their communities, they gain immense fame and become heroes.
Okonkwo follows this pattern of judgment in Umuofia, where a man’s worth is determined by his own achievements rather than the reputation of his father. In Umuofia, the community highly values success. Okonkwo desires to earn the respect and admiration of all as a wealthy, powerful, and controlling man – the complete opposite of his father’s image. His father, Unoka, was viewed as a failure and a lazy person who was often ridiculed. This brought immense shame to Okonkwo, causing him to reject everything that he believed his father represented. Okonkwo saw his own father as an obstacle to his success and as a role model of what he should not become…
