He did grow under the shadows of his successful, demanding and powerful father. His greatest friend, Obierika, was among them. Elderly and wise, Uchendu is an impressive but gentle patriarch. Okonkwo beats her savagely during the Week of Peace, and must pay a heavy fine to the earth goddess. But there was a young lad who had been captivated.
Unlike Nwoye, he does not convert to Christianity. When the father wanted him to change, he received a lot of beatings before the actual arrival of Ikemefua who taught him a gentler form of masculinity. If someone wrote a novel explaining the cultural details of my little town, they'd write about our famous local food: livermush; our big local gathering: demolition derby at the county fair; and our dozens of churches. Okonkwo is such a man that he drinks from the skull of one of his enemies. In her youth, she was one of the great beauties of Umuofia. Their relationship is atypical—Ezinma calls Ekwefi by her name and is treated by her as an equal.
The one thing that brings Okonkwo out of his funk is his daughter, Ezinma. Even as a little boy he had resented his father's failure and weakness, and even now he still remembered how he had suffered when a playmate had told him that his father was agbala. Chinua Achebe, the author of Things Fall Apart, shows how each character lives as an Igbo in Nigeria both before and during the opening stages of English colonization. Obierika delivers news of the missionaries to Okonkwo while in exile and helps out his friend by selling his yams. He lives in Umuofia for three years, under Okonkwo's roof; Okonkwo looks at him as a son, and to Nwoye he becomes best friend and brother.
Unoka died in debt and humiliation; the memory of him gives Okonkwo a terrible fear of failure. His attitude toward her shows the more tender side of his character. This allows him to get a foothold in an otherwise hostile village, and his church members and the number of students at his school both grow. In other words, if you want it bad enough, you can overcome even the worst destiny. GradeSaver, 3 March 2000 Web. She grows into a beautiful and strong young woman.
Secondly, Okonkwo has identified the way his father raised him and he is constantly trying to raise his family differently but occasionally lets fear get the best of him and he starts to act violent. He strives to compromise with the clan; though he is determined to win converts, he restrains the excessive and violent zeal of some of the converts. Kiaga A Christian African, Mr. Ekwefi is head-strong and willing to take on any job. Perhaps, but there's no denying that Achebe's book brought worldwide attention to his African homeland. He did stick to their culture even after the introduction of the European cultures which were brought by the whites who lived in their midst. Okonkwo is also unforgiving and has very high standards for his sons, especially his son Nwoye, which causes strain between them.
He encourages aggressive actions against the clan and its traditions. Obierika Okonkwo's great friend, and another prosperous and powerful man in the tribe. Lesson Summary The main characters of Things Fall Apart are flawed and interesting individuals, but together, they also illustrate the ways in which the Igbo lived and worked both before and during English colonization. In a way, he is like Okonkwo in that he is extremely hard-headed and acts without thinking about the consequences when he gets angry. This same fear also causes Okonkwo to be impatient and brash, however, leading to his eventual downfall when he can't adjust to the changes occurring in the clan. Akunna - A clan leader of Umuofia.
He deals with those expectations poorly because he does not have the personality of his father. Brown, Reverend Smith is uncompromising and strict. Chielo - A priestess in Umuofia who is dedicated to the Oracle of the goddess Agbala. He died when Okonkwo was very young, and he was a failure. Achebe throws in one more chapter in the book where he switches point-of-view.
He pretty much hates every day of his exile, even though he's living well with his mother's family. The characters in the book speak in stories, talking around a subject without getting right to it. In so doing, however, Akunna formulates an articulate and rational defense of his religious system and draws some striking parallels between his style of worship and that of the Christian missionaries. He remained conflicted and expressed feminine things to please his father Chinua Achebe, 1959. Nwoye is the foil to Okonkwo in Things Fall Apart.