Haven Montgomery Siver E block March 21 2023 The Reality of the Fear Swallowing Okonkwo In the classic "Things Fall Apart" by Chinua Achebe, the main character Okonkwo experiences a great deal of suffering due to his inability to process and understand the root of his insecurities. Though Okonkwo is seen to be powerful, masculine, and numb, deep down he is plagued by anxiety and fear over his own insecurities. Since childhood, Okonkwo has been uncomfortable processing his own emotions, leading him to lash out in destructive ways. One of the key reasons that Okonkwo holds so much inside, is he never learned to nurture his own emotional vulnerabilities in childhood. While growing up Okonkwo was embarrassed of his father, who he saw as weak. His father did not have the same “masculine” values as Okonkwo, this caused him to be teased and shunned by others in the clan. When his father died Okonkwo felt he was left with nothing but shame and secrets. Achebe writes, “When [his …show more content…
An example of Okonkwo being destructive instead of understanding his own emotions is when he beats his wife after seeing her cut the banana tree’s leaves. Achebe describes, “Oknonkwo, who had been walking aimlessly in his compound in suppressed anger, suddenly found an outlet” Okonkwo was stressed and wanted to get the negative emotions out as soon as he could, however he could. Since Okonkwo is so obsessed with being strong, he doesn’t allow himself to feel stressed. Instead of understanding this insecurity, he rejects it completely. This demonstrates he does not allow his anger to reach the surface of his mind, meaning he can’t digest or understand his feelings. To “suppress” is to push things down, however, sometimes if too much pressure is applied it can lead to explosion. This analogy is a reflection of Oknwonkwo’s behavior. He, and the people around him, suffer because of his inability to understand his