Okonkwo Flaws

Okonkwo is the main character in the novel Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe. Okonkwo has done many questionable things and he has a very unique mindset and there is no doubt that he is a flawed man. But there is evidence that he is also a good man. So I think that Okonkwo is both a flawed man and a good man. In chapter four of Things Fall Apart Okonkwo’s youngest wife Ojiugo went to a friends house to plait her hair and did not return early enough to cook the afternoon meal so when she got home he beat her very viciously. “He walked back to his obi to await Ojiugo’s return. And when she returned he beat her very heavily(29).” This shows that Okonkwo has a bad temper and his bad temper shows that he is a flawed man. Another piece of evidence that shows that

“He heard the blow. The pot fell and broke in the sand. He heard Ikemefuna cry, my father, they have killed me as he ran towards him. Dazed with fear, Okonkwo drew his machete and cut him down He was afraid of being thought weak.()” But also he loved Ikemefuna like a son and did not want him to suffer. This evidence shows that he is a flawed man because he killed his son and it would take a man that has something wrong with their head to be able to kill their own son. Also, it shows he is a good man because he did not let Ikemefuna suffer. And in chapter eight Okonkwo feels sorry for killing Ikemefuna and does not eat for two days. “Okonkwo did not taste any food for two days after the death of Ikemefuna. He drank palm wine from morning till night.”Another piece of evidence tells about how much of a hard worker Okonkwo is. “Okonkwo was well known throughout the nine villages and even beyond. His fame rested on solid personal