Okonkwo Character Analysis Essay free essay sample

His traits can be shown by looking at where he has come from in his life, for example, Okonkwo has acquired a large amount of wealth in his life because of his hard work and dedication which he also puts towards his family, unfortunately, his family also suffers greatly because of this due to Okonkwo’s high expectations of his children and his violent ways when they do not live up to them. Secondly, Okonkwo possesses hidden emotions that are similar to his father’s but he lives in denial that he is anything like his father but he is more like him than he thinks. Lastly, Okonkwo is driven by what his father is not because Okonkwo doesn’t want to be anything like his father which causes him to make rash decisions occasionally that could make him carelessly become violent. In this essay, Okonkwo’s character will be carefully analyzed and his multiple layers of personality will become clearer. We will write a custom essay sample on Okonkwo Character Analysis Essay or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page Okonkwo has been through very many hardships in his life including being treated poorly by his father who he views as an anti-role model in a way which has heavily influenced the way he is now and how he treats himself and his tribe mates. Firstly, his constant desire to be as distant from his father as possible has created the fear of being like him or polluting his life with laziness and irresponsibility which lets him focus his time on his tribe mates and family. 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. Lastly, Okonkwo’s decision to take in Ikemefuna and keep him in his family shows how he is accepting of others and is willing to accept another child, something his father probably would not have done. Okonkwo’s father clearly had a strong influence on his life and the decisions Okonkwo makes show his differences from his father. Okonkwo’s harbouring of his sentimental emotions is a crucial part of his personality which makes him the way he is, for example, Okonkwo hates music ecause of the emotion that is required to create it, he rejects the idea of meaningful conversation because he considers it to be soft, and as he ages, he is rejecting the increasingly obvious fact that violence does not constitute inner strength. Firstly, it is revealed in the novel that Okonkwo does not like music and that he is bad at playing it which shows that he lacks the ability to express his emotions through listening to or creating music. Furthermore, Okonkwo’s ideals of not liking conversation and considering them weak goes against the mentality of his village which believes that â€Å"conversation is regarded very highly, and proverbs are the palm-oil with which words are eaten. † Lastly, as Okonkwo gets older, he is slowly realising that his violent ways are not truly making him a strong person but are in fact, slowly destroying him but Okonkwo refuses to accept this and continues with his violent attitude. Okonkwo has trouble revealing his true emotions ad even though they are present, he would never express them to anyone. Okonkwo may try to act â€Å"manly† and strong when in the presence of others, but Okonkwo does possess sentimental emotions that he claims to view as weak which make up an important part of him. Firstly, when Okonkwo is told that Ezinma is dying, he becomes worried and afraid of her dying and he evens begins to search for medicines in order to help her get better and defies the gods by following Chielo to the cave of the oracle to be sure that his daughter will be ok. Also around this time in the book, Okonkwo goes to Ekwefi and sits with her while Ezinma is taken into the cave of the oracle which shows that he cares about his wife’s feelings despite his general bitterness towards his wives. Lastly, Okonkwo’s feelings of sadness and grief when Ikemefuna dies shows that he is capable of sadness and love of his children, even ones who aren’t directly his. Okonkwo’s manly exterior does not reflect his interior emotions and the troubles he has experienced in his life definitely impact this. Okonkwo is a very complex character that has experienced many hardships in his life which have made him a very bitter person on the outside but still a kind hearted person on the inside. Okonkwo knows what is right and looks out for the people he cares about, however, his upbringing, his â€Å"strong† mentality, and his views on life have all distorted his personality to be much colder than how he truly is.