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Things Fall Apart3

Things Fall Apart3 The novel, Things Fall Apart, conceptualizes that social and wealth rank in life do not matter as much as finding happiness. Okonkwo always tries to be the opposite of what his father was like. His father had the reputation of being a lazy debtor. Okonkwo becomes so obsessed with his pride that he lets it go to his head and looses everything he had worked for by committing suicide. Okonkwo fears showing affection or sorrow because he thinks it makes him look weak. Sadly enough I compare to him in this way. Expressing your emotions does not show you are weak because everyone has emotions and can easily be emotional over the smallest things in life. I do catch myself being shy at times when I should speak my feelings which is one of my personal flaws that I am aware of. Okonkwo is not aware that it is only human-nature to share your feelings about certain issues and that it is all right. Appearing emotionless, is what leads Okonkwo to his next flaw which results violence. He is harsh when he deals with his family, in particular his son Nwoye. Okonkwo wants to have a relationship with him but can't because of his lack of expressing his emotions. Okonkwo beat his wife and was forced to pay a penalty. Although he knew his actions were wrong he did not show his regret to the villagers because he did not want to appear weak. Okonkwo resorted to violence to make his points understood. This is a characteristic that Okonkwo has and I do not. Okonkwo wanted to make his main goal in life to set himself apart from the reputation his father had. He becomes well known and wealthy. After learning that the word for a man without a title in Ibo is the same word that means "women" , he is crushed. His father had no title so to Okonkwo this means his father was basically a women. That is the time when Okonkwo became obsessed with social status and because of that obsession, he would do anything to protect his image as a strong man in his village. This is another characteristic that I do not share with Okonkwo. Okonkwo began his search to wealth and status by going to a wealthy villager and asking for support. He was loaned enough seed yams to begin a productive crop. Beginning as a sharecropper was not what he wanted to be in life because he was not as wealthy and popular as he wished to be but it was his only option since his father had not left him anything to live off of. Okonkwo had to start at the bottom and work his way up to the top. This is much like the experience I have had in playing high school softball. When I was a freshmen I started to play but then quit because the freshmen never got any attention. I realized the next year that it was stupid for me to quit because I would always have to work hard to get noticed. I played my sophomore year but still did not receive as much attention as I had wanted. Though this time I knew that if I worked hard it would pay off. My junior year I joined the team again and realized how much my time and effort had paid off. Okonkwo was obviously a man with many flaws just like everyone else. He was still a hero of his people though. Even though his clansmen were aware of his flaws they still respected him and his achievements. My friends are also aware of the flaws and mistakes I have made but still respect me too. The theme of Thing Fall Apart is about man and his struggles in life against himself. When Okonkwo is selfish, he fails. When he is determined, he achieves. Reading Okonkwo's story has helped me realize that when I want something bad enough and work for it, I will get it. Though once I receive what I have worked for it can easily be gone in a heart beat if I am selfish about it. This story has also taught me that finding happiness in life is the most important goal I should strive for in life. Bibliography:

Word Count: 720