Journal Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 14

Journal - Essay Example According to Okonkwo, his father, Unoka, was everything a man should not be. He was passionate about music and a merriment and lived a life devoid of care. Okonkwo, who did not share his father’s passion on music, thought of him as a hopeless idler. His belief was supported by the fact that his father hadn’t managed to take a single title from his clan, which essentially proved him an outcast in a society which positioned a man based on the number of titles he managed to take. Above all, Unoka also lived and died in debt. This gave enough reasons for Okonkwo to dread this kind of existence for the rest of his life. So most part of Okonkwo’s life sees him trying hard to convince himself and others that he was strong, unlike his father–(Achebe 3) Okonkwo’s son Nwoye was a cause of much distress to his father. As a 12-year old lad, he had inherited his grandfather’s gentle nature, passion for music and the love for a peaceful life. In Okonkwo’s perspective, he was turning out to be an incompetent man... But Okonkwo was firm in his belief that he could bring his son to the right path by beating and forcing him towards it. Nwoye himself was striving to please his father. Though he was still a child, he found secret pleasure in feigning masculinity and in the process, pleasing his father. He was forced to rebuke his mother’s gentle ways, thanks to his father’s violent commandments. But deep within, he was unsure of his thoughts and what he actually wanted. And more importantly, he lacked the freedom to think, thanks to his father’s tyrannical ways. He found much needed companionship and a role model in Ikemefuna, who came to stay with the family as a punishment to a crime committed by a member of the village he belonged to. But Nwoye’s joy was short-lived as the elders of the village decide to murder Ikemefuna, a wise, fine lad of 18, based on the command of the oracle. Not only does Okonkwo support the