Guest Blogger - Emilie T.

As part of our tragedy unit, we have been discussing the components that make up a tragedy. These parts include conflict, revenge, supernatural, chance, comic relief, and the tragic hero. Almost every tragic hero has a tragic flaw, which leads to the destruction of the hero. In Chinua Achebe’s novel, Things Fall Apart, Okonkwo’s tragic flaw is his pride. Okonkwo achieves his wealth and status through hard work after his father spent all of the family’s money. This difficult climb to status is a huge source of pride for Okonkwo, and his greatest fear is that he will fall from the pedestal he built for himself. Many times throughout the novel, Okonkwo pushes away his family because he fears that showing his true emotions will make him seem less manly. In Chapter 7, Okonkwo kills Ikemefuna, whom Okonkwo had grown to like. Chinua Achebe writes, “Dazed with fear, Okonkwo drew his machete and cut him down. He was afraid of being thought weak” (Achebe 61). Okonkwo’s pride in his strength forced him to kill the only son for whom he ever felt respect and admiration. Later in the novel, Okonkwo’s son, Nwoye, joins the Christians. Okonkwo is angry about Nwoye’s decision because Okonkwo feels pride in his adherence to the Ibo culture, but his own son betrayed him. Okonkwo doesn’t want to be associated with Nwoye any longer because Nwoye’s conversion could hurt Okonkwo’s standing in the community. These are just two of the many examples of Okonkwo’s pride, which destroys his relationships. Chinua Achebe further shows that pride is Okonkwo’s tragic flaw, as well as tying the story in with the Ibo culture, by mentioning African myths about animals. One story is about the bird nza, who challenges his chi. After eating a large meal, nza was so arrogant that he thought he could outwit his own chi. In another fable, the bird eneke-nti-oba is so arrogant about his prowess in wrestling that he “challenged the whole world to a wrestling contest and was finally thrown by the cat” (Achebe 53). Chinua Achebe’s use of Okonkwo’s actions and African fables reveal Okonkwo’s pride to be his tragic flaw.