Question

In Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe, how does Unoka influence Okonkwo?

Accepted Answer

In Chinua Achebe's Things Fall Apart, Okonkwo's father Unoka has a tremendous impact on the trajectory of Okonkwo's life. Unoka never obtains titles or any level of success within the clan. Indeed, Unoka's laziness and inability to provide for his family leaves Okonkwo determined to surpass his father's embarrassing legacy. Achebe acknowledges the influence that Unoka has on driving Okonkwo toward the brutal masculinity that marks his reputation:

"Even as a little boy he had resented his father's failure and weakness.... And so Okonkwo was ruled by one passion-- to hate everything that his father Unoka had loved. One of those things was gentleness and another was idleness" (13).

Okonkwo becomes the exact opposite of his father. Unoka was afraid of war and violence, so Okonkwo becomes the fiercest warrior in Umuofia. Okonkwo confines himself to a narrow definition of brutal masculinity, and this stems directly from his strained relationship with his father:

"When Unoka died he had taken no title at all and he was heavily in debt. Any wonder then that his son Okonkwo was so ashamed of him? Fortunately, among these people a man was judged according to his worth and not according to the worth of his father" (8).

Thus, despite his marginal status in the novel, Unoka has a major influence on Okonkwo.

Answer

Among the various patterns of father-son relationships that emerge in fiction and in real life, perhaps the most destructive is that in which the son so detests his father that he devotes his life to assiduously avoiding his father's mistakes. To do this is virtually to ensure that he will make his grandfather's mistakes, while actuating his son to make his father's mistakes: a two generation pattern of dysfunction that can continue indefinitely.
Unoka exerts a powerful and entirely negative influence on his son's life. Okonkwo sets out to be everything that his father was not: rich, strong, fierce, respected, a great warrior, and a pillar of the tribe. He even takes care to avoid Unoka's positive qualities: his musical virtuosity and his skill as a storyteller. He despises everything about his father, but particularly his cowardice.
Ironically, however, Okonkwo's life is ruled by fear, including the fear of resembling his father. He even dies by his own hand while Unoka, despite a grisly and painful death, at least avoided suicide. In this, Okonkwo probably resembles his father more than he would like to admit. Indeed, of the two of them, Okonkwo is probably the more influenced by fear.
One of Unoka's most obvious areas of negative influence is evident in Okonkwo's conduct as a father. Nwoye is more like Unoka than Okonkwo, who does not reflect that he, a fierce warrior, was produced by Unoka's laissez-faire style of parenting—so the opposite style, which he himself adopts, is more likely to produce a second Unoka than a second Okonkwo.

Answer

In addition to the information in the previous posts, Unoka was known for borrowing money from everyone and not paying them back. One of the traits that Unoka had was that he was very persuasive. He was able to repeatedly borrow money from the same people because he kept convincing them he would reimburse them. One day when Okoye came to ask for his money, Unoka laughs and points to his wall where he marks all of the debts he owes. He explains to Okoye that he plans to pay off his biggest debts first. Of course, Unoka never repays his debts and dies in debt and disgrace. Okonkwo determines from a young age that he will work hard and have plenty of money for his family. He first grows yams as a sharecropper until he earns enough money to produce his own yams. Eventually, he is able to give his own yam seeds to other sharecroppers.

Answer

As was mentioned in the previous post, Okonkwo was driven to become successful out of fear that he would die without attaining any titles, just as Unoka died. Unoka was a lazy man who never paid people back for their financial assistance. He also enjoyed playing music and was not a competitive individual. Unoka was not physically intimidating, nor was he respected throughout his tribe. In Okonkwo's mind, Unoka was associated with being unsuccessful and feminine. Okonkwo grew up wanting to become everything his father was not. Okonkwo was afraid to become like Unoka and willed himself to succeed in life. In Okonkwo's effort to disassociate himself from his father, he became a callous, competitive individual. However, Okonkwo earned titles and respect throughout his tribe until he made several devastating life decisions that led to his downfall.

Things Fall Apart Questions and Answers
by Chinua Achebe

In Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe, how does Unoka influence Okonkwo?

Expert Answers info

Unlock This Answer Now

Related Questions

Ask a Question

Popular Questions

Additional Links