Ezinma is one of Okonkwo's daughters and his favorite child. She serves as a contrast to Nwoye, Okonkwo's eldest son, and also demonstrates Igbo cultural attitudes toward women and aspects of Igbo spirituality.
Okonkwo says of his daughter, "She should have been a boy." This shows us that the traits that are admirable in Igbo culture are masculine. Ezinma is the kind of child Okonkwo can be proud of -- except that she is a girl, so he cannot openly praise her or leave her his inheritance. On the other hand, Okonkwo's eldest son and heir, Nwoye, is his polar opposite. He thinks Nwoye is "soft," not a hard-worker, not manly enough. Okonkwo even has a hard time believing Nwoye is really his son. Ezinma's character shows the reader what type of son Okonkwo wants to have, as does the character of Ikemefuna , the captive from a...
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neighboring tribe.
Beyond the interpersonal relationships between Ezinma and other characters, her presence in the novel indicates the sexism or misogyny of Igbo culture. The society, at least in Okonkwo's village, is apparently patriarchal, with men having the leadership roles as well as multiple wives at home. Ezinma is a strong-willed girl who shares her father's interests, so the two of them have a more natural rapport than he has with Nwoye or his other children. However, it is not acceptable for a father to favor his daughter in this village.
Finally, Ezinma's illness and supposed status as an ogbanje shows us about the spiritual beliefs of the community. The ogbanje is thought of as a spirit who keeps returning to the mother's womb (the mother has miscarriages). When one of these spirit children does survive, though, he or she may be at risk and there are procedures that must be followed, rituals to uphold. We see these when Ezinma has to help the priest find a pebble that is associated with her curse, as well as when the priestess comes to take the ill Ezinma to an oracle in the middle of the night with no explanation. After that journey, though, she seems to recover. These incidents give the reader insight into the cultural and spiritual practices of the village.
What roles do Enzima and Nwoye play in Things Fall Apart?
Nwoye functions as a foil for Okonkwo and as a major cause of the despair and disgust he feels at the changes that take place in Umuofia. He is a symbol of the way in which things have fallen apart. Okonkwo despised his father, Unoka—a lazy, unsuccessful man who cared only for playing the flute and drinking palm wine. Okonkwo becomes the exact opposite of his father in every way: wealthy, successful, industrious, highly respected, a renowned wrestler and warrior.
Nwoye already resembles his grandfather, Unoka, at the beginning of the book. He is passive and lazy, and it soon becomes clear that he will never be a success like Okonkwo. When he finally becomes a Christian like other outcasts and people of low status, Okonkwo cannot stand the shame Nwoye has brought upon him. He finally disowns Nwoye and tells his other sons:
I will only have a son who is a man, who will hold his head up among my people. If any one of you prefers to be a woman, let him follow Nwoye now while I am alive so that I can curse him. If you turn against me when I am dead I will visit you and break your neck.
Ironically, while he insults Nwoye by calling him a woman, Okonkwo's favorite child is his daughter, Ezinma. His first words to her in the book are to tell her to stop sitting like a man, but he always regrets that she was not, in fact, a boy, since he loves her more than any of his sons and she is the one who most resembles him in character. Nwoye and Ezinma both demonstrate Okonkwo's bad luck. He works hard and strives against fate, but the legacy of his hated father returns in his eldest son while the child who shows the most manly virtue is a girl.