Tuesday, March 26, 2019
Okonkwo's Toxic Masculinity
To any 21st century reader of Things Fall Apart, it is no lie that Okonkwo is a man stuck in the world of lies that is toxic masculinity. He uses his dominance to evade the insecurities he has internally. He domestically abuses his wives, and he heads the household in a way that is toxic for his children. He acts more like a master than a father and a husband, and it is a shame that the toxicity he is a part of persists to be a problem in modern day politics and home life. Okonkwo, hopefully, by the end of Achebe's novel can make a sort of peace with his insecurities and let himself feel the internalized anger he's held for so long rather than taking it out on his innocent family. Unfortunately, based on the way his character is painted in the novel thus far, I have to say that the chance of him bettering himself is slim to none.
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Considering the widespread tradition of male-centered civilizations all over the world, I think the patriarchy is probably one of the most primal elements of early society. Since we were hunter-gatherers, men became women's superior as they were physically more able to hunt and kill prey. As we discovered newer technology, the notions of male superiority were passed down to the new generations. While I'm not condoning Okonkwo's actions in any way, he was raised to believe that committing violence towards your wives/children was a demonstration of men's power. However immoral, this "toxic masculinity" was seen as the characteristic of great warriors and leaders in this society.
A key cause of Okonkwo's extreme masculinity is the deeply internalized fear that he will end up like his father. Unoka was everything Igbo society DIDN'T value. He was lazy, he didn't have yams (the "man's crop"), his wife and daughters tended their own "womenly" crops, he revealed gentle emotions towards his family, he was in debt to almost everyone in the tribe, and he even died a "shameful" death as a result of an unnatural disease that caused swelling in his body. Unoka was thrown into the Evil Forest when he died...and that's exactly what Okonkwo is afraid of. He fears that people in his society will think him weak for showing emotion, lazy for not tending his yams every day of the year, and cowardly if he isn't a formidable wrestler and warrior. While Unoka's character is one of extreme laziness, Okonkwo takes the opposite extreme, one of a very "masculine" male. Children often reject characteristics they dislike in their parents, but Okonkwo takes it to another level. Okonkwo is lucky that Igbo people value a man for his own achievements, not his father's. In English society, his poor lineage and family's reputation would have mattered; in this African society, they value Okonkwo for his own merit.
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