The presentation tells about the prerequisites for being a tragic hero and explores the presence of these aspects in central character Okonkwo in Chinua Achebe's Things Fall Apart

1. Okonkwo As a Tragic Hero
in
“Things Fall Apart”
Ateeq Ur Rahman
NCBA&E Multan, Pakistan

2. Aristotle’s view of a Hero
"A man doesn't become a
hero until he can see the
root of his own downfall."

3. Characteristics of An
Aristotelian tragic hero
▪ Flaw or error of judgment (hamartia)
▪ A reversal of fortune (peripeteia)
▪ The discovery or recognition that the reversal was brought
about by the hero's own actions (anagnorisis)
▪ Excessive Pride (Hubris)
▪ The character's fate must be greater than deserved.
▪ The hero must courageously accept their death with honor.

4. Some Prerequisites for a Hero to become
a Tragic Hero
▪ The tragic hero should be neither better or worse morally than
normal people.
▪ This introduces pity, which is crucial in tragedy.
▪ As if the hero was perfect we would be outraged with their fate
▪ If the hero was imperfect or evil, then the audience would feel that he
had gotten what he deserved.
▪ Eventually the Aristotelian tragic hero dies a tragic death, having
fallen from great heights and having made an irreversible mistake.
▪ The hero must courageously accept their death with honour.

5. Other Common traits of a Tragic Hero
▪ Hero must be doomed from the start, but bears no responsibility for
possessing his flaw.
▪ Hero must be noble in nature, but imperfect so that the audience can see
themselves in him.
▪ Hero must understand his doom, as well as the fact that his fate was
discovered by his own actions and not by things happening to him
▪ Hero's story should arouse fear and empathy.

6. Other Common traits of a Tragic
Hero(Cont’d.)
▪ Hero must be physically or spiritually wounded by his experiences,
often resulting in his death.
▪ The hero must be intelligent so he may learn from his mistakes.
▪ The hero must have a weakness, usually it is pride
▪ He has to be faced with a very serious decision that he has to make

7. Brief Description of Character of
Okonkwo
▪ Okonkwo is the protagonist in Chinua Achebe’s archetypal modern
African novel in English, “Things Fall Apart”
▪ Okonkwo is a self-made, well-respected member of the Umuofia clan
▪ Though outwardly stern and powerful, much of his life is dictated by
internal fear
▪ His greatest, overwhelming worry is that he will become like his
father – lazy, unable to support his family, and cowardly.

8. Brief Description of Character of
Okonkwo(Cont’d.)
▪ This means that Okonkwo attempts to work hard, provide for his
family materially, be brave, and be masculine in every possible way.
▪ As a result, Okonkwo becomes successful in many ways – he
becomes very wealthy, holds a high-ranked position in the
community, has three wives, and is known for his skill as a wrestler
and warrior.
▪ His fear of being feminine leads him to assist in the murder of
Ikemefuna whom he loved

9. Okonkwo, A man of high status and
exceptional strength
▪ The first Aristotle's criterion of the tragic hero requires that the
character must be noble or a man of high status.
▪ In that sense, as described by Achebe, "Okonkwo was well known
throughout the nine villages and even beyond. His fame rested on
solid personal achievements" (Achebe, 3)
▪ Okonkwo earns himself respect from people both inside his clan and
outside his clan through many of his achievements
▪ When he is a young man of eighteen, he brings honor to his village by
throwing Amalinze the Cat, a wrestler who is undefeated for 7 years

10. Okonkwo, A man of high status and
Strength (Cont’d.)
▪ Okonkwo was also a great warrior. He was never afraid of fighting.
▪ He had taken part in the great wars fought by Umuofia and “had
shown incredible prowess in two inter tribal wars.”
▪ At a very young age he had brought five heads from the battlefield.
▪ His interest in the wars showed that “he was a man of action, a man
of war.”

11. Excessive Pride
▪ Okonkwo was hostile towards less successful men. “He was
impatient with less successful people ” which is why he hated his
father.
▪ He was also a proud man as the narrator said, "When he walked his
heels hardly touched the ground and he seemed to walk on
springs.”
▪ He used to growl at his wives which was considered as a good thing in
his culture. "Okonkwo ruled his household with a heavy hand.”
▪

12. The Tragic Flaw
▪ Similar to other tragic heroes, Okonkwo also has a tragic flaw, which
is a fear of weakness and failure.
▪ His fear of failure and weakness leads him to act harshly, violently
and impulsively toward other people, including his family members
▪ Okonkwo solves his problems only by the use of strength and
violence
▪ This attitude leads Okonkwo to several conflicts within his family, his
failings and ultimately, his downfall.

13. The Tragic Flaw (Cont’d.)
▪ Okonkwo kills Ikemefuna because "He was afraid of being thought
weak“
▪ Okonkwo not only weakens his relationship with his wives and
Nwoye, but also hurts himself mentally.
▪ His violent and impulsive characteristics lead him to kill a court
messenger from the British Commissioner.
▪ This leads Okonkwo to the discovery of his own tragic fate.

14. Self-Realization
▪ Another Aristotle's criterion for being a tragic hero requires that the
character must discover his fate by his own actions.
▪ Okonkwo's self-realization starts when he comes back to Umuofia
after his seven years exile.
▪ Having seen white men settled down in Umuofia, he is extremely
unhappy with this situation and persuades his clan to use violence to
drive the white men out of the village
▪ He discovers his tragic fate when he beheads the white messenger
during the clan meeting and sees that none of his clan members go
after the escaping white men

15. Self-Realization(Cont’d.)
▪ "He knew that Umuofia would not go to war" (Achebe, 144).
▪ He realizes that he will never be able to drive the white men out of
Umuofia because his clan will not fight with him
▪ Realizing that he is defeated and cannot save his village from the
white men influences, Okonkwo decides to hang himself

16. A Reversal of Fortune
▪ Okonkwo kills Ikemefuna whom he loved which is hinted as a bad
omen for him by the villagers.
▪ He is exiled to his mother’s home for accidently killing Ezeudu’s son
and has to abandon all his belongings.
▪ Upon his return after seven years, things have changed and so have
people of Umuofia.
▪ He falls victim to his bad temper and kills a British courts man.
▪ Once a great warrior, hard working and a respected leader, he
commits suicide and fellow men don’t even offer his last rites and
refuse to bury his body.

17. The Final Word: Okonkwo as a Tragic Hero
▪ Okonkwo's character greatly fits the Aristotle's definition of the
tragic hero.
▪ From nothing, he rises to the honorable and successful leader of
Umuofia.
▪ He a has a tragic flaw of a fear of weakness and failure that leads him
to several failings and ultimately, his suicide.
▪ Finally, he discovers his own tragic fate because of his impulsive
murder of the British court messenger.
▪ Although he starts his life as a successful man of Umuofia but
because of his violent and impulsive characteristics, even the most
successful man like Okonkwo still falls from his grace.