What is the definition of a man to you? China Achebe's Things Fall Apart takes place in a Nigerian village known as Jamaica. The main character, Awoken, is part of the Gobo clan in Jamaica. Ginkgo's success is driven by his desire not to be a failure like his father Unhook; he is so determined not to be like his father to the point where he is willing to kill and is very violent in order to show his masculinity.
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He shows this mainly throughout the book when it comes to his relationships with his family.One example is when Awoken begins to feel proud bout Annoy becoming more manly because of Awakening. Awoken was inwardly pleased at his son's development and knew it was due to Awakening. He wanted Annoy to grow into a tough young man capable of ruling his father's household when he was dead and gone to Join his ancestors (P. 52). Awoken was happy inside that his son was finally becoming a man, but he did not want to portray that emotion because it would not have been something a man would do.
He also does not display his emotions when Eczema was taken by Chisel.Awoken was also feeling tired, and sleepy, for although body else knew it, he had not slept at all last night. He had felt anxious but did not show it (p. 112) That night when Chisel took Eczema, Awoken was very worried but did not want to show it. Whether or not it was because he wanted to comfort Kefir or be a man, he would not show his true emotions.
When Awoken did show emotions, he was always aggressive. Awoken believes that to be a man, you have to live an aggressive life. He lives his aggressive life by beating his wives when they upset him.Walkout Turner argument Awoken gave nerd a sound Dealing ND left her and her only daughter weeping (p.
38). This Just shows that Awoken acts on his feelings and he takes his aggression out on the people he feels it towards, especially women because they are considered weak. You can also see that Known lives an aggressive life by the stories that he tells Annoy and Awakening. So Awoken encouraged the boys to sit with him in his Obi, and he told them stories of the land - masculine stories of violence and bloodshed (p.
53). In Ginkgo's eye's, you are not a man unless you have complete control over you wives, children, and your household.In addition to that, Awoken talks about drinking wine from his first human head and being a warrior. From the reasons previously stated above, not only can you see that Awoken lives a life of aggression by fighting and being a warrior, but he also bases his masculinity on what people would think of him and the amount of titles he can earn.
In the village of Mafia, there are titles that clansmen can reach throughout their lifetime. With each title, there comes respect. Awoken feels that only the most manly men can achieve those titles by not backing down and being complete warriors.Awoken shows this when he finds out the Oracle says that Awakening, his step-son, has to die. He heard Awakening cry, "My father, they have killed me! " as he ran towards him.
Dazed with fear, Awoken drew his machete and cut him down. He was afraid of being thought weak (p. 61). Because Awoken cared so much about being seen as a man and not soft and affectionate, he killed Awakening who was close to him and basically a son to him. He did not have to accompany the men on the trip, but he wanted to because he let his manliness take control of his feelings.
From this reason and the reasons previously stated above, you can see that Awoken made most of his choices based off of what would be the manly thing to do, in his eyes. In conclusion, Ginkgo's desire not to be like his father eventually lead to his death; he ended up hanging himself, which is not a manly thing to do. Anger and aggression does not define a man's masculinity. A man is a man when he feels secure with himself to show emotions and know how to deal with it. One thing is for sure, men will always continue to try the fit the mold of what society believes to be masculine.
