Individuality as Resistance

    Complexity, depth, and unpredictability are all a part of what it means to be human. Unfortunately, the most famous piece of post-colonialist literature, Conrad's Heart of Darkness, fails exceptionally in applying these traits to any character who is not a white man. Because so much literature is similar in that aspect to Conrad's, Chinua Achebe's Things Fall Apart is particularly striking in the complexity of its main character, Okonkwo. His virtues and vices so starkly contrast the simplification and dehumanization of Africans in Heart of Darkness that they are in themselves an act of resistance to the bigotry of earlier Western portrayals of Africans in literature.

    Okonkwo's character isn't an amicable one, he's fairly standoffish in most cases. This is part of what makes the novel so great, however, and part of its response to African dehumanization. It's hard to pin Okonkwo down as a good or bad person, and it should be. Human beings aren't definitively good or evil (for the most part), and Achebe wanted to portray the complexities of the people of Umuofia: specifically the complexities of Okonkwo. His misogyny and hyper-masculinity are both very negative aspects of his character. It's hard to like him, especially when he is so comfortable with beating his wives. There are moments, though, that remind the reader of his softer side, such as his running after Ezinma and Ekwefi in the middle of the night, or his love for his clan and culture. Though he often treats his children poorly, it's clear that he does it out of a desire for their welfare. This variety of positive and negative traits forces the reader to make her own judgement on his character, the complexity of which is indisputable.

    In Conrad's work, white colonizers are the only developed characters, and the opposite is present in Achebe's novel. White men aren't introduced until the second part of the novel, and even then there is no insight into what they are thinking or their emotions. They play a background role, and the real conflict takes place in the mind of Okonkwo and how he reacts to the challenge he is presented with. Should he fight the white man himself if his tribe won't do so? In this way, even when white characters are introduced, the focus is still largely on the workings of Okonkwo's mind.

    Achebe's focus on the development of his characters makes this novel so enjoyable to read. It is also what makes it an authoritative response to poor portrayals of Africans in other works of literature. Okonkwo is a man of strong idealism, and this defines many of his strengths as well as his faults. He's a character of complexity, depth, and unpredictability, and he is unmistakably human.