Hedda Gabler Women

This shows that Okonkwo really cares about Enzima -This surprised me because I wouldn’t think helping a women feel better is a masculine thing to do according to his previous actions of his domination over women and beating them. Pg 80- Ekwefi’s nine children have died and they think they have been cursed with ogbanje -Umuofia believes that they are “wicked” but will still do anything to help keep Enzima

Women are strong, ambitious, and independent. These are all characteristics that are associated with many of the women today. The role of women has made great tramps over past eras, as we move closer toward a state of equality. From labels such as, ―Frailty, thy name is woman!‖ females now are productive, confident, members of society. Women now have a powerful voice in the occurrences of today”.

Manhood is being treated as a human of mankind. Okonkwo, however, equates manhood to brute force and anger. Anything else was considered to be characteristic of a woman. It is this idea of manliness that pushes Nwoye into the hands of the missionaries. Okonkwo “wanted Nwoye to grow into a tough young man” and although Nwoye at times acted as if he was annoyed with the tasks the women would ask of him, “nothing pleased Nwoye now more than to be sent for by his mother or another of his father's wives” (Achebe, 36).

Okonkwo “was always happy when he heard [Nwoye] grumbling about women. That showed that in time he would be able to control his womenfolk” (Achebe 53). The society does not allow for women who were tough or equal to their husband. A woman’s only purpose in the Ibo society is to serve and please her husband by bearing him children and doing housework and

Hedda Gabler: The Misunderstood Evil Damsel In Hedda Gabler, Henrik Ibsen tells the story of a woman who seems to be confined to the norms of her society and time. Hedda, the newlywed bride of George Tesman, finds herself struggling in the new marriage, surrounded by overbearing family members, and a persistent old lover. Hedda’s stressful situation introduces a new side of Hedda that the other characters in the play are not aware of. Ibsen portrays Hedda negatively through her short dialogues with the other characters and her thoughts, however, the degree of which her actions are wrong can be measured by understanding her circumstances.

Okonkwo’s aggressive ways caused Nwoye to rely on Ikemefuna, A boy given to Okonkwo by a neighboring village, as an older brother who teaches him a more gentle form of masculinity. The bond between Nwoye and Ikemefuna was stronger than the bond between Nwoye and Okonkwo ever was because of Okonkwo’s refusal to demonstrate affection towards his son as it could make him appear weak. However, because of the death of Ikemefuna, Nwoye fears having to return to the harsh values of his father. Okonkwo’s stubborn ideas of masculinity ruined his relationship with his son beyond repair. Okonkwo’s refusal to show emotion towards his family pushed them apart which shows that Okonkwo is not willing to give up his stern values and reputation to be emotionally committed to his family.

Sundiata was the son of Sogolon, the ugly princess, and Maghan Kon Fatta who was destined to unite twelve kingdoms of Mali into one of the most powerful empires. The story of Sundiata is told by Djeli Mamadou Kouyate, a griot. As a griot Djeli contains knowledge of the history of Mali and is a teacher of Mali history. Before the marriage to Sogolon and the birth of Sundiata a soothsayer predicted that Maghan’s second son will be one of the great leaders of Mali. Sundiata faces two obstacles early in his younger years.

He knows it is upsetting to him to see Nwoye straying from his perception of being a man. Okonkwo's struggle with Nwoye not being masculine enough creates the idea of traditions versus change. It helps to show the struggle in the novel of how traditions change for better by demonstrating how Nwoye is separated from his father’s and society's standard of being strong and masculine for his happiness. Nwoye finds happiness in listening to his mother’s stories which shows how he is willing to change the tradition of being masculine in order to allow himself to be happy. Nwoye’s curiosity further causes him to distance himself from their standard of being a strong man when the church missionaries come to their village.

During the early chapters, the audience see Okonkwo's negative impact on his own family being abusive and dismissive. When talking to his daughter Ezinma he always wishes she had been born a boy due to her character. Even after going through a rough time after killing Ikemefuna when Ezinma tries to comfort him he just thinks to himself how better it would be if she were a boy ”She should have been a boy okonkwo said to himself again”(Achebe 64). When talking about Nyowe he refers to him as lazy and nothing like him most likely thinking of his father who had lived a lazy lifestyle which he is strongly against. Once ikemefuna is settled in after being home sick he becomes a part of the family helping out with tasks “Okonkwo and the two boys were working on the red outer walls of the compound”(Achebe 55).

But, even so, his commitment to his religion and to his manliness causes his life to fall apart. Throughout the novel, Okonkwo is consistently violent. He is bound to lose his temper here and there. His wives’ purpose is to cater to his every need, and when they disobey him in the slightest, they are beaten.

Okonkwo realizes that Ezinma has many characteristics that can lead her to great success but, she is a women and success is only for the men. Therefore, she will never be considered successful in the eyes of her society. In Okonkwo’s society, the tasks that men and women do are different and broken up by gender. For example, a simple question such as “can I bring your chair for you?” was answered with “no, that is a boy’s job” (31). This quote proves how Ezinma will never become successful by showing how she is not even allowed to do a simple task because it was considered a boy's job.

Okonkwo uses these traits to differentiate from Unoka and he even feels most like himself when he exhibits violent behavior in order to assert his power and authority over others. Literary critic Christopher Ouma affirmed Okonkwo’s genuine intention to change how he is regarded in society.

His fear of weakness and failure is derived from his father, Unoka’s failures, which ignite Okonkwo’s misogynistic views. Throughout his lifetime, Okonkwo associates femininity with weakness because of Unoka, who was called an “agbala” or woman by the people of Umuofia. Since women have this reputation for weakness, Okonkwo lives with constant fear that he will be given the same title as his father. Okonkwo’s first son, Nwoye’s effeminacy reminds Okonkwo of his own father. He says, "I have done my best to make Nwoye grow into a man, but there is much of his mother in him ."(Achebe, 66).

Have you ever watched someone become everything they despise and hate? This is the case of the character Okonkwo. In the beginning of the novel he starts completely hating weak men and has not a single ounce of patience for them. Then by the end of the story to his tribe he is now one of the weak men he despised so much. The biggest turning point for Okonkwo was when he first got exiled, then when he came back to his tribe while the missionaries are there and lastly when he commits suicide.

Okonkwo from the novel “Things Fall Apart” is a complex character with complex interactions with other characters, especially with his family. In the novel, he shows a very tough and hard to most of his family members. This tough and hard characteristic is more evident in his interactions with his second wife, Ekwefi and his third wife, Ojiugo were in both cases, his motivations seemed driven by anger and abuse rather than discipline. Based on text form the novel, he seems to be an abusive and violent husband to his wives; giving us readers an unsympathetic feeling towards him.