Aponte 1

Camila Aponte
HELLAII
Raeger 6
16 September 2014
Okonkwos Decision
Okonkwos decision to cut Ikemefuna down was ultimately a wrong one for several
reasons associated with his culture and morality. After years with Okonkwo, Ikemefuna had
become attached to him, and saw him as his father. When Okonkwo is told of what will happen
to Ikemefuna, Ezeudu tells him, That boy calls you father. Do not bear a hand in his death
(Achebe 55). Quite frankly this is true, for even as Ikemefuna was being murdered, he called to
Okonkwo as a father for help. The fact that a clan man is saying this proves how even in this
sometimes brutal culture, they disagree with a father partaking in the murder of his son.
Unfortunately, Okonkwo kills Ikemefuna anyway. In response to this, Obierka says, What you
have done will not please the Earth. It is a kind of action for which the goddess wipes out whole
families (Achebe 64). Obierka saying this shows how yet another clan man disagrees with
Okonkwo and tells him that he could be punished for this. Okonkwo appears to shrug it off, but
deep down he knows that he too is upset. There comes a point in the story when Okonkwo did
not sleep at night. He tried not to think about Ikemefuna, but the more he tried the more he
thought about him (Achebe 61). Even the mighty Okonkwo himself began to have a heavy
conscious and felt bad for killing Ikemefuna. Morality plays a big part in this for Okonkwo
gives a small indication of it, he simple does not want to accept it. These feelings of guilt are
unfortunately in vain, as Okonkwo pushes them away and compares his weakness to that of a

Aponte 2
womans. In the end, it becomes clear that Okonkwos decision to help murder Ikemefuna was
wrong in many cultural and moral ways.

Achebe, Chinua. Things Fall Apart. New York: Anchor, 1994. Print.