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Annalisa Pena

Mr. Janosch

AP Literature

April 2, 2018

The Power of Human Desire: Things Fall Apart

One of the strongest forces in the world is the tenacious nature and influence of human

desire. In Chinua Achebe’s novel “Things Fall Apart”, Okonkwo struggles with deciphering

between his true animalistic desire (his ID), the clan’s cultural standards (Superego) and the

decisions that he chooses to make (his Ego). The person that Okonkwo outwardly expressed

throughout the novel demonstrated a violent, dominant, heartless and private persona. In the

novel we understand how Okonkwo developed into such a cold person-- most of which rooted

from his hatred towards his father Unoka; with the knowledge of Okonkwo’s true emotions and

who he chooses to publicly be, we can see the Psycho-Analyticial Theory coming into play.

Human desire plays a significant part into the decisions and the person that Okonkwo exudes, so

much so logic is thrown to the wind.

In the start of the book we are instantly informed of Okonkwo’s and Unoka’s

relationship. Okonkwo views Unoka as weak and a failure due to his numerous debts, as well as,

his inability to provide for his family. This hatred is rooted so deep within his conscious that

everything he does is in response or related to that hatred. When Ikemefuna enters the clan and is

assigned to Okonkwo, his issues with his father ultimately cause him to kill Ikemefuna. There

are two main reasons as to why the Psycho-Analytical Theory can be applied to the situation.

The father-related issues Okonkwo has, give him this substantially unavoidable fear of being

weak in any aspect; meaning physically and emotionally. When the Oracle called for Ikemefuna
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to be sacrificed in a ritual, Okonkwo volunteered to take his life in spite of the fact that

Ikemefuna was like a son to him--more than his own. Okonkwo felt that if he didn't kill

Ikemefuna then he would have been thought of as emotionally weak because of his connection

with him. It seems as if Okonkwo's ID was broken up into two desires that contradicted each

other. One desire was to display his strength, therefore opposing his father's weakness, while the

other desire was in the intentions of a father; no father would want to see their son die and no

father-- by any means-- would be a part of their child’s departure.

The super-ego comes into play in this situation as well, taking into account the values of

the clan. Okonkwo was a renowned wrestler and fierce warrior, so his status was built on an

image of strength. The Umuofia clan valued high status which Okonkwo obtained, however on

top of that, the expectation of Okonkwo was to be an emblem of strength. One of the two desires

within his ID lines up with his social expectation (his superego) therefore his final action was to

display just what he was expected to, strength; in his mind that was to be displayed by killing

Ikemefuna: his ego’s decision.

As demonstrated in this particular moment in the novel, human desire can be so potent

and controlling, that it may take over any other option in a decision. In philosophy, human desire

is often depicted as an unforgiving craving that is constantly on the forefront of somebody's

mind. As worded by the “Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy”, “For an organism to desire p is

for the organism to be disposed to take whatever actions it believes are likely to bring about p”.

To better understand this philosophy we can apply it to the situation in Things Fall Apart: For

Okonkwo to desire to contrast his father’s persona, is for Okonkwo to be disposed to take

whatever actions [he] believes are likely to bring about that desire. The concept of a desire or

craving from an outward perspective may seem like something that is negotiable within one's
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mind. In this quote the language of “disposed” is taken with an extremely heavy hand in

depicting just how strong desire can be. In order to empathize and understand why Okonkwo

beats his wife, kills Ikemefuna and carries himself with such an outwardly masculine facade, we

have to understand just how overwhelming and encapsulating his desire is to be “better” than his

father was.

Okonkwo is a difficult character to like. From a surface-level read of the book, someone

may believe that a Okonkwo is a violent and cold person. But once you look further into

Okonkwo's past and how it lines up with his actions, we can understand just how complex this

character really is. When his daughter Enzima got sick we can see him frantically doing

everything in his power to save her. Okonkwo has a good heart but his desire, social pressure and

personal standards cause him to make distasteful and indifferent decisions; ultimately leading

him to his downfall in the end of the book.

Work Cited:

- Chua, John, and Suzanne Pavlos. Things Fall Apart. Hungry Minds, 2001.
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- “Psychoanalytical Theory Applied to Native Son.” English Curriculum Guides and

Activities | Prestwick House, www.prestwickhouse.com/.

- Schroeder, Tim. “Desire.” Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy, Stanford University, 9

Apr. 2015, plato.stanford.edu/entries/desire/#ActBasTheDes.