FEAR, REJECTION, AND THE ARMOR OF MANHOOD: A PSYCHOANALYTIC READING OF DEFENSIVE MASCULINITY IN CHINUA ACHEBE'S THINGS FALL APART

Abstract

The present paper provides the psychoanalytical interpretation of Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe, focusing on the ways how the unconscious fear, childhood humiliation, and emotional repression determine the self-destruction of the hero of this work, Okonkwo. Diverging from the postcolonial approach to the novel as well as the cultural interpretation of its characters' behavior, the current analysis uses Anna Freud's concept of ego defense mechanisms and explain their role in shaping the psychology of Okonkwo. The paper demonstrates that Okonkwo's masculine identity is rather a protective mechanism that is fueled by the deep fear of resembling his weak and unsuccessful father – Unoka. With the help of the defense mechanisms of reaction formation, projection, and emotional isolation, Okonkwo manages to hide his own weaknesses and vulnerability to refuse accepting anything which might be perceived by him as something feminine and delicate, and even to transfer his fears to other people, mostly to his son Nwoye. Utilizing the qualitative method of close textual analysis, the paper concludes that this psychological shell cannot survive the impact of social and colonial changes, and its destruction, not the colonials' presence, results in Okonkwo's bursts of violence and death.