Okonkwo is seen throughout the village as a powerful man. He became famous when he was little due to his victories in wrestling. He has three wives and six children. His wives respect him and fulfill most of their duties. Okonkwo’s kids are respectful, but he is not the best father figure in some ways.

Okonkwo’s eldest child, Nwoye, from his first wife is his first son. Nwoye has a passive personality and is more laid back than his father. Okonkwo does not that like. It reminds him of his father whom he does not like. His father, Unoka, was a lazy man who had a lot of debt. He was known as an igbala to the village, which meant man without a title. Okonkwo did not want to be like his father, so at a young age, he started his own life and gained a lot of responsibility. Okonkwo wants Nwoye to be more like him. However, Nwoye does not take the initiative to go out on his own and start his own life like his father did at that age. Achebe writes, “Nwoye knew that it was right to be masculine and to be violent, but somehow he still preferred the stories that his mother used to tell him…” (Achebe 53). Okonkwo’s views on a man’s life were different than his son, which caused a few problems.

Another one of Okonkwo’s children was Ezinma. She was the only child of Okonkwo’s second wife, Ekwefi. Okonkwo was fond of his daughter. She is strong willed and he admits to wishing that she were a boy instead. If she was a boy, Okonkwo is confident that she would take on all the responsibilities that a young boy would need. Okonkwo also admired his daughter because he reminded him of what her mother used to look like. Ekwefi used to be one of the prettiest girls in the village, and Ezinma looks like her and he liked that. Okonkwo show’s that he cares about his daughter when she is taken to the cave and he shows up at the cave to see Ekwefi sitting outside. Okonkwo says, “Go home and sleep, I shall wait here” (Achebe 108). The reader later finds out that he walked to the cave and back home three times before that and they had not arrived yet. Okonkwo wanted to make sure his precious daughter was okay.

Okonkwo has different relationships with his different children. He does not see Nwoye as the successful type, and that disappoints him. However, when Ikemefuna was there, they got close because he saw Ikemefuna as a son and Ikemefuna and Nwoye was always with him. Okonkwo has a better relationship with Ezinma based on her stronger and more responsible personality. Okonkwo is not the ultimate father because he favors one more than others and admits to Oberikia that he is not proud of his own son.