It remains evident that the culture has a vehement influence on the personality and traits of an individual (Heillriegel and Slocum, 38). In this case, the identity is connected to the perception of being the part and attachment of the significant cultural group (Littlejohn and Foss 90).
In turn, it could be assumed that the vehement feeling of connection to the particular culture influences perceptions and identity of an individual about the place of his/her culture in the world due to the distortion of the personal identification and inability to see his/her culture from the different angle.
The primary goal of this essay is to define the influence of the connection of cultural history to one’s identity and determine how the sense of identity modifies the perception of the culture based on the analysis of Okonkwo from Things Fall Apart by Achebe. In the end, the conclusions are drawn.
As was mentioned earlier, culture has a strong influence on the personal identity of an individual due to the cultivation of particular qualities. The studies reveal that the representatives of different cultures have different perceptions of the world, as the cultures focus on the significance of the particular traits (Eap et al. 630). People have a tendency to follow the cultural principles, as it is considered as a commonly accepted social norm.
The traces of this phenomenon can be noticed in the book Things Fall Apart by Achebe, which portrays the story of Okonkwo, who is the leader of the tribe (Achebe 20). Nonetheless, it remains evident that Okonkwo is the production of the society, which has to face the conflict of interests between historical and cultural aspects (Whittaker and Msiska 80). In this instance, the culture of the region plays an essential role in the formation of Okonkwo’s personal traits, as the power of culture cannot be underestimated.
Nonetheless, the cultural identity determines the position of the culture in the world in the eyes of the individual. The individuals tend to view the world from a different perspective, and their personal traits, which are influenced by the culture, determine this vision. Speaking of the tragedy of Okonkwo, the leader of the tribe is located in between the controversial perceptions of the world in the context of the book Things Fall Apart (Achebe 20).
In this instance, his perception of the world experience changes, but the cultural influence still has dominating positions in his perceptions of the world and the structure of society. It could be said that the cultural identity has a vehement effect on the position of the culture in the world in the eyes of the individual due to the cultivation of particular qualities. In the end, the role of the culture while forming the perception of the world cannot be underestimated, as Okonkwo was not able to overcome the power of his tradition.
However, the misconceptions and distortion occur due to the inability to accept the changes and monitor the position from a different angle. One of the tragic examples of an adverse impact on cultural identity is the tragedy of Okonkwo. Okonkwo is the head of the tribe, which is often depicted as a tragic hero (Booker 202). In the context of the story, he plays the role of an individual, who is able to unite all the members by the portrayal of his identity (Booker 202).
Being in between the cultures is the primary cause of his inability to define his position towards the traditions of his tribe, as he seeks the ways to protect his culture and overwhelmed with it simultaneously. The perceptions of his traditional culture cause the distortion in his mindset, as he is not able to adapt to the changes in the flow of life. In this instance, being in between his cultural dogmas and controversial perception of the world causes the distortion of his personality since cultural history has a strong influence on his life.
In conclusion, it remains evident that there is a wide variety of the example, which underline the fact the cultural history and personal traits are interdependent. Okonkwo’s example revealed that the individual’s personality could be distorted by the inability to define his position in the world and see the place of his culture from a different perception.
It could be said that despite being able to spot the change, Okonkwo was not able to entirely adapt to the modifications due to the strong power of culture. In this case, it remains evident that the power of culture cannot be underestimated due to its ability to control the perceptions of the individuals about the position of culture in the world and affect the individual traits of one’s personality.
In turn, the culture also the distortion of the personality, as one is not able to entirely define whether his position was determined by the culture or by personal understanding. A similar situation occurred with Okonkwo, as he was placed in between the controversial opinions, which did not correspond with either side.
Works Cited
Achebe, Chinua. Things Fall Apart. London, Penguin Random House, 2013. Print.
Booker, Keith. The Chinua Achebe Encyclopedia. Westport: Greenwood Press, 2003. Print.
Eap, Sopagna, David DeGarmo, Ayaka Kawakami, Shelley Hara, Gordon Hall and Andra Teten. “Culture and Personality among European American and Asian American Men.” Journal of Cross-Cultural Psychology 39.5 (2008): 630-643. Print.
Heillriegel, Don, and John Slocum. Organizational Behavior. Mason: South-Western Cengage Learning, 2009. Print.
Littlejohn, Stephen, and Karen Foss. Theories of Human Communication. Belmont: Thompson Wadsworth, 2006. Print.
Whittaker, David, and Mpalive-Hangson Msiska. Chinua Achebe’s Things Fall Apart. London: Routledge, 2007. Print.