Explore the writers’ presentation of their protagonists struggles with identity in The Lonely Londoners by Sam Selvon and Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe

Both Lewis and Okonkwo are presented as insecure regarding their masculinity. Achebe attributes the perceived “weakness” of Okonkwo’s father as the reason for Okonkwo’s insecurities regarding his masculinity.  Achebe depicts Okonkwo’s father, Unoka, as a “failure” because he doesn’t adhere to Igbo standards of masculinity. For example, he is deemed an “agbala”, or a woman, by the Igbo because he has no titles in the clan.  This causes Okonkwo’s insecurities because Achebe describes him as “fear[ing] himself… lest he should be found to resemble his father.” On the other hand, Selvon attributes Lewis’ “suspicions” about his wife’s fidelity as the reason for his insecurities regarding his masculinity. Despite the relative shortness of Lewis’ “ballad”, Selvon includes the demise of Lewis’ previous relationship due to his ex-girlfriend’s infidelity. Although this inclusion is seemingly irrelevant to the focus of Lewis’ episode, his relationship with Agnes, the purpose of the anecdote is to convey the depth of Lewis’ insecurities. Selvon portrays this previous experience with infidelity as causing Lewis’ insecurities with masculinity because his previous partner began “living with [another] fellar”, displacing Lewis in the process. The effects of this on Lewis’ masculinity is evident in the competitive hostility with which he now regards such “fellars.” Selvon employs repetition to emphasise this sentiment to the reader as Lewis repeats the word “fellar” throughout his episode but always in an adversarial context. Without the anecdote, the reader could make the mistake of blaming Lewis’ insecurities on mere “stupid[ity]” as Moses does. In these ways, both writers present Okonkwo and Lewis as insecure regarding their masculinity.Achebe’s reasons for imbuing his central protagonist with insecurities are not dissimilar to Selvon’s. Both writers seek to subvert the colonial literary convention, established by texts such as Joseph Conrad’s Heart of Darkness, that colonial subjects were either “idyllic or savage.” By giving their protagonists relatable flaws, both writers present colonial subjects as "real and vulnerable people,” effectively re-humanising them. To do this, both writers employ subjective focalisation to intimately convey the “vulnerab[ilities]” of their protagonists to the reader. Some may argue that Selvon does this more successfully than Achebe as more colonial subjects with character flaws are conveyed through his unconventional episodic structure. However, by centring Things Fall Apart on Okonkwo - a compelling yet conflicted protagonist - Achebe extensively conveys the depth of his colonial subject’s insecurities regarding his masculinity and his consequent identity struggles. Selvon’s episodic structure limits him in this regard. For example, the shortness of Lewis’ “ballad” limits the development of his character and, therefore, his identity struggles. This is because the reader never learns if Lewis’ domestic violence continues into his next relationship or whether he seeks to rectify his emasculation issues. Achebe’s portrayal of Okonkwo as both “real and vulnerable” and neither “idyllic nor savage” is consequently more effective than Selvon’s.