In life people are very rarely, if ever, purely good or bad. In novels, authors tend not to create characters with an obvious moral stance to not only make their novel more applicable to the reader, but also to make the characters more complex and dynamic. Chinua Achebe uses this technique to develop characters in his novel, Things Fall Apart. The main character and protagonist of the novel, Okonkwo, is morally very dynamic and shows some sensitivity towards his family and friends, but in an attempt to rebel against his father, Okonkwo also shows a tendency to lash out violently. Okonkwo's moral ambiguity is not simply inherent in his character, but is developed by the situation he has been presented with in life. Okonkwo's father, Unoka, displayed qualities during his lifetime that were not respected by members of his clan. At the beginning of the book the reader can identify with how Okonkwo would like to be respected and can be happy for his success. It is the simple tendency of the reader to be happy when the protagonist succeeds; so when Okonkwo defeats the cat Amalinze in the fight the reader is satisfied with the result. Okonkwo's moral ambiguity is defined when it is made clear that Okonkwo simply discards his father, whose death was described as very painful. Although Okonkwo's father was unsuccessful in life, the reader continues to pity him when he dies because he was a compassionate person. Although Okonkwo appeals to the reader's desire for success, and is viewed positively for this reason, he is developed as a morally ambiguous character due to the lack of compassion he showed towards his father. Later in the book, when Okonkwo becomes more successful in his village by getting...half of the paper......and in the novel as it very closely represents the reader's moral struggle. Although the reader may view the practices of the African clan as wrong, he or she can empathize with Okonkwo and also see the morally appalling actions of the Christians. Okonkwo killed, beat, and drove away those he loved his entire life. He remained stubborn and violent until his final days, yet, due to his internal struggle and his meager but tender loves, Okonkwo is still perceived as morally undefined. Okonkwo may not be considered by Western culture to be a good person, but when viewing his life in its entirety, it is almost impossible to give him a completely negative label. By telling the story of Okonkwo's life, Chinua Achebe creates a dynamic and morally ambiguous protagonist as he tackles the moral question of Christian evangelism in Africa.