Things fall apart by Chinua Achebe Okonkwo's internal struggle

In Chinua Achebe's novel Things Fall Apart, one man who is both mentally and physically strong, is plagued with "failure and weakness"(p.13), which eventually causes his self-destruction. This man struggles to get through his unsolvable problems, which is a hopeless effort, that ends up killing him. The three main events that cause Okonkwo to be pushed to the limit are: the death of his adopted son Ikemefuna, his eldest son becoming a Christian, and …

…hangs himself is his home. The death of Ikemefuna leaves Okonkwo regretful and mourning. When Nwoye becomes a Christian this makes Okonkwo angry and enraged. In addition, Okonkwo's exile leaves him alienated and hopeless. All of these problems that Okonkwo faces are unavoidable, and there is no way to prevent or solve them. When being plagued with unpreventable and unsolvable problems, it is now more plausible to see why Okonkwo ends his misfortunate life prematurely.