he was angry at his father and how he acted, so he vowed to never be like his father. unlike his dad, who was weak and a freeloader, okonkwo was quite the opposite of him and was very successful. he was obsessed with being successful. he was very arrogant and didn't take much care of his wives and children, which eventually turned on him when things went bad in the second part. the end of the first part is when okonkwo is caught in a bad situation and ends up being thrown out his motherland for 7 years. this is very different, especially for a man who was used ot being well respected and praised.