How was Okonkwo able to achieve such a high rank within the tribe when his father died a penniless man? How is this different from the colonial era European culture?

Okonkwo works very hard to compensate for his father's weakness. Okonkwo goes in the opposite direction of his father . He clears family debts and does the work of many men to rise to prominence in the village. Unlike his father, Okonwo relishes in the blood of battle. European culture at that time dictated a social hierarchy that was difficult to break out of. Being born poor and of low status was very difficult to change, even if one worked hard.