"The story of Okonkwo is in a way the story of our culture; he pays a price because he places too much emphasis on strength and manliness"
It is absolutely true. This story, one that revolves around a man that puts too much emphasis on manliness in his society. Throughout Things Fall Apart Okonkwo is constantly remind the men and boys among the village that they must be the strength. He reminds them that they do the heavy lifting, the fighting, the hunting, the protecting.
This idea continues to be relevant in present day society. Media is always saying the men do the heavy, hard, and dangerous things while the women stay home and do the child care, the cooking, cleaning, the unappreciated chores. In today's society, while it is slowly changing to the idea that woman can do the manly stuff too, its still expected to be the responsibility of the man to be the breadwinner, the provider for his family.
Along with that, society dictates what is manly and what is not. In today's, and most likely in Okonkwo's village, the idea of a man is a strong, muscled man who does not show the feeling that as humans we all have. Mainly in today's society, men cannot like certain colors, or certain songs or movies or books. Even as there is a shift in those feelings, it is still a prevalent burden that has happened among all men. We sometimes get attacked for liking certain things that go against the status quo.
In the novel, this idea is more pronounced and brought up, while in the present times, there is the idea but its hidden inside media and everything that is connected to it. Whether or not, the idea of man is something that should not be universal to be generalized to all men. It should be something individuals dictate for them selves, and maybe its time for society to change for the better.
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