Themes

Culture and Change: The novel shows how traditional Igbo culture collapses under the pressure of colonial rule and Christianity. The white missionaries destroy the clan’s unity, replacing its customs, beliefs, and justice with foreign control.

Fate versus Free Will: Achebe explores the tension between destiny and human choice. Though Igbo belief holds that a man’s chi shapes his fate, Okonkwo’s downfall shows that rigid pride can defeat free will and bring self-destruction.

Betrayal: Betrayal runs deep in the story. Okonkwo betrays Ikemefuna by killing him, his clan betrays their ancestors by accepting the missionaries, and Nwoye betrays his father by abandoning the Igbo faith.