Themes

Resistence to and inability to adapt to change
Throughout the novel, Okonkwo portrays his inability to adapt to changes in the novel from what he knows to be the norm. Okonkwo considered tradition to be most important to him and thus, when tradition conflicted with the changes all around him he resisted these changes until they took a toll on him. A major example of this occurs towards the end of the novel when Okonkwo returns from his exile to find his city being overrun by the white missionaries. He attempts to undue these changes, but once that fails he refuses to change himself in order to adapt to the new society and thus he commits suicide.

Effects Past has on present/future
Throughout the novel, Okonkwo seems to make several of his decisions based on his past and tries to go the opposite direction of his father. Okonkwo constantly refers back to his father's failure and how he refuses to have the same fate. The author is attempting to portray how the past may shape the decisions made in the present/future. Okonkwo's past pushes him to achieve success and become more respected than most others in the clan. Once his past has shaped his future, Okonkwo can then forget his past and move on through life.

The overall balance of the world
This theme is associated basically with Karma and the effect it has on Okonkwo. Throughout the novel Okonkwo's actions affect the events that happen to him later in the story. For example, Okonkwo partook in the killing of his "son" Ikemefuna when he was told not too. This clearly led him to have bad karma. This was seen when Okonkwo's gun accidently fired at the funeral killing the man's son, leading to Okonkwo's exile.