Chinua Achebe’s three novels Things Fall Apart, Arrow of God, and No Longer at Ease are so similar in theme that they are occasionally referred to as the African Trilogy. The conflict of all three novels centers on the cultural clashes that emerge as traditional Igbo society is slowly transformed by the colonizing British administrators and missionaries. Here is a nutshell summary of each plot so we can better discuss a central theme:

1) Things Fall Apart (1958) follows the story of Okonkwo, a powerful and well-respected Igbo leader, as his world slowly disintegrates as the British take control of Nigeria. Okonkwo is renowned as a man of action, and when he attempts to violently rebel against his oppressors by killing a messenger, none of the other villagers offer their support. Okonkwo understands that the fight is already lost and hangs himself.

2) No Longer at Ease (1960) is a sequel to Things Fall Apart that follows the grandson of Okonkwo, Obi Okonkwo, as he navigates the relationship between colonizer and colonized. Unlike his grandfather, Obi Okonkwo attempts to embrace the British and even travels to England for an education. Upon his return to Nigeria, however, Obi Okonkwo accepts a bribe and is ensnared in the same foreign legal system that his grandfather attempted to resist.

3) Arrow of God (1964) is the tale of Ezeulu, an Igbo folk healer and priest who slowly watches his tribesmen abandon their traditional faith in favor of Christianity. Ezeulu suffers greatly over the course of the novel, and by the end, he understands clearly that his traditional beliefs and gods are powerless to resist the new Christian religion.

The obvious parallels in characters and plot lend themselves well to your essay; in all three novels, the protagonist is a powerful or talented African ruined by the colonial systems imposed on them by the British.

Your thematic discussion could focus on the devastating effects of imperialism on traditional religious, social, and political structures in Africa. You could also compare the character of Okonkwo with Obi Okonkwo and highlight the fact that they were both destroyed by their colonizers, despite their dramatically different approaches to adapting to the colonial situation.

As for a title, perhaps you could try something like "Igbo Chronicles of Colonization." I hope this helps!