theme of betrayal in "the grain of wheat" by ngugi wa thiongo
TRANSCRIPT
Theme of Betrayal in “The Grain of Wheat”Presented by Riddhi Jani
Roll no:23
Semester: 4rth
Year: 2014-’15
Paper: 14, African Literature
Submitted to: Smt. S. B. Gardy Department of EnglishMaharaja Krishnakumarsinhji Bhavnagar University
• “The Grain of Wheat”- a complex novel.
• Multiple narrative lines.
• Mugo, Gikonyo, Karanja and Mumbi.
• Mau Mau struggle for freedom.
• Failure of the rebellion- British policy of ‘Divide and Rule’.
• Time of the novel is 1963.
Theme of Betrayal in the novel• Mugo’s betrayal of his friend Kihika.
• Both saw their life from different stands.
• Mugo’s confessional speech:
" I wanted to live my life. I never wanted to be involved in anything. Then he came into my life, here, a night like
this, and pulled me into the stream. So I kiled him.”
• Betrayal of Gikonyo and Mumbi.
• Gikonyo breaks the oath of Mau Mau struggle.
• Mumbi breaks her marital vow.
• The words of Gikonyo’s mother.
“See how you have broken your home .You have driven a good woman to misery for nothing , let us now see what profit will
bring you , to go on piosoning your mind with these things when you should have accepted and sought how best to build your life . But you, like a foolish child , have never wanted to
know what happened.Or what woman Mumbi really is.”
• Mugo’s confession makes Gikonyo realize that Mumbi is really a good woman .
• Their life is also then settled.
• Love of both for each other gets renewal.
• Another betrayer is Karanja here.
• Karanja deliberately takes side of British people.
• He cruelly treats his own people.
That is when Karanja became a Chief. Soon he
proved himself more more terrifying than the one
before him. He led other homeguards into the forest
to hunt down the Freedom Fighters.
• Karanja betrays even Mumbi and Gikonyo also.
• These are the words of Karanja’s mother:
Don’t go against the people. A man who ignores the voice of his own people comes to no good end.
• So, in this way the theme of betrayal works in the novel.
• It shows man’s defeat from his desire.
Work Citation
• http://blida-english.bbactif.com/t195-a-grain-of-wheat-the-theme-of-betrayal
• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A_Grain_of_Wheat
• http://web.udl.es/usuaris/m0163949/ngugigra.htm