Ngugi Wa Thiong O: a Meeting in the Dark Cultural and Historical Background

Ngugi wa Thiong’o: A Meeting in the Dark – Cultural and historical background

When Ngugi started writ(h)ing his novels in 1964, in this year Kenia (had just become) just became independent. The story “A meeting in the dark”, written in 1974, is set some time after the Mau Mau rebellion, which was an uprising against British rule in Kenya.

It was German imperialism that led to colonization in East Africa. In 1886, the British accepted German influence over costal Tanganyika (which is now part of the present-day Tanzania), but retained (beibehalten) Kenya for themselves. For some (a) time British interests in Kenya were represented by the British East African Company. But in 1895 Kenya and Uganda became the British East Aftican (African?) Protectorate, and in 1920 Kenya became a colony with a governor appointed from London. The land was mostly ruled by tribal leaders, but they were controlled by officers.

Tribal lands were guaranteed, but the unoccupied territory, particularly the highlands close to Nairobi, where you could crow (grow?) nearly everything, became crown land and was reserved for white settlers. Local people were forced to work on the estats (Besitz) of the white settlers, who theathed (treated?) them sometimes in a violent way.

Settlers came not only from Europe but also from India, and these Indians formed an important class in the colony. However, Indians (like Africans) were refused any political representation.

After World War 2, there were (a) lots of troubles because the Kikuyu, the largest tribal group in Kenya, didn’t want to give all their land to the grown. Finally the troubles led to the so called Mau Mau rebellion. And in 1952 the British declared a state of emergency. The Mau Mau rebellion was one of the bloodiest the British ever fought in Africa. More than 13000 people were killed. Jomo kenyatta, the leader of ot (?) the Kikuyu Kenya African Union, was arrested because people blamed him for organizing the rebellion and so he was sentenced to seven years imprisonment. Although it was a military failure, the Mau Mau rebellion brought Kenia to the attenion of the world. Finally, in 1963, Kenya became fully independent and a member of the Commonwealth and in 1964 the Republic of Kenya was formed. Jomo kenyatta was released from prison. The Kikuyu have since then been an important part of Kenian society and have (had) more influence. They are among the most educated and accepted ethnic groups. A lot of them work in government of business.

The Author

Ngugi was born into a large Kikuyu family in 1938. His parents called him james Ngugi. He was a Christian but he rejected Christianity and symbolically changes his name to Ngugi wa Thiong’o. He felt (vllt besser thought?) that colonial education leads to a loss of identity and a limited sene(??) of one’s origins. In his work he showed his anger (Wut, Zorn) towards the feelings of isolation this education leads to. In 1977, as a result, he was imprisoned although no reason was given for his imprisonment. He continued to write in prison and was released in 1978 in a general amnesty. This imprisonment can be seen as a parallel to the imprisonment of jomo Kenyatta.