A Meeting In The Dark 2h1343

What superstitious beliefs do you still believe in? What traditional practices do you still practice at home?

Who in this room is a Christian?

A MEETING IN THE DARK James Ngugi

AL JEFFREY L. GONZALES Reporter

ABOUT THE AUTHOR  Born in 1938 into a large Kikuyu family, Ngugi was baptised James Ngugi.  He was a devout Christian and attended the leading school for Africans in colonial Kenya, the Alliance High School.  He studied at Makerere University College in Kampala, Uganda, and at Leeds University in Britain followed.  Later, he rejected Christianity and its colonial implications and, symbolically, changed his name to Ngugi wa Thiong’o.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR He felt that colonial education leads to a loss of identity and a limited sense of one’s origins, and in his work he displays anger towards the feelings of isolation this education leads to.  In 1977, as a result of his involvement with a communal theatre project, he was detained by the Kenyan government, although no reason was given for his imprisonment.  He continued to write in prison, and was released in 1978 in a general amnesty.  It was after this that he decided to write in his native Kikuyu and then rework his prose in English.

REPUBLIC OF KENYA

KENYA Kenya is located in East Africa, on the equator. In 2012, the population of Kenya was estimated to be around 43 million. Kenya is officially known as the Republic of Kenya. The capital and largest city is Nairobi. Mombasa is the second largest city. The two official languages in Kenya are English and Swahili, although there are dozens of other languages spoken in various parts of the country.

KENYA  Kenya shares Lake Victoria, the world's second largest fresh water lake, with Tanzania and Uganda.  Kenya features many national parks and wildlife reserves, with safaris being a popular activity for visitors. Agriculture is important to Kenya's economy, especially tea, coffee and flowers. Large animals such buffalo, leopards, elephants and rhinoceros are Kenya.

as lions, present in

In Kenya they drive on the left-hand side of the road.

KENYA Kenya is named after Mt Kenya, the tallest mountain in the country (5,199 metres, 17,057 feet). Kenya gained independence from the United Kingdom in 1963. Hydroelectricity is the largest contributor to Kenya's electricity supply. Kenya is a developing country and half of the population live in poverty.

THE FLAG OF KENYA Kenya's flag is a black, red, green, and white with a traditional Masai shield and white spears in the center. The colour black represents the people of the Republic of Kenya, red for the blood shed during the fight for independence, and green for the country's landscape and natural wealth. The white fimbriation was added later to symbolise peace and honesty. The black, red, and white traditional Maasai shield and two  spears symbolise the defense of all the things mentioned above.

NAIROBI NATIONAL PARK Nairobi National Park is just near the center of Nairobi with only a fence separating the park’s wildlife from the metropolis. Nairobi’s skyscrapers can be seen from the park. Despite its proximity to the city and the relative small size of the park, Nairobi National Park boasts a large and varied wildlife population.

MOUNT KENYA Mount Kenya is the highest mountain in Kenya and the second-highest in Africa, after Kilimanjaro. The mountain offers a beautiful sight. Its series of peaks are crowned with snow, and its slopes are covered with forest. The 5199 meter (17,057 ft) high summit is a difficult technical climb, several lowers peaks however are an easy destination for any fit trekker

SAMBURO NATIONAL RESERVE Samburu National Reserve is a very peaceful national park in Northern Kenya. It attracts wildlife because of the Uaso Nyiro River that runs through it and the mixture of forest and grassland vegetation. All three big cats, lion, cheetah and leopard, can be found here, as well as elephants, buffalo and hippos. The Uaso Nyiro River contains large numbers of Nile crocodile.

LAKE NAKURU Lake Nakuru is a very shallow lake in central Kenya. The lake’s abundance of algae attracts vast quantities of lesser flamingos, sometimes more than one million at once. Often called the greatest bird spectacle on earth, the flamingos are one of Kenya’s top attractions. Sadly, in recent years the number of flamingos at Lake Nakuru has been decreasing, due to environmental degradation and pollution.

 MASAI MARA NATIONAL RESERVE one of the top tourist attractions in Kenya and the country’s most popular game park. Each year the Masai Mara National Reserve is visited by thousands of tourists who come here to watch the exceptional population of game and the annual migration of zebra and wildebeest. The “Great Migration” takes place every year from July to October when millions of wildebeest and zebra migrate from the Serengeti in Tanzania.

“Soon everyone will know that he has created and killed.”

SYNOPSIS This short story by Ngugi wa Thiong’o, is a captivating story about a young man trapped in a conflict that many young men face today. The young man, John, rebellious of his father and living in two different worlds, struggles with his girlfriend, Wamuhu, to find a solution to their problem. Unsure of what his parents will think when they find out what John and Wamuhu have done, John begins to panic and accidentally does the un-thinkable.

CHARACTERS - JOHN John, the main character, is a young man who is supposed to leave for Uganda to pursue higher education. The of his tribe have high regards for him, as he appears to be a model of humility and politeness despite his educational attainment and achievement. However, unknown to all is the fact that John is plagued with so much emotional turmoil as he has a tendency to live up to the varied expectations of his tribe, of his religion, of his girlfriend, Wamuhu, and most especially, the expectations of his father. All these he failed at the end of the story.

CHARACTERS - STANLEY Stanley, the father of John, is a convert and a clergyman, who always carries with him a bag that contains a bible, a hymn book, a notebook and pen. He also is feared by all and is known for his strict moral observances and fatherly attitude to all the of the village. As a father to John, he is more strict. Perhaps, because he wants to set an example to the people or because he does not want his history to be repeated by his own son. In his attempts to save his son from the devil, he actually unexpectedly makes one.

CHARACTERS - SUSAN Susan, John’s mother, is his solace and comfort from the rigid ways of his father. When he was younger, Susan would tell her stories of the tribe but this stopped as Stanley wanted Susan to tell him of Jesus instead. A convert herself, Susan has not completely abandoned her traditional ways.

CHARACTERS - WAMUHU Wamuhu is a circumcised young woman from the tribe who also happens to be John’s girlfriend. Described as a woman with so much effect on men, Wamuhu has captivated John. Sh Now, clandestinely, she bears in her womb the three-month old offspring whom John fathers. As this is the case, she demands from John that he stays and abandons his dreams of going to a University.

CHARACTERS - WAMUHU Wamuhu is a circumcised young woman from the tribe who also happens to be John’s girlfriend. Described as a woman with so much effect on men, Wamuhu has captivated John. Sh Now, clandestinely, she bears in her womb the three-month old offspring whom John fathers. As this is the case, she demands from John that he stays and abandons his dreams of going to a University.

CHARACTERS – WAMUHU’S PARENTS Wamuhu’s parents have contradicting views as regards John. Her mother looks up to John and aspires that they end up together while her father condemns men who have been educated

SETTING The story is set in Limuro a village in Kenya with crammed, rows and rows of mud and grass huts.

CONFLICT – Man VS. Man Stanley and John Stanley and Susan Wamuhu’s Parents John and Wamuhu

CONFLICT – Man VS. Culture The story is set in a time where two cultures converged – the culture brought about by the colonial powers and their native culture. John finds himself torn and uncomfortable in either culture and only finds himself alienated. This is very evident in the event when he tries to pray as he finds himself confused whether he should worship Carstone’s god or the god of their tribe.

CONFLICT – Man VS. Himself Many times, John has been indecisive about what he really wants. The dichotomy of his options almost always inflicts emotional turmoil upon him. His struggles range from the most petty of things to those that are of life and death consequences such • • • •

whether he should obey his father or not; whether or not he should pursue his education; Whether he loves Wamuhu or not; Whether or not he would marry her.

SYMBOLS  NAMES – the names do stand for the fact that there is still a pervading cultural divide among the people of the village. The converts have changed their names to English sounding names (Susan, Stanley, and John) while there are those that have retained their traditional names such as (Wamuhu).

SYMBOLS  NAMES – the names do stand for the fact that there is still a pervading cultural divide among the people of the village. The converts have changed their names to English sounding names (Susan, Stanley, and John) while there are those that have retained their traditional names such as (Wamuhu).

SYMBOLS  THE OLD WOMAN that John bumps into represents the traditional culture or the kind of people their tribe once had. She was described as someone works hard, who live on day to day, and someone who had never been touched by the ways of white man. Despite these, she seems happy and feels that she had always someone to cling to.

SYMBOLS  THE OLD WOMAN that John bumps into represents the traditional culture or the kind of people their tribe once had. She was described as someone works hard, who live on day to day, and someone who had never been touched by the ways of white man. Despite these, she seems happy and feels that she had always someone to cling to.

SYMBOLS •

THE TALE OF IRIMU AND THE YOUNG WOMAN is a traditional tale that John had often been told by his mom. He has forgotten the ending of the story and has a difficult time ing it.

“Once upon a time there was a young girl … she had no home to go to and she could not go forward to the beautiful land and see the good things because an Irimu was on the way…

SYMBOLS THE TALE OF IRIMU AND THE YOUNG WOMAN can be interpreted as the traditional ways Kenya has once had. With the colonial culture penetrating through their practices, these ways have slowly been effaced off their traditional culture. The young woman may represent the people of Kenya being hampered by colonial powers (Irimu). John forgetting the end of the story may mean the disconnection from roots and eventually failure to move forward. In the story, John becomes an figurative Irimu himself.

SYMBOLS JOHN is a representation of people who are caught between traditional and colonial culture. Trapped between these two opposing forces, John is disoriented and has crisis identifying which culture he should cling to. In the end, rather than becoming an enlightened, educated man, he becomes an exploiter and murderer of his own people.

SYMBOLS WAMUHU is the epitome of traditional culture. He carries within her the CHILD that would supposedly perpetuate their traditions. As John kills both Wamuhu and their child in the end, he both kills traditions and the wouldbe bearer of their traditions.

THEMES Colonialism has a way of disorienting and alienating people from its native culture. One fails to grow when one fails to root down.

THEMES Confused faith makes confused people.

IMPLICATIONS TO THE 21ST CENTURY Tisoy kasi! by Michael L. Tan

IMPLICATIONS TO THE 21ST CENTURY ASKED WHAT Filipino culture is like, we sometimes answer, “Three hundred years in a convent and 50 years in Hollywood,” suggesting a hybrid culture.

IMPLICATIONS TO THE 21ST CENTURY We need to avoid two extremes: One is to continue wallowing in a colonial mentality that sees only Western influences as good. The other is to attempt to look for a pure precolonial past. All cultures are hybrids and it can be fascinating unravelling all the sources and processes involved in this hybridization. Once we recognize that we are all mestizo, the product of more than one culture, we might better appreciate ourselves — and humanity.