Book review: Dreams in a time of war
Ngũgĩ Wa Thiong'o is an African writer born on January 5, 1938, in Limuru, Kenya. He is renowned as the first East African novelist to write in English. Ngũgĩ received his early education during Kenya's colonial era under British rule in his hometown of Limuru. Later, he pursued further studies in England and Uganda.
Ngũgĩ Wa Thiong'o is widely regarded as one of the finest writers of African literature, focusing primarily on the impact of British colonization on African societies. His works depict the struggles of Kenyan people for independence, highlighting various colonial tactics employed by the colonizers. His one of the greatest masterpieces is "Weep Not, Child" (which narrates the story of a family embroiled in the fight for Kenyan independence). Other significant novels include "A Grain of Wheat", "Petals of Blood", "Wizard of the Crow" along with "Decolonizing the Mind", "Dreams in a Time of War", "The River Between" and many other.
Dreams in a Time of War is one of Ngugi Wa Thiongo’s great books, where he recounts his childhood experiences during the colonization of the British Empire in Africa. In this book, Ngugi focuses on the colonial oppression imposed on the Kenyan people, including the exploitation of their land, education, and rights, as well as the resistance of the Kenyan people who joined the Mau Mau armed group in the fight for freedom. Ngugi was born during this exploitative era, in the house of Thiong'o Wa Ndũcu, who had four wives, each living in her own hut with her children. Ngugi's mother, Wanjiku, was a passionate and hardworking woman among Thiongo's wives.
In his father's house, the wives would tell stories, often about the history of Kenya and the arrival of the British on their land. Ngugi developed an early interest in listening to stories, music, and educational activities.
The British established the British East African Protectorate in 1895 in colonized Kenyan land. The white settlers after gaining settlement in Kenyan land faced resistance from the indigenous peoples, with significant movements such as the East African Association, founded in 1921 by Harry Thuku, the first nationwide African political organization in Kenya. Thuku was the first to promote Kenyan nationalism and established connections with Marcus Garvey, an international black nationalist.
Thuku also established links with Gandhi, and both Thuku and Gandhi called for civil obedience in their respective countries simultaneously. To suppress the connection between Gandhian nationalism and Garveyite black nationalism, the British arrested Thuku in March 1922. In 1929, after seven years of exile, another association called the Kikuyu Central Association (KCA) was formed, only to be later banned by the British colonial state.
In Ngugi's father's house, his brother Joseph Kabae fought for King George VI in World War II as a member of the King's African Rifles. Kabae survived the war and returned home, sharing stories with his siblings. He mentioned, "The jungles of Burma proved to be a death trap for us in the East African Division. The Japanese were fierce fighters, but we Africans proved ourselves as jungle fighters. This world will never know how much we Africans gave to this war."
In World War II black people were kept in front line by British, they were used by British in war.
Author Ngugi, wrote that among his father, Ndũcu’s children he was one of those who was interested in getting education.
His mother, Wanjiku, was a quite understanding woman. Once, in 1947, she asked him whether he wanted to join school, which surprised Ngugi. He was enrolled in Kamandura School, where children of landlords used to study. While at school, he listened to poetries and realized that written words could carry music and could also be sung.
According to the writer, when his father lost his wealth, he was devastated. He lost his mind, became violent, and mistreated his wives. He threw Ngugi's mother out of the house and sent her back to her parents' home. Ngugi and his siblings were then asked to go and live with their mother.
In his maternal grandfather's home, Ngugi became very close to his grandfather. He often asked Ngugi to come to help him write letters, but more often to read old letters and help him sort out documents, including tax receipts. Ngugi was named after his maternal grandfather.
Further, the author explained the educational system in Kenya during the colonial era. After Kenya transitioned from being British company property in 1885 to a colonial State in 1895, many missionary societies were established for educational purposes. In many schools during that era, it was announced that students should never become members of the Kikuyu Central Association (KCA), a leading political organization at the time, and should never follow Jomo Kenyatta. These declarations were to suppress any resistance activities. Many African teachers refused to sign such agreements and left missionary institutions to establish independent schools in Kenya for the Kenyan people. One of the first schools was built in 1925 in Githunguri, an agricultural town in central Kenya's Central Province.
The ideologies of Harry Thuku and Marcus Garvey, “Africa for African” promoted the establishment of these new independent schools. After Thuku was released from exile in 1929, many independent schools were built by local committees of elders and teachers. From there, two organizations emerged to oversee the development of these new schools: the Kikuyu Karing’a Education Association (KKEA), launched in 1933, and the Kikuyu Independent Schools Association (KISA), established in 1934.
But as soon as colonial influence increased, the terms “Kirore” and “Karing’a” became a way of characterising the school. The term Kirore applied to missionary school to provide knowledge which will benefit the colonial State. As author, Ngugi says, “British wanted skilled African not learned African.”
The writer Ngũgĩ Wa Thiong'o started his educational career, with a lack of many significant things and education opportunities and became smart. During his second years, in Manguo school, he learned many things about music, poetry and sport as they were practised in school. At a young age, he used to write essays and was considered a smart boy in his town. When his mother admitted him in school, she advised him to do the best of his work, so he did his best in everything as his mother suggested.
In the book, Ngugi mentions a main character, Ngandi Njuguna, who was an educated and trained teacher at Kenya Teachers College in Githunguri. The driving force behind the conception and execution of this college was Mbiyu Koinange, one of Africa's finest nationalists. Mbiyu received his education from Columbia University and returned to Kenya in 1938. He promoted the ideas of Thuku and Marcus Garvey and inspired the establishment of independent schools.
Ngugi, in this book, highlights Ngandi in various instances. Ngandi was very ambitious and traditional with his aims. He often told stories to students, drawing from events he had experienced in real life. He was a person who usually had a newspaper and was akin to an itinerant scholar, sharing his vast knowledge wherever he found a gathering of people. He would often sing songs like "Come, my friend", "Let's reason together", "For the sake of the future of children" and "May darkness in our country end". Ngandi mostly conducted informal gatherings, where he would provide background information about historical figures and incidents that he discussed. He talked about many figures who fought for African’s rights against white settlers, including Jomo Kenyatta, who, along with Mbiyu, prominently advocated for the basic rights of African people. Ngandi, in his conversations, declared that these figures, who had survived World War II, believed in ending Kenyan slavery and attaining freedom in their own land.
There was a secret society named “Eugenic Society” by whites in Kenya to kill black babies by birth and save a few strong in body for labour but feeble in mind and unable to plot resistance. Those whites were always against black people. But then, slowly black people stood up for Kenya and Africa; they started fighting against royal charter (royal charter would mean Africans would be removed from their town and allow white settler to replace their towns). After 1947, people of Kenya went on strike many times against that. A great Mombasa Strike was witnessed in 1950, when people supported the strikers. The rural folk supplied food to the strikers and welcomed them to their homes if anyone escaped from brutalities of government forces. Ngugi’s brother, Wallace Mwangi, studied from Manguo. Later in his adult age, he joined carpenter workshop in Limuru, where Ngugi usually visited him in his workshop.
Here Ngugi explained that in 1944, war crimes started in Kenya and political leaders were being arrested, and restrictions on civil liberties began. Then British troops began entering towns and setting up camps on the streets. Nairobi's streets became filled with armed forces. Jomo Kenyatta was arrested again. After that, rebellious acts intensified, particularly the Mau Mau, which was Kenya's armed force fighting against British troops under the leadership of Dedan Kimathi in the jungles of Kenya. Support for Mau Mau started to grow, and Mau Mau's songs began to be sung in every household. After that, restrictions were imposed on Kenya Teachers' School, and full restrictions were imposed on independent schools.
And soon the British began the abduction of Kenyan people who were in favour of Kenyan freedom and against colonialism. Ngugi was in his maternal grandparents’ home when his uncle Kimuchu was also picked up. Ngugi narrated that when he was in his grandparents’ home, his grandmother and mother were not that much close but they loved each other when his grandmother died by saying “I have no ill will toward the evil one. I have never meant anybody harm.”
Once again, in 1953, Karing and KISA schools, along with Kenya Teacher College, had reopened. However, in every school, the curriculum was issued according to the colonial masters' preferences. Though the schools reopened, the syllabus focused on white settlers' heroes, culture, and their history. Here, the writer Ngugi shares a story about a teacher at their school named Josephat Karanja, who came from Uganda. Once, when military troops arrived and stood outside on the grounds, all the teachers went to meet them except Karanja, when he was called, he went there. Then that inspector asked him to call him Sir, but Karanja made eye contact with him and refused to call him Sir. The writer describes this incident as a lesson for them. Karanja was dismissed, but later, he became the first High Commissioner of Independent Kenya in London. There was another tactic used by colonizer to make root of Catholic Church and banning African Orthodox Church in schools. On the base of this writer Ngugi was named as James Ngugi.
Writer here mentions an incident when they were working in garden to pick pyrethrum flowers, some kids hungry and thirsty jumped over the fence into Kahahus orchard (Kahahus, person where they were working) and picked up some plums. Then owner ask them to handover culprit otherwise they will not wage to any one of them. In this scene, Ngugi could not control himself, rather he protested by saying “Your Christianity is without meaning, this is not fair.” No one dared to talk in front of them but he did, that’s why he was considered as one of brave sons of Wanjikuyu. Writer narrated that right and justice can empower the weak.
With the passage of time, Ngugi became good in his studies and he could write in English. During 1953, he became confused between the oral news in Gikuyu (language which is used by Kenyan people) and English written newspapers. He consulted with Ngandi and they declared that those written newspapers were by colonial State, used only to propagate their propaganda. For instance, Larai Massacre (Larai, a place in Kenya, where people were killed), which happened in 1953, was propagated to be done by Mau Mau guerrillas according to English newspapers. Ngandi cleared never to believe on what is written in colonial newspapers.
Additionally, he further narrated that in World War II, black participated more that white, but white were rewarded with land of black and black people were rewarded with colonialism, and having their land stolen. He wrote it was actually the main colonial propaganda to create a bad image of freedom fighters, by blaming the Mau Mau for killing people, though they were themselves the killer.
The British deployed troops known as the Home Guard in marketplaces. These Home Guard units were intimidating, conducting raids on many homes and constantly threatening people, ensuring they didn't engage in any activities against the colonial State. During this time, Ngugi's brother Wallace also joined the Mau Mau army. In Ngugi's father's family, two of his brothers were involved in the armed struggle for Kenyan people, while Ngugi himself was dedicated to his studies among his siblings. When Ngugi was about to take his Kenya African Preliminary Exam, both of his brothers from the jungle visited him at night. His brother Kabae reminded him that his pen was his weapon. Ngugi passed his exam and gained admission to Alliance High School. It was a moment he had dreamed of throughout his academic career, especially when his mother encouraged him to do his best.
In this book, Ngugi, the writer describes how British colonization in Kenya deprived black people of their basic rights. He recounts how the British exploited the educational system by banning independent schools and imposing their own curriculum. They also arrested Kenyan political leaders and banned associations advocating for Kenyan rights. The entry of British troops into Kenya further enslaved the people and suppressed any rebellion against the colonial State. Ngugi narrates these events based on his own experiences and stories he heard from his father's wives and Ngandi.