Akademik Veri Yönetim Sistemi
Culture and Civilization, cilt.1, sa.4, ss.23-39, 2023 (Hakemli Dergi)
Ngugi wa Thiong’o has been a catalyst for the literary world to acknowledge the contribution of African writers to world literature. In his works, Ngugi narrated his individual and national traumas of British colonization in Kenya. His third novel, A Grain of Wheat (1986), is about Kenya on the road to its independence, Uhuru. The story explores the influence of colonialism on Kenyan people and their culture and how the legacy of colonialism persists in shaping the country’s identity and power dynamics. Nevertheless, the long-sought independence of Kenyans has not been without suffering for the country and its people. Identity becomes problematic as the traumatic experiences of the characters intersect with social and cultural upheavals. The characters attempt to escape their traumatic memories and begin afresh with Uhuru, though they have to redeem themselves from the past. A Grain of Wheat also explores cultural issues as the characters navigate the conflict between traditional African culture and the cultural norms imposed by British colonialism. The novel highlights the importance of culture and history in preserving traditions and identity and the dangers of cultural dissolution under colonialism. Ngugi wa Thiong’o’s A Grain of Wheat explores the themes of memory, culture, and power in a postcolonial context. The novel introduces essential questions about the influence of colonialism on Kenyan people and culture and how the colonized maintain and contend its authority. This article argues that the novel shows how colonialism is deeply embedded in the memories and cultural identities of the characters in the novel. Therefore, the paper offers insights into how memory and culture are used to resist and resolve colonial oppression.