devil on the cross

Author's Name: Ngugi wa Thiong'o

Devil on the Cross is considered one of the most important novels in African literature. It directly criticizes capitalism, attacks the old colonialism that has succeeded a new system of colonialism known as modern imperialism based on investment, and condemns the agents of capitalism among the country's citizens.

It was written on toilet paper by Ngugi wa Thiong'o while he was in detention in late 1977, following the premiere of his controversial play "I Will Marry When I Want." Throughout his work, wa Thiong'o emphasized that literature can be used to dismantle oppression, and to do so, it must be clear and written with the intended audience in mind.

That's why he wrote Devil on the Cross (and all his subsequent works) in Kikuyu (the vernacular language) for the people he wanted to reach. And because he understands the power of simple, direct words, the entire novel is almost a series of sermons and parables told from different angles.

It takes the reader through complex themes such as international capitalism and gender inequality to read the characters telling their own stories, most notably Waringa, a hard-working young woman who is seduced by a wealthy older man and begins an illicit relationship with him that results in her becoming pregnant and the man denying her and her daughter, or through the young musician who seeks to compose a tune that will unite all Kenyans of all backgrounds and classes, and other characters who meet on a bus taking them all to a competition hosted by the wealthy to crown seven “experts in theft and plunder.”