I Will Marry When I Want

I Will Marry When I Want Literary Elements

Genre

Drama

Language

Gikuyu, trans. English

Setting and Context

Post-Colonial Kenya

Narrator and Point of View

Third person-limited point of view. Occasional interpretations of characters' thoughts and reminiscences.

Tone and Mood

The tone varies depending on the speaker. For Gĩcaamba, the tone is moral and indignant. For Kĩgũũnda it is similar, laced with thoughtfulness, passion, and occasionally anger. For Wangeci it is weary and bitter. Overall, the mood is one of righteous frustration and simmering tension.

Protagonist and Antagonist

Kĩgũũnda; Kĩoi

Major Conflict

Micro conflict: whether or not Kĩgũũnda and Wangeci will lose their land and autonomy to Kĩoi
Macro conflict: tensions between the social classes in post-colonial Kenya

Climax

Kĩgũũnda and Kĩoi fight about Gathoni's pregnancy, Kĩgũũnda threatens Kĩoi with a sword, and Jezebel shoots him.

Foreshadowing

The title-deed falling onto the floor foreshadows Kĩgũũnda's eventual loss of his land.

Understatement

n/a

Allusions

-Other religions (the P.C.E.A, Greek Orthodox, Kikuyu Independent, Salvation Army)
-Allusions to recent historical events (Mau Mau, the Emergency, independence)

Imagery

See other entry on imagery.

Paradox

n/a

Parallelism

n/a

Personification

-"Are we the rubbish heap of religions?" Kĩgũũnda, 9
-"Come out of the muddy trough of sins!" Helen, 48
-"The white man had arranged it all / To completely soften our hearts / To completely cripple our minds with religion!" Gĩcaamba 57

Use of Dramatic Devices

As this work is a play, there are many dramatic devices. There are dancers and soloists and choruses that come on stage. Gĩcaamba speaks in long monologues. Characters enter and exit the stage. There are detailed stage directions provided by the author.