Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in A Grain of Wheat, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Colonialism
The Individual vs. the Community
Guilt and Redemption
Christianity
Gender and Power
Summary
Analysis
Back in Mugo’s hut, his three visitors tell him that they are there to discuss the Uhuru celebrations coming up in a few days. Mugo feels strange in the presence of these three—Gikonyo is a wealthy merchant and husband of the most beautiful woman in the land, Warui’s entire life has been committed to the Movement (he was there in the protest march for Harry Thuku), and Wambui has long been a collaborator with the Freedom Fighters, smuggling messages and weapons through police checkpoints. The three tell Mugo that they want to commemorate Kihika’s life. Mugo almost panics.
Mugo’s nervous reaction to his visitors’ simple announcement that they want to commemorate Kihika’s life indicates both his guilt and the burden that this guilt is upon him. Rather than being honored by his visitors or even receiving the news peacefully and going on with his day, Mugo’s guilt makes any human interaction a source of paranoia and fear, demonstrating the destructive effects it is having upon his life.
Themes
As they are speaking, two more men enter the hut: General R. and Lt. Koina, both Freedom Fighters who have lived the past seven years in the forest. After catching up with the others, General R. announces that he believes Kihika was betrayed, perhaps by Karanja. Since he knows that Mugo gave shelter to Kihika after he assassinated DO (District Officer) Robson, General R. is hoping that Mugo might know who Kihika was supposed to be meeting on the day that he was captured. Mugo seems frightened and does not answer, but merely shakes his head “no.”
General R. and Lt. Koina’s seven years spent hiding in the forest is another early example of the sacrifice that one’s duty to their community requires. While Mugo, the individualist, has been living in his hut, sleeping in his own bed, the two freedom fighters’ responsibility to their community has compelled them to forsake the comforts of home and exile themselves to the forest, in the name of claiming freedom for their people.
Themes
Gikonyo, Wambui, and Warui finally explain why they have come: Since Mugo’s name is now forever tied to the Movement and Kihika for the contributions he has made, they want Mugo to lead the ceremony and sacrifice of remembrance during the Uhuru celebration. Furthermore, they want Mugo to stand as their chief and regional representative to the government. Mugo does not give an answer, as he has always been crippled by indecision, and they tell him that they will need an answer in three days’ time. Although they understand his desire to be alone, “it is not easy for a man in a community to be left alone, especially a man in [his] position.” The visitors leave.
The statement that one cannot easily be left alone within a community is vital to the thematic tension between individual and community. The narrator, like Mugo’s fellow villagers, recognizes and validates Mugo’s wish to simply be his own man, rather than chastising him for it or calling it selfish. Even so, they all recognize that within a community, especially a community that suffers and struggles, this is an impossible wish. Their fates are all inextricably bound together, and thus Mugo has a duty to fulfill.
Themes
Outside, General R. and Lt. Koina agree that they must continue to seek out Kihika’s betrayer, though it seems likely that it is Karanja, a Thabai villager who now works for the whiteman. Koina reflects on how Kihika had inspired hope and confidence, teaching him to believe in “black power,” leading his three hundred fighters, and assassinating DO Robson. Wambui remarks that Mugo is a “strange man,” but the others retort that it is only because of the suffering he endured. During his detention, Mugo was singled out, beaten, and tortured, but never confessed to “the oath.”
Lt. Koina’s belief in “black power” introduces a minor thematic tension between black power and “white power” explored throughout the novel. Where white power (in the book) is technological, dominating through weaponry such as bombs and guns, delivered by trains, black power is found in the Kenyan people’s unity, resilience, and determination to preserve their traditional ways of life.
Themes
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After they part, Gikonyo begins to return home, reflecting on the fact that he has become wealthy, but life has lost all flavor and meaning. As he walks, Gikonyo imagines—as he often does—that he hears footsteps walking behind him. He runs, but the footsteps follow him, until he resolves that he must speak with Mugo, alone, or he will never be rid of the footsteps following him. However, when he returns to Mugo’s hut, he cannot bring himself to enter, so he returns home to his wife Mumbi.
Gikonyo’s recurrent hallucinations of being followed indicates that, like Mugo, he too is haunted and pursued by secret guilt over a past crime. Although Gikonyo appears successful on the outside, he shares Mugo’s insecurity and fear, demonstrating how one’s perceptions of a person often do not match reality.
Themes
Mumbi has prepared dinner for Gikonyo, but he will not eat. She tries to make conversation with him, but he refuses to answer her questions. Placing her hands on his shoulders, Mumbi begs Gikonyo to speak of “the child” or, if nothing else, to at least go to bed with her, but Gikonyo refuses. Mumbi is heartbroken and leaves.
Though it is not certain, it seems that the guilt Gikonyo feels effects his interactions with Mumbi, souring their relationship and demonstrating the toxic effect guilt has on one’s psyche. Once again, despite his image of success, Gikonyo’s poor marriage demonstrates the dissonance between perception and reality.
Themes
