Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in Children of Virtue and Vengeance, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Power and Systems of Oppression
Cycles of Violence
Tradition and History
Love vs. Duty
Summary
Analysis
Zélie shouts that Inan isn’t in Lagos: he’s in Ibadan, waiting for the Iyika to march on Lagos. They plan to destroy the Iyika while they’re divided. Zélie says they have to take the opening and leave Orïsha. The maji are furious. Kenyon roars that he doesn’t care if the monarchy catches him, but Zélie rips her kaftan over her head to reveal “maggot” etched into her back. She says that the monarchy will destroy them, and she can’t keep losing people she loves. Kâmarū says that this is their home, but Zélie says they can build a home elsewhere as long as they’re together. People seem open to this until Amari stands and says this is their chance to win. In Yoruba, she shouts that they should take back what’s theirs. The maji join her chant.
For Zélie, the only way out of the cycle of violence is to leave it altogether; in her experience, there’s no fixing what’s gone wrong. Given how distrustful everyone is and how slim the chances of a peace treaty seem at this point, Zélie might not be wrong about that. Amari’s rallying cry to the elders, however, shows that she’s far more interested in embodying Saran and doing whatever it takes to win, even if what she has to do isn’t morally right. Using the Yoruba, she can also make it appear as if she’s on the side of the maji.
Themes
