Tambu's paternal grandmother. She and Tambu were very close; Tambu spent a great deal of time with her, during which Grandmother taught Tambu how to cultivate corn and told her about their family's history. Though she speaks poorly of white settlers in her tales, she credits the white missionaries for taking in and educating Babamukuru after her husband died and left her with six children. She died taking a rest in her cornfield.
Get the entire Nervous Conditions LitChart as a printable PDF.
Grandmother Character Timeline in Nervous Conditions
The timeline below shows where the character Grandmother appears in Nervous Conditions. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Chapter Two
...learn to fail. Tambu spent the next few months tending her crop, just as her grandmother taught her when she was little.
(full context)
In addition to teaching Tambu how to grow corn, Tambu's grandmother also taught family history. She moved to the area after getting married. However, "wizards" came...
(full context)
Chapter Three
...she simply thought that Babamukuru was a god who had defied the wizards of her grandmother's stories, while the wizards crushed Nhamo and Jeremiah. She can't imagine Babamukuru bullying anyone the...
(full context)
Chapter Six
...number of white people. They're all missionaries, and therefore different than the "wizards" that Tambu's grandmother experienced. These ones want to give and spread God's light in Africa, not steal emeralds....
(full context)
