Ngũgĩ wa Thiong’o: The Language of African Literature Cannot Be Discussed Without Context
Ngũgĩ wa Thiong’o (1938-2025), Kenyan author and advocate for literature written in African languages
Mmerikani’s Substack consists of sourced, edifying quotes in a dual-language format (Swahili & English). I am a Quaker, runner, and was formally trained in Swahili.
KISWAHILI
“Natumaini kwamba baadhi ya masuala katika kitabu hiki yatapata mwangwi mioyoni mwenu.” (Utangulizi)
"Lugha ya fasihi ya Kiafrika haiwezi kujadiliwa kwa maana nje ya muktadha wa nguvu hizo za kijamii ambazo zimeifanya kuwa suala linalohitaji umakini wetu na shida inayotaka suluhu.
"...silaha kubwa zaidi inayotumiwa kwa hakika kila siku inayotolewa na ubeberu dhidi ya uasi wa pamoja wa [watu walionyonywa wa dunia] ni bomu la kitamaduni. Madhara ya bomu la kitamaduni ni kuangamiza imani ya watu katika majina yao, katika lugha zao, katika mazingira yao, katika urithi wao wa mapambano, katika umoja wao, katika uwezo wao na, hatimaye, kuwafanya hawajiamini wenyewe. Inawafanya kuona zamani yao kama eneo tupu bila mafanikio yoyote na inawafanya kutaka kujitenga eneo hilo tupu.”
- Ngũgĩ wa Thiong’o. (5 January 1938 – 28 May 2025), Kenyan author and academic; a literary beacon of modern African literature and advocate for literature written in African languages
ENGLISH TRANSLATION
“I hope that some of the issues in this book will find echoes in your hearts.” (Introduction)
“The language of African literature cannot be discussed meaningfully outside the context of those social forces which have made it both an issue demanding our attention and a problem calling for a resolution.
“…the biggest weapon wielded and actually daily unleashed by imperialism against [the exploited peoples of the earth’s] collective defiance is the cultural bomb. The effect of a cultural bomb is to annihilate a people’s belief in their names, in their languages, in their environment, in their heritage of struggle, in their unity, in their capacities and ultimately in themselves. It makes them see their past as one wasteland of non-achievement and it makes them want to distance themselves from that wasteland.”
- Ngũgĩ wa Thiong’o. (5 January 1938 – 28 May 2025), Kenyan author and academic; a literary beacon of modern African literature and advocate for literature written in African languages
Chanzo (source): Ngũgĩ wa Thiong’o. Decolonising the Mind: The Politics of Language in African Literature. Originally published in Nairobi: East African Educational Publishers, Ltd., 1981 or 1986. Reprinted through 2005. Republished as a James Currey Ebook via Suffolk, UK: Boydell & Brewer, Ltd., n.d. Accessed via Kindle, pages 3 and 4.