Believe me when I say that theft and robbery are the measures of a country’s progress. Because in order for theft and robbery to flourish, there must be things to be stolen. And in order that the robbed may acquire possessions to be stolen and still be left with a few, they must work harderContinue reading “RKS African Literature: Theft and Robbery are the Measure of a Country’s Progress (Ngũgĩ Wa Thiong’o)”
Category Archives: literature
RKS African Literature: Mistaking Foreign S*** for a Delicious National Dish (Ngũgĩ Wa Thiong’o)
Where are our national languages now? Where are the books written in the alphabets of our national languages? Where is our own literature now? Where is the wisdom and knowledge of our fathers now? Where is the philosophy of our fathers now? The centres of wisdom that used to guard the entrance to our nationalContinue reading “RKS African Literature: Mistaking Foreign S*** for a Delicious National Dish (Ngũgĩ Wa Thiong’o)”
RKS African Literature: English Cultural Imperialism (Ngũgĩ Wa Thiong’o)
“You talk as if you knew I came from the university, and it is true. I am from there. I’m a kind of research student in culture. I’m a junior research fellow in African culture. Our culture…sorry I mean our culture. That is what I call English cultural imperialism. Cultural imperialism is mother to theContinue reading “RKS African Literature: English Cultural Imperialism (Ngũgĩ Wa Thiong’o)”
RKS African Literature: The Effects of American Experts on the Kenyan Economy (Ngũgĩ Wa Thiong’o)
“Nairobi is large, soulless and corrupt.” He moved nearer to Warĩĩnga, leaned against the wall and went on: “But it is not Nairobi alone that is afflicted in this way. The same is true of all the cities in every country that has recently slipped the noose of colonialism. These countries are finding it difficultContinue reading “RKS African Literature: The Effects of American Experts on the Kenyan Economy (Ngũgĩ Wa Thiong’o)”
RKS African Literature: That Which is Born Black Will Never be White (Ngũgĩ Wa Thiong’o)
Warĩĩnga was convinced that her appearance was the root cause of all her problems. Whenever she looked at herself in the mirror she thought herself very ugly. What she hated most was her blackness, so she would disfigure her body with skin lightening creams like Ambi and Snowfire forgetting the saying: That which is bornContinue reading “RKS African Literature: That Which is Born Black Will Never be White (Ngũgĩ Wa Thiong’o)”
RKS African Literature: Rent Control in Nairobi, Kenya (Ngũgĩ Wa Thiong’o)
On Saturday morning Warĩĩnga was visited by her landlord, the owner of the house in Ofafa, Jericho, Nairobi, in which she rented a room. (A house or a bird’s nest? The floor was pitted with holes, the walls gaped with cracks, the ceiling leaked.). The landlord told Warĩĩnga he was increasing her rent. She refusedContinue reading “RKS African Literature: Rent Control in Nairobi, Kenya (Ngũgĩ Wa Thiong’o)”
RKS Chinese Literature: Hardships of the Sing Song Girls (Shen Fu)
Tsui-ku told me of their life of constantly welcoming new guests and seeing off old ones. When unhappy they still had to laugh loudly, and when they could not stand the taste of wine they still had to drink a great deal; when sick they still had to entertain guests, and when their throats hurtContinue reading “RKS Chinese Literature: Hardships of the Sing Song Girls (Shen Fu)”
RKS Literature: Returning to London from Kurtz and the Jungle (Joseph Conrad)
I found myself back in the sepulchral city resenting the sight of people hurrying through the streets to filch a little money from each other, to devour their infamous cookery, to gulp their unwholesome beer, to dream their insignificant and silly dreams. They trespassed on my thoughts. They were intruders whose knowledge of life wasContinue reading “RKS Literature: Returning to London from Kurtz and the Jungle (Joseph Conrad)”
RKS Chinese Literature: Smoking Opium, Hugging and Joking with the Sing-Song Girls (Shen Fu)
We had the wine boat anchor in the middle of the river and happily drank away until several strokes of the night watch had sounded. By then I had begun to fear I could not control myself and so had firmly resolved to return to our rooms, but my friends told me the city gatesContinue reading “RKS Chinese Literature: Smoking Opium, Hugging and Joking with the Sing-Song Girls (Shen Fu)”
RKS Chinese Literature: Where Monks Should Not Live (Shen Fu)
To the friends who were with me that day, I said: ‘Men who want to be monks must live in this kind of secluded place, seeing and hearing nothing for their entire lives, so that they can meditate in tranquillity. At a place like Tiger Hill in my home country, all day long there isContinue reading “RKS Chinese Literature: Where Monks Should Not Live (Shen Fu)”
