Mansi Parmar analyzes heroism in Ngũgĩ wa Thiong'o's novel "A Grain of Wheat". The novel explores Kenya's struggle for independence from British rule. Three main characters exhibit heroism: Kihika, who fights and dies for the independence movement; Gikonyo, who is imprisoned and tortured for his involvement; and Mugo, who leads a hunger strike in prison. While each character sacrifices in their own way, Kihika is seen as the archetypal hero who devoted his life to speaking and fighting for Kenya's freedom. The novel provides insights into the African understanding of heroism and the human experience during times of oppression and rebellion.

1. Name : Mansi Parmar
Roll No : 15
M A , Sem 4
Paper No : 14 , African Literature
Email Id : mansibaparmar212@gmail.com
Submitted to : Department of English
Maharaja Krishnakumarsinhji
Bhavnagar University
Heroism in “ A Grain of Wheat ”

2.  Ngũgĩ wa Thiong'o is born in
5 January 1938 and he is a
writer of Kenyan descent.
One of the foremost living
African novelists, he has also
developed a reputation as a
post-colonial theorist .
His first novel Weep Not,
Child was published while he
was there.
Introduction of Auther

3.  He is the founder and editor of the Gikuyu-language
journal Mũtĩiri.
 Ngugi’s work is often highly political, which has caused
much controversy for him in Kenya.
Conti...

4. About the Novel
 First published in 1967 by Heinemann.
 This novel “A Grain of Wheat” has been written as a part of
the African history and it was written when the author himself
was studying in Leeds University .
 The story is about rebellion against British imperialism and
Kenyan’s struggle for independence or Uhuru.
 Male characters are fight for freedom .

5. What is Heroism?
True heroism is remarkably sober, very
undramatic. It is not the urge to surpass
all others at whatever cost.
- Arthur Ashe

6. Heroism
Mugo
Kihika
Gikonyo

7. Kihika is martyr for movement
 Kihika is the first to really be known as a hero and stands
as such in the novel.
 he is a son of this land and was marked out as one of the
heroes of deliverance. His heroism is defined by his words
and actions throughout the book.
 when he was a young man at that time he was known as a
strong speaker and eventually a man of action.
 After he left school, he had found a new vision and that
vision led him to speak about independence.

8.  It is the struggle against the British. The Emergency and
Mau Mau that create for Khihika the occasion to realize his
ideals for both himself and his people.
 He soon became a freedom fighter but his end as hero
was quite dreadful .
 So we can say that He was a true hero who fought and
died with words and actions for the independence of Kenya .
Conti...

9. Gikonyo as a sacrificer
 Gikonyo is an ambitious carpenter, business man .
 Gikonyo as were many other ,were brutally treated for
their involvement with the movement and were subsequently
sent to concentration camps and beaten severely .
 Gikonyo and Karanja are harder to discuss with regaled
to heroism.
 Gikonyo stood film as a normative hero ,never wavering
from his loyalty to Kenya and remaining defiant of the white
man who oppressed him .

10. Mugo is a real hero
 Mugo is the last of the possible heroic characters and
due to his presence throughout the novel.
 He is also a character whose heroism seems nonexistent
in the first part but later we come to realize that he may just
be better than all the rest.
 Mugo ,a longer who became a hero after leading a
hunger strike in a British concentration camp .
 He avoids talking to people and when they try to talk to
him, he acts almost mad.

11. Conti...
 He was beaten several times for not talking the oath and
suffering for his devotion to the freedom movement .
 Gikonyo declares him to be a hero “ You have great heart
.It is people like you ought to have been the first to taste the
fruits of independence”.

12.  So we find several heroes here and perhaps one anti-
hero. Mugo, Gikonyo, and especially Kihika are praised for
their acts and words as they fought for Kenya’s freedom.
 This novel is also helps to understand the African sense
of heroism and the realities of the human condition.
Conclusion

13. Works Cited
Solanki, S. (2015, March 11). Heroism in ‘A Grain of Wheat’.
Retrieved March 26, 2018, from
http://solankisardarsinh291315.blogspot.in/2015/03/heroism-in-
grain-of-wheat.html
Wilkerson, B. D. (2011, November 14). Essays of young
Phylologist. Retrieved March 26, 2018, from
https://wilkersonessayist.wordpress.com/2011/11/14/heroism-
in-ngugis-a-grain-of-wheat/