I Will Marry When I Want

Two very significant themes are introduced in the beginning of the play. They are (1) post-colonial unrest and rebellion and (2) wealth and poverty. These two are undergirt by a third theme, and...

As a distinctly Marxist play, I Will Marry When I Want serves as a Marxist critique of postcolonial society. Set in Kenya, this play comments on the social problems and political corruption in the...

"I will marry when I want; Nobody will force me into it!" states Gathoni, the daughter of the central couple within the play of the same name. That alone should give the reader a strong indication...

Women have an interesting portrayal in the controversial play. On one hand, the women have a key role in the drama, and both Ngugi wa Thiong'o and Ngugi wa Mirii allude to the fact that women must...

Kiguunda Kiguunda owns a small plot of land but also depends on the income from working for Kioi. He is proud of his achievements and of his service in the independence movement (Mau Mau). Much of...

Ngugi wa Thiong'o and Ngugi wa Mirii use free verse for the play's dialogue. While there is a linear plot structure, the overall organization of the play utilizes numerous songs as well as several...

Gathoni's relationship with Muhuuni serves to illustrate how women are represented as having an ambiguous position of veneration and marginalization in I Will Marry When I Want, a line spoken by...

One of the most notable features in I Will Marry When I Want is that the play is written in verse. In addition, it extensively employs songs and dances, and it features a chorus. Several of the...

The play I Will Marry When I Want takes place in independent Kenya a few years after British rule ends. Although the Kenyan people are politically liberated, they experience continued social...

Gathoni is the beautiful daughter of Kiguunda and Wangeci. Her mother, Wangeci, has kept her home and has never sent her to school so that she can work picking coffee and tea. Gathoni surprises her...

While not all of the themes in the Kenyan play "I Will Marry When I Want" may resound with all modern readers, there are others that are extremely relevant today. The play has a strong political...