Gender and the Erotics of Nationalism in Ngũgĩ wa Thiong'o's Drama

Abstract

At the intersection of symbolic language, gender, and national politics, Ngũgĩ wa Thiong'o uses sexual puns as a metaphor for land and political independence. Performance is central to all of Ngũgĩ's writing, and his oral performances in praise of his wife, Njeeri, mark the acme of his gendered use of language for political ends. Ngũgĩ's practice raises the question of whether the use of indigenous languages in African drama is liberating in and of itself, even when representations of gender roles are regressive.