A Grain of Wheat

by

Ngugi wa Thiong’o

Njeri Character Analysis

Njeri, like Wambuku, is a young woman in love with Kihika, though he never returns her affections. However, Njeri is strong in contrast to Wambuku’s weakness. Although Njeri is small, she is a natural-born fighter, able to best almost any man in the village. When Kihika goes to fight in the forest and Wambuku is heartbroken, Njeri despises Wambuku for her feminine weakness and goes to the forest to fight alongside Kihika. Njeri is killed, shot by a soldier during battle, but remains a symbol of women’s power, a seeming successor to Wambui.

Njeri Quotes in A Grain of Wheat

The A Grain of Wheat quotes below are all either spoken by Njeri or refer to Njeri. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
Colonialism Theme Icon
).
Chapter 7 Quotes

Though Njeri was a short girl, her slim figure made her appear tall. But there was something tough about that slimness. She despised women’s weaknesses, like tears, and whenever fights occurred at Kinenie [forest], she always fought, even with men. A cat, men called her, because few could impose their physical will on her.

Related Characters: Kihika, Wambuku, Njeri
Page Number: 100
Explanation and Analysis:
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Njeri Quotes in A Grain of Wheat

The A Grain of Wheat quotes below are all either spoken by Njeri or refer to Njeri. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
Colonialism Theme Icon
).
Chapter 7 Quotes

Though Njeri was a short girl, her slim figure made her appear tall. But there was something tough about that slimness. She despised women’s weaknesses, like tears, and whenever fights occurred at Kinenie [forest], she always fought, even with men. A cat, men called her, because few could impose their physical will on her.

Related Characters: Kihika, Wambuku, Njeri
Page Number: 100
Explanation and Analysis: