A Grain of Wheat

by

Ngugi wa Thiong’o

Wambuku Character Analysis

Wambuku is Kihika’s lover. Although Wambuku believes she will be able to convince Kihika to give up his revolutionary leanings—which she sees as a rival to herself—Kihika leaves her to go fight in the forest. Wambuku is so heartbroken that she destroys herself, eventually being beaten to death by a soldier and thrown in a shallow grave. Wambuku primarily serves as a symbol of weakness and tragedy, a foil to Njeri’s strength.

Wambuku Quotes in A Grain of Wheat

The A Grain of Wheat quotes below are all either spoken by Wambuku or refer to Wambuku. 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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Wambuku Quotes in A Grain of Wheat

The A Grain of Wheat quotes below are all either spoken by Wambuku or refer to Wambuku. 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: