Petals of Blood Themes

In Petals of Blood, only when Kenya rejects capitalism will it be truly free of European colonialism. The British Empire colonized Kenya in the late 19th century. Though Kenya became independent in 1963, Petals of Blood suggests that Europeans use capitalism to continue economically colonizing and exploiting Kenya. The novel illustrates Europe’s capitalist exploitation of Kenya clearly through one of its major characters, Abdulla. Prior to Kenya’s independence, Abdulla worked at a factory under…

In Petals of Blood, there is no such thing as an apolitical education. A person’s education shapes how they think, so education is fundamentally important to politics. The novel illustrates the political nature of education through the boys’ boarding school, Siriana, which several major characters attend, including Munira and Chui. Munira and Chui attend Siriana together prior to Kenya’s independence. Their first British headmaster is fond of (if condescending to) the Kenyan…

Petals of Blood represents religion either as a tool hypocrites use to get rich and oppress deluded believers or as a delusion that prevents believers from taking effective action. In other words, religion prevents political progress by helping the powerful manipulate the oppressed into passivity or collaboration with their oppression. The novel reveals many religious characters to be opportunistic hypocrites. For example, Munira’s father Ezekieli, a wealthy Presbyterian farm-owner, hires religious workers and…

Petals of Blood suggests that people have a special relationship to the land from which their forebears came—but that people must still exert careful, custodial control over the land, because nature can be cruel. The novel asserts at various points that people have a special relationship to their land. For example, when the people of Ilmorog are traveling to the city to ask for aid during a drought, they feel that the Kenyan freedom fighters…