"A Meeting in the Dark" is a short story by Kenyan author Ngugi wa Thiong'o. The story is set in his native country, specifically among the Kikuyu people, and the title refers to the innocent meeting between boyfriend and girlfriend that spirals out of control and ends in a murder.
The short story introduces us to a scholarly young man named John who has reached educational heights previously unreached by other members of his community. Thanks to education, his future is bright and he will be traveling to college – until he finds out that his girlfriend is pregnant. Torn between duty and responsibility on one hand, and the desire to fulfill the dreams he has worked so hard to accomplish on the other, John finds himself paralyzed by the fear of his "fall" from grace in the village.
Like much of Ngugi's writing, the predominant theme in this story is that of British colonial rule in Kenya, which influences the decisions made by John and also creates his view of himself as a person. Following the teaching of his preacher father, John has embraced British culture and rule and begins to see his girlfriend, Wamuhu, as a hindrance to his future rather than as the woman he loves. There is also an undercurrent of social division in the story as John's father looks down on the non-Christian Wamuhu and does not want his son to be involved with her. The story takes place within the span of only 24 hours, but the internal conflict John faces expands the scope of the story and slows down narrative time.
In 1973, Ngugi won the Lotus Prize for Literature which was the first of many prestigious awards that his writing has garnered. He is the author of seven full-length novels, two collections of short stories and four plays, as well as three books for children, all based on his experiences in his homeland.
