Summary
Matigari finds the priest deep in prayer, asking God to help him discern between the second coming of Christ and "false prophets." "Driven by doubt and fear," the priest begins to welcome and attend to Matigari. Matigari asks the priest how to comfort Gũthera after she violated her commitment to never sleep with a police officer to save Matigari from prison. Though the priest suggests Gũthera can be forgiven, Matigari questions whether or not God should have to beg Gũthera's forgiveness for allowing her to suffer in a world that is "upside-down."
The priest realizes Matigari is not Jesus and grows impatient with his questions. The priest argues that believing in Christianity is more important than attempting to create justice. He even praises His Excellency Ole Excellence, The Minister for Truth and Justice, and the President for their "enlightened" and "Christian" values. The priest then suggests Matigari attend the meeting in the social hall, where the leaders intend to teach people "how best to abide peaceably by the law."
The Minister for Truth and Justice gives an impassioned speech arguing that loyalists to colonial rule, like himself, earned independence and were justly rewarded for their loyalty to the crown. He also vilifies those who go against law and order, believing that the law itself, regardless of how it is enforced, is an inherently good, civilizing force.
He then calls on the priest to dispel rumors of Jesus's return before calling the men who escaped prison, now in government custody, and leading them to the back room to be held without trial or executed.
Then, John Boy Junior and Robert Williams give the Minister for Truth and Justice "a few shares" of their business, creating "capitalism with a socialist face." Thus, "anyone who goes on strike" against the factory "will actually be striking against the government," so now the government orders an end to the strike. Ngarũro wa Kĩrĩro then stands up and questions the minister, gaining support from the rest of the workers gathered, and is promptly arrested for "sedition" and "treason."
Matigari then stands up and explains his story to the minister. Though the police want to shoot him, they cannot do so without endangering others, "particularly the very important guests" from wealthy Western countries. Matigari is arrested and searched and is found to have no weapons. The minister then announces he will administer "instant justice." Then, members of the KKK, in turn, condemn Matigari and make suggestions for "progress," such as renaming Trampville "Progressville" and banning sex among the poor.
The minister then reads out the verdicts for the "criminals" tried by "instant justice." The student and teacher are imprisoned, and Ngarũro wa Kĩrĩro is sent to a mental hospital. However, the crowd interrupts the minister by singing "subversive songs" that claim "Victory for the people" and an end to oppression. Though the police chief threatens them, the people disperse to their homes and discuss "nothing else but Matigari, Ngarũro wa Kĩrĩro, and the brave university students."
Analysis
Matigari's interaction with the priest explores critiques of the role of religion in colonial oppression. Many post-colonial scholars, including author Ngũgĩ wa Thiong'o, criticize missionary Christianity as a colonial tool of cultural oppression. The character of the priest embodies these criticisms. For example, the priest's theology actively encourages the oppressed to accept mistreatment and inequality, as in his Christian worldview, suffering is a test from God for which believers will be rewarded after death. Thus, the priest's theology encourages oppressed people to accept and endure injustice. The priest also weaponizes scripture to support these claims, citing a Bible verse in which Jesus tells his disciples to "Render unto Caesar what is Caesar's," meaning that believers should accept the government's authority over "worldly" matters and focus their personal attention on theology. When confronted with tricky questions like the problem of theodicy (why good people suffer and evildoers are rewarded), the priest hides behind his strict, literal rules and admonishes Matigari for "abusing the Holy Spirit."
The priest, who believes his religion is the foundation of morality and justice, supports oppressive leaders and businesspeople simply because they profess to believe in Christianity. Visually asserting this complicity, the priest stands with the Minister for Truth and Justice, John Boy Junior and Robert Williams, and the Professors of Parrotology during the council meeting, invoking prayers. The organization of this meeting demonstrates how the forces of economic exploitation, like privately owned businesses and organized religion, can prop up unjust systems.
The council meeting is described using a chaotic, surreal, and satirical tone to create a sense of frustration and absurdity and emphasize the arbitrary nature of colonial justice systems. For example, The Minister of Truth and Justice platforms "Professors of the History of Parrotology," a comical and fictional field of study in which academics simply "parrot," or unthinkingly repeat, the government's unfounded claims and illogical ideas. The presence of academics and reporters lends the minister's meeting an illusion of credibility. Yet, as the parrotologists sing hymns from Songs of a Parrot, the text satirizes the role of government-controlled professionals in legitimizing unjust systems.
The council meeting also explores the theme of ownership. The Minister for Truth and Justice criticizes the workers for wanting a greater share of the wealth they create. By purchasing factory shares, he uses his "ownership" of the business to control and suppress workers. The Minister and his supporters also claim ownership of historical narratives, language, and cultural expressions. For example, the only reporter present during the meeting writes for The Daily Parrot, a paper that only prints stories that praise the government. The Minister also bans songs "mentioning Matigari" and renames the children's village "Progressville" instead of "Trampville." These revisions to history and language suggest that the government tries to control language, storytelling, and self-expression in order to oppress the population by erasing their history.
The text uses tongue-in-cheek naming conventions to indirectly criticize neocolonialism. For example, the ruling party's initials, when written in Gĩkũyũ, form the acronym "KKK." "KKK" is infamously the abbreviation used by the Ku Klux Klan, a white-supremacist terrorist organization in the United States. By naming the ruling party the "KKK," the text argues that by supporting neocolonialist capitalism, the government of Matigari's country perpetuates racism and racially motivated violence. This argument is furthered through the visual imagery of the government informer Gĩcerũ, who wears a uniform of "a cone-shaped white cloth with only three slits: for the eyes, and for his mouth." This outfit is recognized as the anonymizing uniform worn by Klan members, demonstrating that Gĩcerũ, by collaborating with the government, supports systemic racism.
The minister's declarations and arguments are incredibly ironic and perversely comical. For example, he proudly displays his family crest, which depicts a "coffee bush, guarded over by two whips" and the motto "Destroy Terrorists." The imagery of agriculture and whips recalls the enslavement of African people who were violently forced to work on plantations. By combining the imagery with the phrase "Destroy Terrorists," The minister reveals an absurd lack of self-awareness, as he himself is responsible for acts of violence and terror. However, he believes "patriots" like Matigari are terrorists for simply opposing him.
