Rural urban decline in Petals of Blood?

The contrast drawn between village and city in the novel serves to underscore the damaging effects of capitalism as well as to make clear the difference in values between traditional and modern Kenyan society. The village of Ilmorog had once been a thriving place set against a ridge that the novel's narrator says must have been "one of the greatest natural beauties in the world." Founded by a courageous herdsman, Ndemi, who began cultivation of the lands, it was once a place of peace, beauty, and dignity. After independence, Ilmorog has become a dusty and backward place, but the people still uphold their integrity. The community is close-knit and hold onto their values and beliefs, participating in communal rites and helping each other. Their values are seen in contrast to those of the urban elite, whose sole interest is money and power. The city is seen as a place of corruption and decay, with tall buildings and gardens as well as shantytowns and bars. Over the course of the novel Ilmorog is transformed from a rural village to an industrial center, and with it comes a disintegration of its values. Wanja, who has been forced to give up her successful business and turn to prostitution in order to avoid being exploited in other ways, says of the values of the city and the "New Kenya": You eat somebody or you are eaten. You sit on somebody or somebody sits on you."