Point of View

The novel is written from both a third person limited point of view and a first person plural point of view. Chapters 1, 2, 3, 5, 6, 7, and 9 are written from the third person perspective. In these seven chapters, the third person narrator has sole access to the main character Yetu’s consciousness. She therefore renders the narrative world through Yetu’s distinct lens. By contrast, Chapters 4 and 8 are narrated from the first person plural perspective of the wajinru collective. These chapters present the narrative world, particularly memories central to the wajinru History, through the lens of the wajinru community.

By dividing the narrative between these two contrasting points of view, the author enacts their thematic explorations regarding individualistic versus collective modes of consciousness and being. In those chapters narrated from the third person limited perspective, the collective appears to be a trap and a burden that Yetu must bear...