ThoughtGallery.org > Ngũgĩ wa Thiong’o + André Fenton | Doing Time Wrestling with the Devil

Ngũgĩ wa Thiong’o + André Fenton | Doing Time Wrestling with the Devil

How does doing time in prison influence the decisions you make and your view on life? Ngũgĩ wa Thiong’o was imprisoned without charge at Kamiti Maximum Security Prison in 1977, but that did not stop him from speaking out. With only toilet paper to write on, during his year as a political prisoner, he completed the novel Caitani Mutharabaini (Devil on the Cross, 1982). Although he was released through the help of an international campaign, Thiong’o was forced into exile to escape plots for his assassination.

The author is now a household name in his native Kenya and throughout the world, thanks to his powerful and evocative novels that capture the many conflicts and dilemmas of early, postcolonial Kenya, as well as writings sharply critiquing the country’s neocolonial direction.What was it like, trying to write fiction under twenty-four-hour surveillance? Together with NYU neuroscientist André Fenton, Ngũgĩ wa Thiong’o will explore the experience of time in prison and how it informed his creative process.

A book signing featuring Wrestling with the Devil will follow the program.











When: Sat., Mar. 10, 2018 at 6:00 pm - 7:30 pm
Where: Rubin Museum of Art
150 W. 17th St.
212-620-5000
Price: $25
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How does doing time in prison influence the decisions you make and your view on life? Ngũgĩ wa Thiong’o was imprisoned without charge at Kamiti Maximum Security Prison in 1977, but that did not stop him from speaking out. With only toilet paper to write on, during his year as a political prisoner, he completed the novel Caitani Mutharabaini (Devil on the Cross, 1982). Although he was released through the help of an international campaign, Thiong’o was forced into exile to escape plots for his assassination.

The author is now a household name in his native Kenya and throughout the world, thanks to his powerful and evocative novels that capture the many conflicts and dilemmas of early, postcolonial Kenya, as well as writings sharply critiquing the country’s neocolonial direction.What was it like, trying to write fiction under twenty-four-hour surveillance? Together with NYU neuroscientist André Fenton, Ngũgĩ wa Thiong’o will explore the experience of time in prison and how it informed his creative process.

A book signing featuring Wrestling with the Devil will follow the program.

Buy tickets/get more info now