The Rain Of My Blood Analysis: George Mujajati

The Rain of my blood: Act 2, Scene 3 Analysis

The scene opens in an excited mood with learners or pupils returning from holiday to school. Stage directions tell that they are walking excitedly recounting their holiday experiences. In the corridor, Chamunorwa is arm in arm with his love(girlfriend) Chiedza. They sit close to a potted flower beside each other. This sets a romantic atmosphere or mood. The two are clearly in love. The feeling of warmth in Chiedza and Chamunorwa is associated with love. The two look at the beautiful flower in the pot that symbolizes their love or affection towards each other. The word flower is repeated 8 times. Chiedza calls Chamunorwa her flower or sweet scented rose to show she deeply loves him. This cements the theme of love in the scene. The flower according to Chiedza also symbolizes peace. Chamunorwa takes the role of a flower in the affair that buzzes around Chiedza showing his attraction to Chiedza. The atmosphere is very romantic. Stage directions take readers to the school dormitory where young boys are talking about their holiday experiences. They talk excitedly about seeing guerillas or freedom fighters beginning to penetrate the country with heavy guns. Myths about their magic disappearance are discussed. Further, it is said they don’t die. Exaggerations come from the tales eg ‘no Rhodesian soldier can carry the guns carried by the guerillas’. Some lie about having talked to the guerillas. However, the discussion points to a growing consciousness in the boys of the Liberation of the country. Closely linked to the liberation is the flower or tree watered by Chamunorwa in the first part of the scene.

For love to grow or bloom just like a flower or tree it needs to be watered the same way a struggle or a tree of Liberty needs to be watered by the blood of mtyrs or freedom fighters. The boys continue talking about the motives of the guerillas they saw and met-to educate the masses and prepare them for war. The role of the masses is also brought out in the dramatic exchange as being the water in which the freedom fighters got their support to wage the war. One boys ends by teaching others some of the songs sung by the freedom fighters and they sing excitedly to raise their morale. ‘Mbuya Nehanda kufa vachitaura shuwa… ‘.Revolutionary Songs were meant to embolden the people to fight the oppressors during the liberation struggle.

The Rain of my blood :Act 2, Scene 4

The setting of the scene is at Chegato High school, in Mr Owen, the History teacher’s office during the colonial era.

The scene opens with a serious conflict between Chamunorwa and his history teacher over the essay or composition Chamunorwa has written about the causes of the Mashona rebellion of 1896. Chamunorwa thinks it was a war of dispossession where the Shonas were stripped or dispossessed of their land whereas Mr Owen says it was a rebellion where the Shonas simply rebelled against their white rulers. The facial expressions on mr Owen clearly show he is very cross or angry over Chamunorwa’s essay.

Mr Owen tells Chamu to his face that he has written a heap of lies when in actual fact Chamu has written the truth of what really transpired. It is actually Mr Owen who is distorting the truth.

Owen further lies that Nehanda and Kaguvi were witch doctors who had no land when in actual fact they were spirit mediums who led the rebellion or war against the whites. Stage directions show Owen is very cross because he thinks Chamunorwa’s influence will incite other students. The swearing, face twisting, stammering and anger registered on Owen’s face are gestures that indicate he is enraged by Chamunorwa’s essay. He ends by calling Chamunorwa a Kaffir (a derogatory term used to refer to a black man) to show his segregation or racial discrimination towards blacks. The violent tearing of Chamunorwa’s essay page is another sign that Owen is very angry. This Scene clearly shows whites used education as a tool or weapon to twist or distort the truth about the history of the country Zimbabwe or the causes of the First Chimurenga of 1896-7

POINT OF CORRECTION:Chamunorwa takes the role of a bee that buzzes around the flower. Then the repetition of the word flower is to emphasize the symbolic nature of the flower to love adding to the romantic atmosphere in the scene.