Discusses the development from the 1960s to the 1980s of writings by the Kenyan author and activist Ngugi wa Thiong'o, examines some of the difficulty Us- and European-based critics have found with Nugi's work from the 1980s, and argues that courses in African literature need to move beyond the established canon of the immediate post-Independence period to reflect more recent developments. Works discussed include Ngugi's novels Devil on the Cross and Matigari. Originally presented at the Southeast Regional Symposium for African Studies, Athens, Georgia, 1994