Social Justice in Mbue’s How Beautiful We Were: A Marxist Perspective

Abstract

This research delineates the specific manifestations of social injustice within the novel How Beautiful We Were (2021) and provides a theoretical analysis of these phenomena through a Marxist lens. The writer uses a qualitative descriptive analysis method. Data collection was conducted through careful reading, note-taking, and identification of dialogues and narrative sections that reflect social justice issues, which were then analyzed using Karl Marx’s theory. The results of this study reveal that the novel depicts a widespread “metabolic rift” in which Pexton prioritizes capital accumulation over the environmental and biological sustainability of the villagers. This study also shows the radicalization of the oppressed class as they transition from seeking restorative justice to using retributive revolutionary violence. Ultimately, this study concludes that the struggle ended with the total physical and cultural eradication of the village of Kosawa, validating the Marxist critique that capitalist expansion requires the destruction of indigenous social orders to serve the needs of the global market.

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