Leadership and Authority
Leadership and authority are the commodities discussed in this book. In such a small community as Ashanti, the citizens demand strong leadership. Also they are somewhat tribal people still, who seek physical violence as resolution to conflict. Through Appia's brief leadership they were inspired to direct their attention at the future, but his death marks the end of ignorance for the community. Appia was used as a pawn in Ababio's scheme. He is the real leader of the people, but he is motivated by greed and hatred. He uses Appia's reign and assassination as reasons why the people should unite behind him against the whites. In contrast, Densu learns to exercise real authority by fighting for his values of health and harmony. His quiet leadership, although he is not seeking the role, makes the difference in how the community responds to Ababio's challenge.
Generational Conflict
Ababio is motivated solely by his mother's opinions. She was brutally mistreated by white people over the course of her lifetime, and she became bitter and hateful. She attributed all suffering to race. In Ababio her struggle manifests as pure hatred. He devotes his entire life to the restitution of what he believes the white people have stolen from he and his mother. Similarly, Densu lives a life of pacifism because he believes in the values of his parents. When he was a child, he couldn't succeed in the tournaments which the boys competed in because he wasn't willing to kill animals for sport. He always thought this reticence disqualified him from leadership, but his values have persisted since that moment when he was a child and decided not to kill. He fundamentally opposes Ababio because he doesn't believe in revenge.
Healing
Armah appears to want his readers to leave this book with a renewed appreciation for the art of healing -- be it physical or emotional. His protagonist, Densu, devotes all of his free thought and even his time, during the apprenticeship to Damfo, to learning how to heal. He takes an opposing stance to Ababio's leadership in the community. Ababio takes the hurts of the past as license to propagate more harm, but Densu, although equally qualified to resent the wrongdoings of the past, chooses love instead. He desire healing and wholeness for his entire community, so he sees past Ababio's empty promises of royalty. In the end, Densu is successful because he treats everyone around him like they have immense value.
