As the novel begins, Maru is narrating. The summer weather is hot, and the rains are delayed; but Maru and his closest friends are hard at work in Maru’s fields, preparing them for the rain that will eventually come. Maru decides that he has worked long enough for the day, and says goodbye to his friends before making his way home to his wife. The three men, lifelong protectors and friends, report that although Maru is “a king in their society” (2), he has made a terrible mistake in marrying a woman everyone would despise.

As he enters his home, Maru admits to himself that he is not always kind to his wife; he can be malicious and cruel, taunting her with her lowly position before he married her, and denying that he loves her as he says that he does. He discloses that he knows his wife loves another man, Moleka. His heart is torn because he believes that someday he may have to kill Moleka—formerly his best friend, because he cannot bear the jealous feelings of knowing that his wife loves Moleka.

While admitting that the only man who comes close to being his equal, whether in societal position or personal talents, is Moleka, he acknowledges that his jealousy of Moleka is almost “insanity” within him (4).