I Would Rather Die

SYNOPSIS

I would rather die is the tale of the negative consequences of cheating in exams and forgery of professional certificates .The play is mainly an imaginary scenario in the mind of lead character ,Nurse Kinoti , enacted in the manner of foreshadowing .The foreshadowing itself is blended artistically with episodes of flashbacks within it .

Trouble looms at Shujaa Academy ; the candidate class led by Manoki and Lady smart are punishing kinoti who has refused to contribute to a secret kitty to buy the forthcoming National high school exams .The adamant kinoti swears the she would rather die than contribute to such an illicit scheme .Through foreshadowing ; she lets them see the possible pitfalls in their agenda .

She supposes that they all pass the National high school exams , but Manoki is unable to pass the medical degree exams at college and so his father buys him the degree. He ends up as a Doctor fine .Through a twist of fate , Lady smart faces the harsh reality later when she has to have her own husband operated on by Manoki , a former classmate and a failure .Dr Manoki and the Hospital director bungle the operation thus rendering Lady smart’s Husband , josephat , paralyzed .

The josephats file a case ; the court finds Dr Manoki guilty of forgery and negligence of duty .Smart is also found guilty of conniving with Dr Manoki to defeat the course of justice .Kinoti who became a nurse in the hospital becomes a dependable witness . The court orders them all to go back to their former schools in form one to work hard and get their grades in a transparent manner.

This harsh enactment in kinoti’s imagination prompts the candidates to change their minds and actually set ablaze the papers they’ve already acquired , with the intention of cheating .The decision is popular with all the students and they resolve to work hard and shun disastrous shortcuts .