CONFLICT
Reffers to the misunderstanding, clashes, quarrels between people due to some differences in interests or ideas.
Conflicts can lead to disunity, enmity and underdevelopment. It can also lead to positive changes, such as it can change the nature of treatment that people get in particular place by their government.
a) Conflicts between the slum dwellers and the city council.
The slum dwellers and the city council are in conflict because of differences in their interests. The slum dwellers want to stay in the slum while the city council want the slum to be demolished so as to clean the city.
b) Conflicts between the young and the old.
There is a misunderstanding between the young people who after the modern life and people like Njango who are still conservative. The differences in interests leads to misunderstanding, for example Njango dislikes dressing like white people while her daughter does.
Another conflict occurs when Wanjiro tells her mother that she wants to marry Asinjo, A man from another tribe. This annoys her mother but also Wanjiro is not happy for her mother to prevent her.
Another conflict is shown between Asinjo and Njango. Asinjo wants to marry Wanjiro but Njango refuses this and chases him away with her wild tongue.”
Another conflict occurs between Njango and her daughter (Wanjiro) because of oversleeping.
Njango is not happy by the way her daughter sleeps too much that she is even snoring.
Njango makes her saying, “Wake up, wake up I tell you I will truly pinch your fat nose and drench your face with cold water, wake up! .”
Another conflict between Njango and Wanjiro rises over the issue of school, clothes and bad language used by Wanjiro to her mother.
Wanjiro tells her mother “Mother you mock me with your talk of clothes and school, where is my brother? You sent him to my uncle so that he might attend school, where are the clothes that you buy me? I am ashamed to walk in the streets.”
Njango reacts by saying “You speak to me like that?”
Conflicts between the police officers and the stranger.
The police officer is in bad terms with the stranger because he makes people to be involved into violence and civil disobedience. Hence, the police officer arrest him by saying in the name of our new Republic, You are arrested.
Intra-personal conflicts (The conflicts within an individual)
Wanjiro is unhappy with the state of not going to school while her brother has gone. She is also unhappy with the poor life in the slums, where by she does not have good clothes unlike other girls in the city. She wants to be with Asinjo but her mother is preventing her.
So poverty in the slums makes Wanjiro hate living there and she wants to move from that place.
MESSAGE
Refers to the lesson that one can learn after reading a certain literary work.
The following are some of the messages that one can get from the play of this time tomorrow:
The government should decide properly when it wants to make a decision so as to avoid/prevent creating problems to people. It is very important to involve people when making decision and their views should be considered. For example the city council was supposed to consider the views of the slum dwellers before demolishing their slums.
Another lesson is that, success always goes to those who struggle. The importance aspects when struggling for success are self determination, unity and patience. Tribalism, ignorance and cowardice are great problems that hinder the attainment of certain goals. So one needs to be very careful when trying to bring some changes in the society.
Education is an important tool in bringing changes in the society. People in the UHURU market are not ready to write because of ignorance and they don't know why they should write. They have poor believes based on magic power that it can help them while it is not true. All these are due to low level of education.
Another lesson is that the young should listen to the advice of the elder since they have enough experience and good wisdom. Making decisions based on personal desires can lead someone into problems. For example the decision of Wanjiro to run away/elope with Asinjo was a dangerous one.
Also we learn that the government is always strong, because it has the machinery to enforce or implement their decisions. Therefore people or citizens cannot easily succeed on fighting it.
There fore it is good to use the diplomatic ways of facing the government because the use of force can lead to the loss of life and property. Also the government should not make suddenly changes that affects people without involving people.
One can also learn that rural-urban migration is a big problem in African countries. This lead to the existence of slums and informal sectors like food vendors. For example the Tin Smith says to the journalist “I came to the city many years ago.”
Rural-urban migration has led to the emergence of people who are not employed.