Comparing the four books was not an easy task. The novels are so different from each other and how they tell their story. One theme that I believe I can compare is how social classes and race separates and divides society. As I compared the novels; Cry, The Beloved Country, The God of Small Things, That Deadman Dance, and 100 Years of Solitude. I found that each novel uses class to tell its story.
In Cry, The Beloved Country, the story is rich with personal drama, prejudices, and perseverance during overwhelming circumstances within the social classes in the1940’s. The book begins with Kumalo, a black preacher in South Africa that is confronted with a trip to Johannesburg to save his sister. The trip would eventually lead him to finding his son and learning that he had killed a man.
In chapter 5 we hear of the state of blacks and whites in the city. While at dinner a priest, tell Kumalo that “all is not well in Johannesburg, white people have become afraid because of a rise in crime”. They show him a newspaper headline describing an attack on an elderly white couple. “Nor are whites the only victims, they say, and they tell him how an African girl was robbed and almost raped.” Furthermore, Msimangu gives his opinion of why
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It is tragic that it is so ingrained in the culture that these two are forbidden to have a relation based on their class in society. We see the hatred and discrimination revealed in Baby Kochamma, when she is willing to lie to the police and coerce the children to falsely accuse Velutha. The police captain as well knowing she had lied was willing to let him be falsely accused. We see the devastating effects when prejudice and discrimination take its course and two people’s lives destroyed. Even though the class system was abolished we see that attitudes and traditions are not easily
They both have a theme of racism and the author gave out what it was like for the black community in the past on having to go threw what they did everyday. In these novels, the characters and the society are alike however, unfortunately they have different endings.
The underlying themes of the stories are l valid contrasts between the works. In some portions the themes are of the same facets, such as how in both books two men have a direct conflict between
The comparisons and contrasts between The Hiding Place and Night. Both books were written with struggles, tenderness, agony, and fear in mind. Of these two books only one comes out and realizes that what they have gone through was not a cruse but some what a blessing from God, Himself. The struggles both face is more than just man against man but it is also a struggle within to find who they truly are and whom they truly believe in. Both main characters, Eli and Corrie, faced something they never knew they could face but only one comes out stronger than the other.
Msingo conveys a message to Kumalo about his own thoughts of men and power: “I see only one hope for our country, and that is when white men and black men, desiring neither power nor money, but desiring only the good of their country, come together to work for it” (Paton 71). Paton portrays that although the people disagree and segregate themselves, hope may to find a way if everyone cooperates. Paton’s use of opposite ideas, which combine, convey the message of how society dies unless everyone of all races works together to revive the peace. No good shall come towards the people unless categorizing individuals changes for the good of the country. If the citizens fail, all discord breaks loose. No one person is responsible for the tangled mess. To explain to Kumalo that both races show as “ignorant,” The young man says, “And we were ignorant also. It is all these things together that have made this valley desolate” (Paton 302). Paton’s use of parallelism explains that even though it seems as though the white men are responsible, it is the fault of everyone of all races. Life is a scale and unless the people balance their opposite views, the world lacerates. One group may not blame the other for the arguments , which lie between everyone from everywhere. It is just that the places in which black populations outweigh others where the affects of the dysfunction of the people appear.
The novel immediately projects the fear and misunderstanding felt by the people of Bambara due to the unexpected early changes that are taking place in Africa. “A white man...There’s a white man on the bank of the Joliba” is exclaimed by Dousika’s pregnant wife Sira (Conde 5). The family is instantly struck with a curious mind but also one that is uneasy. The sight of this white man causes great despair already for the man of the house Dousika: “White men come and live in Segu among the Bambara? It seemed impossible, whether they were friends or enemies!”(Conde 10). The unexpected appearance of this white ...
Cry, the Beloved Country is such a controversial novel that people tend to forget the true meaning and message being presented. Paton’s aim in writing the novel was to present and create awareness of the ongoing conflict within South Africa through his unbiased and objective view. The importance of the story lies within the title, which sheds light on South Africa’s slowly crumbling society and land, for it is the citizens and the land itself which are “crying” for their beloved country as it collapses under the pressures of racism, broken tribes and native exploitation.
Cry, the Beloved Country is a moving story of the Zulu pastor Stephen Kumalo and his son Absalom. They live in an Africa torn apart by racial tensions and hate. It is based on a work of love and hope, courage, and endurance, and deals with the dignity of man. The author lived and died (1992) in South Africa and was one of the greatest writers of that country. His other works include Too Late the Phalarope, Ah, but Your Land Is Beautiful, and Tales from a Troubled Land.
Cry the Beloved Country, by Alan Paton is a novel inspired by the industrial revolution. Paton describes in detail the conditions in which the Africans were living during this time period, 1946. This story tells about a Zulu pastor who goes into the city in search of his son and siblings who left in search of a better life. The pastor sees this immense city where a ruling white group is oppressing the black population. This novel is more than just a story, but it depicts the effects imperialism and the Industrial Revolution had on South Africa. Although the government has intervened to protect the people, some of these effects are still present in our societies.
Fear and Redemption in Cry the Beloved Country & nbsp; Fear grips all black societies and is widespread not only among black people but also white people. An unborn child will inherit this fear and will be deprived of loving and relishing his country because the greater he loves his country, the greater will be his pain. Paton shows us this throughout this book, but at the same time he also offers deliverance from this pain. This, I believe, is the greater purpose of this book. & nbsp; When Stephen goes to Johannesburg, he has a childlike fear for "the great city" Johannesburg. Khumalo's fears about his family are exactly the same as every other black person in South Africa.
The themes that are similar in both of the novels are that guilt is detrimental to oneself and that redemption is key to happiness. These points are especially
In 1930’s and 1940’s South Africa, many people suffered through traumatic events, whether it be a robbery, a loss of livelihood, a beating, or the ultimate tragedy, the loss of a loved one. In his novel Cry, the Beloved Country, Alan Paton makes sure that this is not left out of his true-to-life, albeit fictional, account of life in South Africa. James Jarvis is the recipient of this tragedy in the novel. His son, Arthur Jarvis, is murdered in his home by Absalom Kumalo during a botched robbery attempt. This sudden loss breaks Jarvis’ heart and sends him reeling. He goes to Johannesburg for the trial and ends up realizing that he really didn’t know his son at all. Reading his son’s writings causes him to have a moral conversion, and he begins his new life when he returns to Ndotsheni. Even though James Jarvis is a man of few words, he has much to say after his son’s death and he speaks through his actions.
Racism Exposed in Cry, the Beloved Country. The purpose of Cry, the Beloved Country, is to awaken the population of South Africa to the racism that is slowly disintegrating the society and its people. The. Alan Paton designs his work to express his views on the injustices and racial hatred that plagues South Africa, in an attempt to bring about change and.
Finding Wisdom in Jonathan Swift's Gulliver's Travels A wise man once said, "That which does not kill us only makes us stronger." Jonathan Swift obviously made good use of the moral of this quote when writing his book, Gulliver's Travels. In this book, Swift tells of Lemuel Gulliver's travels to fantastic nations that exist only in Swift's own imagination. However, as Gulliver journeys to these new places, his attitudes about the state of man and his morals gradually change.
This chapter serves as the introduction to the protagonist of Cry, the Beloved Country, the pastor Stephen Kumalo, establishing his main conflicts and character traits. From his first encounter with the small child, Paton establishes Kumalo as a kind man yet powerful and respected within his community despite his poverty, as shown by the small savings that he and his wife had scraped together for their son's education.
Bibliography w/4 sources Cry , the Beloved Country by Alan Paton is a perfect example of post-colonial literature. South Africa is a colonized country, which is, in many ways, still living under oppression. Though no longer living under apartheid, the indigenous Africans are treated as a minority, as they were when Paton wrote the book. This novel provides the political view of the author in both subtle and evident ways. Looking at the skeleton of the novel, it is extremely evident that relationship of the colonized vs. colonizers, in this case the blacks vs. the whites, rules the plot. Every character’s race is provided and has association with his/her place in life. A black man kills a white man, therefore that black man must die. A black umfundisi lives in a valley of desolation, while a white farmer dwells above on a rich plot of land. White men are even taken to court for the simple gesture of giving a black man a ride. This is not a subtle point, the reader is immediately stricken by the diversities in the lives of the South Africans.