In Mark Mathabane’s autobiography Kaffir Boy, he recalls his journey that begins in apartheid South Africa. Being under control of the whites, he witnesses violence, feels pain and suffers hunger with his family. However he overcomes the hardships and goes to college in America. Mathabane as a child is reluctant to go to school although his mother forces him to go but he earns rewards through education in school and tennis. His family is his aid that helps in his journey and sufferings in South Africa. He almost quits school when his friends in his neighborhood put a bad influence over him however his mother is there to support him. In the end of the journey, he earns a scholarship and is recognized for his sportsmanship in tennis and education. Mathabane's journey begins when he reluctantly goes to school but with encouragement from his mother and successes of being the top student at school, he finds the importance of education and achieves fame from playing tennis in apartheid South Africa where he attends college in America.
A hero would be called to an adventure from their ordinary life like they were living before. Accepting the call is the first step to a long period and there are various reasons and ways to accept the call. In any way, it is going to make a change in their usual way of life. The journey of the hero begins unexpectedly and most often they would refuse the call because it is unfamiliar to them. “Accept the call, even though it means leaving the comfort of the known” (Lotze). They will be hesitant to start something new and different in their lives.
In apartheid South Africa, Mathabane witnesses violence in country from the whites and develops hatred and fear. “To me nothing, short of a white man, was more...
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... Transformation: Straw to Gold -- The Modern Hero's Journey. Ed. Evie Lotze. Munich: K. G. Saur, 2004. [53]-62. Gale Virtual Reference Library. Web. 20 Nov. 2013.
"Heroes." Work Culture Transformation: Straw to Gold -- The Modern Hero's Journey. Ed. Evie Lotze. Munich: K. G. Saur, 2004. [29]-34. Gale Virtual Reference Library. Web. 20 Nov. 2013.
"The Modern Hero." Work Culture Transformation: Straw to Gold -- The Modern Hero's Journey. Ed. Evie Lotze. Munich: K. G. Saur, 2004. [25]-27. Gale Virtual Reference Library. Web. 20 Nov. 2013.
"Transformation." Work Culture Transformation: Straw to Gold -- The Modern Hero's Journey. Ed. Evie Lotze. Munich: K. G. Saur, 2004. [47]-52. Gale Virtual Reference Library. Web. 20 Nov. 2013.
Mathabane, Mark. Kaffir Boy: The True Story of a Black Youth's Coming of Age in Apartheid South Africa. New York: Macmillan, 1986. Print.
“ Sirens blared, voices screamed and shouted, wood cracked and windows shattered, children bawled, dogs barked and footsteps pounded”(7). This scene is from the autobiography Kaffir Boy written by Mark Mathabane. That is one of the scenes he had to live through every morning in apartheid South Africa. Apartheid is a policy of segregation and economic discrimination against non-whites. Apartheid system affected every black person living in South Africa during that time. It forced blacks to become slaves in their own country. The system forced blacks to live in unsanitary environments, work-degrading jobs and carry passes, and receive limited education. Blacks and whites were living in different sections during apartheid.
Joseph Campbell calls the initial phase of a hero’s development the “Call to Adventure.” The call is the in...
The first major step is a call to adventure. In this step, there’s something in the hero’s life that requires them to do something or go somewhere and take some type of action. Second, the hero must enter the unknown. This step sends the hero into a new world, entering something unfamiliar to the hero. By entering unfamiliar territory, whether it’s a place, an event never experiences, there are challenges and temptations the hero must face. With every new world comes new challenges. Dealing with new people or being alone.
The embarkation of the hero’s journey is more than a call, it is taking control of your life and discovering the hero who dwells inside you. Each hero who enters the journey is tested to the very end of the cycle, where the hero must choose rebirth or death. Othello is man of many fortunes, but he does not have what it takes to complete the Hero’s Journey.
From the beginning of time, mythology has appeared to be one key method of understanding life’s confusions and battles. Within these myths lies a hero. From myth to myth and story to story, heroes experience what may be called a struggle or a journey, which lays down their plot line. Bearing tremendous strength, talent, and significant admiration, a hero holds what is precious to their audience, heroism. Over time however, no matter the hero, the hero’s role remains indistinguishable and identical to the position of every other hero.
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.
Romesh exclaims, “They only taught us one year and it isn’t enough…. I think all our lives gonna be bad now.” His brother follows, bewildered and angered that the school has closed. Richard wishes the school would reopen and states, “But my dream ain’t gonna come true, so might as well just get that out my head” (The Boys of Baraka, Grady and Ewing). This clearly illustrates negative attitudes toward to closing of the school. Whereas Montrey does the best he can and tries with a positive attitude, Richard gives up in school. “That school do a lot of work, I don’t want to do it” he says (Boys of Baraka, Grady and Ewing). As in “Opinions and Social Pressures”, the Boys of Baraka goes back to this articles core idea. Richard had a positive attitude in Baraka. He had learning disabilities, but made the most of what he could and tried his best, even learning to read better. But, coming home, the pressure to be like the status quo; to have the attitude of failure and hopelessness toward a future, snuck its way back in. The idea of moral elevation in “The Trick to Being More Virtuous” was now lost. Because the attitude of others around Richard and Romesh in the peaceful and tranquil Kenyan environment was different, the moral elevation the two boys obtained was evident. Though, when they were surrounded by the negativity and fires and drugs of Baltimore,
Kaffir Boy enlightens the understanding of apartheid by exposing the crippling mental, social, and economical effects it had on blacks in South Africa, preventing them
The 20th century illustrates a new approach towards societal values. As the Third World came around, sentiments of self-identity and the struggle with oppression became a war of its own. Steve Biko writes about the issues of racism and how it impacts people’s views, lifestyles and attitudes. He also defends Black Consciousness and offers solutions to eliminate racism from white supremacy. By writing Black Consciousness and the Quest for a True Humanity, Biko is able to draw a powerful South African identity that will lead African Americans to get through oppression. In his writing he states, “… the most powerful weapon in the hands of the oppressor is the mind of the oppressed” (Biko, 248). The opressor’s main strength is making the oppressed
According to The Power of Myth, one of the characteristics of hero is to encounter troubles. He explains, “The trials are designed to see to it that the intending hero sh...
The young man’s predicaments all revolve around his need to satisfy those that will judge him and he becomes trapped between the apartheid rule and humanity’s desire for equality and respect towards others. This is purely a personal issue that can be resolved solely by him, but should take into the consideration of those involved. We see glimpses of this coming through the young man, but being raised in an era of apartheid it overpowers his common understanding of respect.
Roger, O (2008). The Apartheid Handbook (2nd ed.). Harmondsworth, Middlesex, England: Penguin Books. pp. 102–109. ISBN 0-14-022749-0.
Korang, Kwaku Larbi. “Making a Post-Eurocentric Humanity: Tragedy, Realism, and Things Fall Apart.” Research in African Literatures 42.2 (2011): 1–29. ProQuest. Web. 11 Nov. 2013.
I have always thought that Nelson Mandela has been one of the most important people in history. I find it very fascinating that one man could end the Apartheid and that is why I want to find out more about this. South Africa is a country with a past of enforced racism and separation of its multi-racial community. The White Europeans invaded South Africa and started a political system known as 'Apartheid' (meaning 'apartness'). This system severely restricted the rights and lifestyle of the non-White inhabitants of the country forcing them to live separately from the White Europeans. I have chosen to investigate how the Apartheid affected people’s lives, and also how and why the Apartheid system rose and fell in South Africa.
"Swize Bansi is Dead" tells the difficult reality of Africa under apartheid (1950s), analysing the complex issue of identity in that time. The rules of Apartheid meant that people were legally classified into a racial group, mainly Black and White, and separated from each others.