Cry, the Beloved Country

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Cry, the Beloved Country

• by Alan Paton

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What I Know About South Africa

• Pre-write anything that you know about South
  Africa.
• We will later explore some of the features of
  South Africa as they relate to Paton's work and
  as they give a context for contemporary South
  Africa.

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Alan Paton

• - Born on January 11, 1903, on the east coast of
  southern Africa (formerly Natal) to evangelical
  Christians
• - South Africa did not yet exist it was
  established in 1910 following the Anglo-Boer War.
  

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Johannesburg

In 1886, gold mines were discovered and gave rise
to the creation of this city. The setting for
Cry, The Beloved Country, it provides a realistic
stage for the unfortunate racially based tension
that surmounted at the end of World War II due to
the increasing number of people moving to
Johannesburg from nearby outlying rural areas in
Africa.
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Johannesburg, a major setting in Cry, the Beloved
Country

• Current Population
• 1,675,200

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Johannesburg - 1931
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English vs. Afrikaner vs. Zulu
The tension between British imperialists and the
Afrikaans, or white South African inhabitants
descendant of the Boers, pales in comparison to
the struggles between the Afrikaans and native
black Africans. The respective languages of
these two groups, Afrikaner and Zulu represent a
pronounced difference in culture and perspective.

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Jan Hofmeyr

Hofmeyr helped Paton to make possible the
Diepkloof Reformatory, an institution that
approached the issue of juvenile delinquency in
terms of education rather than imprisonment.
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Cry, the Beloved Country

Published in February 1948 in New York, Paton's
masterpiece has been translated into some twenty
different languages since. The work captures
the ethnic, political, and spiritual essence of
the setting in which it is based. It also brings
to surface universal considerations, such as
love, retribution, and justice.
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Cry, the Beloved Country

The London publication of this work included the
subtitle, A Story of Comfort in Desolation,
which makes reference to the underlying tone of
hope in the midst of desperate events of which
the main character becomes aware throughout the
work.
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Preconceived Concept Associations

• For the following terms, write a two-sentence
  response to what each means to you. Avoid
  clichés.
• Justice
• Prejudice
• Love
• Family
• Progress
• Home

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Title Inference

• Looking only at the title, Cry, the Beloved
  Country, write what you might assume is a central
  theme to the novel.
• Consider questions like the following Is Cry
  the name of the country? Is there irony in the
  title? Is this an imperative statement? Is
  beloved being used in the present or past
  tense?

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The Work's Acclaim

• Cry, the Beloved Country is noted for its ability
  to make others aware of South Africa and the ills
  of apartheid. Paton provides a combination of
  despair and hope that helps to enlighten the
  reader who is ignorant to the unjust events that
  occur in this part of the world that is often
  unrevealed to Americans.

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South Africa's Acclaim

• Population 43,997,828
• Total Area
• 471,008 sq mi

Today, eleven languages are recognized as the
official language. IsiZulu 23.8, IsiXhosa
17.6, Afrikaans 13.3, Sepedi 9.4, English
8.2, Setswana 8.2, Sesotho 7.9, Xitsonga 4.4,
other 7.2 (2001)?
South Africa's President Kgalema Motlanthe
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South Africa during Paton's Life

• 1910 - Formation of Union of South Africa by
  former British colonies of the Cape and Natal,
  and the Boer republics of Transvaal, and Orange
  Free State.
• 1912 - Native National Congress founded, later
  renamed the African National Congress (ANC).
• 1913 - Land Act introduced to prevent blacks,
  except those living in Cape Province, from buying
  land outside reserves.

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South Africa during Paton's Life

• 1914 - National Party founded.
• 1918 - Secret Broederbond (brotherhood)
  established to advance the Afrikaner cause.
• 1919 - South West Africa (Namibia) comes under
  South African administration.
• Apartheid set in law

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South Africa during Paton's Life

• 1948 - Policy of apartheid (separateness) adopted
  when National Party (NP) takes power.
• 1950 - Population classified by race. Group Areas
  Act passed to segregate blacks and whites.
  Communist Party banned. ANC responds with
  campaign of civil disobedience, led by Nelson
  Mandela.
• 1960 - Seventy black demonstrators killed at
  Sharpeville. ANC banned.

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South Africa during Paton's Life

• 1961 - South Africa declared a republic, leaves
  the Commonwealth. Mandela heads ANC's new
  military wing, which launches sabotage campaign.
• 1960s - International pressure against government
  begins, South Africa excluded from Olympic Games.
  

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South Africa during Paton's Life

• 1964 - ANC leader Nelson Mandela sentenced to
  life imprisonment.
• 1966 September - Prime Minister Hendrik Verwoerd
  assassinated.
• 1970s - More than 3 million people forcibly
  resettled in black 'homelands'.
• 1976 - More than 600 killed in clashes between
  black protesters and security forces during
  uprising which starts in Soweto.

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South Africa during Paton's Life

• 1984-89 - Township revolt, state of emergency.
• 1989 - FW de Klerk replaces PW Botha as
  president, meets Mandela. Public facilities
  desegregated. Many ANC activists freed.
• 1990 - ANC unbanned, Mandela released after 27
  years in prison. Namibia becomes independent.
• 1991 - Start of multi-party talks. De Klerk
  repeals remaining apartheid laws, international
  sanctions lifted. Major fighting between ANC and
  Zulu Inkatha movement.

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Works Cited

• http//www.infoplease.com/ipa/A0107983.html
• http//news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/country_profiles
  /1069402.stm