However the white privileged male was not punished for his role in the story. Gordimer wrote this story to enlighten the prejudice that occurred in the 1900’s. In this paper, I will describe what the theme is and identify how the point of view and the setting contribute to the theme. Without these components “Country Lovers” one reading the story would not be able to experience the true feeling of being treated different because of color, gender or social status.
Country Lovers was written during the time of Apartheid a former policy of segregation and political and economic discrimination against non-European groups in the Republic of South Africa. This story is about Thebedi the farm worker and Paulus the son of the farm owner and their secret love affair that started as a childhood crush. Once the two became adults the crush turned into sexual curiosity. The two would secretly meet at the river-bed and explore their sexual inquisitiveness. Thebedi became pregnant, but knew she had to keep another secret.
Her parents sold her to Njabulo who became her husband. One would believe Gordimer’s theme is regarding racism of black females and the special treatment of white people even if they commit murder. The theme in literature is complex and cannot be defined in one word. It is a representation of the idea behind the story (Clugston, 2010).
The theme is also the subject, idea, and the main topic, that the writer is trying to point out. The point of view refers to who is telling the story. In “County Lovers” someone else is the narrator therefore the point of view is third person.
The Term Paper on Short Story Theme Evaluation
Short Story Theme Evaluation The short story "The Dinner Party" by Mona Gardner is about an actual dinner party at the colonial official's house; at this party, a discussion arises about how women panic by screaming out loud when a critter such as a mouse or snake is in their presence; in this short story, readers learn that stereotypes can often lead to the misjudgment of others through the calm ...
For instance in the very beginning of the story the writer starts off by saying, “the farm children play together” this is an example of third person point of view. Third person- omniscient is used in this story which means the narrator knows everything about all the characters in the story. The narrator gave details about each character in this story. Third person omniscient is used throughout the entire story examples of this type of point of view are: he told his travelers’ tales, they went to the river, when she was eighteen, this only names a few.
The main focus of the narrator is to get the point of view across and entertain in order for the reader to sense what is being said. The river bed and the farm house are two of the areas where the story takes place the formal name is the setting. The setting is the feature that attracts the reader’s imagination (Clugston, 2010).
In this story the narrator mentioned how during the summer holidays the two would met at the dried up river bed. This lets the reader know what time of year it may be. Giving details about the surroundings played a major part of being entertained by the narrator.
Describing the type of car, and how the house looked on the inside lets the reader know these people were on the affluent side. The setting allows one to get a clear picture, an understanding and being able to relate to characters in the story. The setting helps the reader to place themselves at the different places in a story. Thebedi became pregnant, she married Njabulo. Paulus returned home to find out Thebedi had delivered a child that possible could be his. After seeing the child he knew without a doubt this was his child.
Because he did not want anyone to know and it was against the law for a servant and her master to have a relationship the only thing he knew to do was to murder the baby. He threatens to kill Thebedi if she told anyone. Charges were placed upon Paulus after Thebedi told the truth but because of the social status and the racial status Paulus was not charged with the crime. In conclusion, the theme “Country Lovers” shows how if one is economically, socially or gender disadvantaged they could be treated differently.
The Essay on Oroonoko Story The Narrator
Oroonoko In Oroonoko by Aphra Behn the narrator is also a participant in the action of the story. Behn uses the first person to tell the story however; she and the narrator exist as two separate entities. The narrator of Oroonoko is not important so much as a catalyst to the action of the story but for her relationship to Oroonoko, her ability to tell his story and her representation of colonial ...
