“There is a
lovely road that runs from Ixopo into the hills. These hills are grass covered and rolling,
and they are lovely beyond any singing of it (Paton 33).” The love for the land of South Africa is
brilliantly expressed in the novel Cry,
The Beloved Country. As I read book
1 of this novel, I began to see more obvious symbolism take place from South
Africa’s breath taking land. Being an
author of great talents, Paton has incorporated symbolism between the land he
loves so to the story and to his overall message; most of this was organized in
the first chapter of his novel.
Paton begins to talk about the positivity in the land. “The
grass is rich and matted, you cannot see the soil. It holds the rain and the mist, and they seed
into the ground, feeding the streams in every Kloof. It is well-tended, and not too many cattle
feed upon it; not too many fires burn it, laying bare the soil… (Paton 33).” I think this symbolizes the positive impact
from the tribes for the Natives. Comparing
a perfect land to a perfect atmosphere of living for the Natives. This is life “before” Apartied.
Paton now begins to talk about the negativity of the land, it’s
almost a complete inversion of the previous paragraph. “Where you stand the grass is rich and matted,
you cannot see the soil. But the rich
green hills break down. They fall to the
valley below, and falling, change their nature.
For they grow red and bare; they cannot hold the rain and mist, and the streams
are dry in the Kloofs. Too many cattle
feed upon the grass, and too many fires burn it… (Paton 33-34).” I think this symbolizes the negative impact
from the society and the negative affiliations with other cultures. This also shows the impact on the natives “during”
Apartied.
Paton finally talks about the scars of the land; he talks in
past tense. “The great red hills stand
desolate, and the earth has torn away like flesh. The lightning flashes over them, the clouds
pour down upon them, the dead streams come to life, full of the red blood of
the earth. Down in the valleys women scratch
the soil that is left, and the maize hardly reached the height of a man… (Paton
34).” I think this symbolizes the
aftermath or the forever scare of Apartied as a hole for the Natives. No matter how fixed the system will get
Apartied will be eternally engraved in the History of South Africa.
All in the first chapter Paton deliberately incorporated the
past, present, and life after Apartied in one chapter. But instead of describing it through the
people, he decides to incorporate the history briefly into the land. Once dissected, one could figure out how Apartied
affected South Africa before it, during it, and after it.
