Amnesty summary and analysis.
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Nadine Gordimer (1923-2014)
- Born in South Africa to Jewish immigrant parents.
- Began writing at the age of nine and published her first work at fifteen.
- She actively took part in the anti-apartheid movement.
- She was one founder and patron of the Congress of South African Writers.
- Apart from that, he was a strong supporter of the South African National Congress.
Major Works.
Gordimer published her works in fourteen languages. She has written thirteen novels and ten short story collections.
Major Novels.
- The Conservationist (1974).
- The Burgers Daughter(1979).
- July's People(1981).
- My Son's Story (1990).
- The House Gun (1998).
- Get a Life(2005).
Major Short Story Collections.
- A Soldier's Embrace(1980).
- Crimes of Conscience (1991).
- Jump and Other Stories (1991).
- Beethoven Was One-Sixteenth Black (2007).
Awards.
- She won the Booker Prize in 1974 for her novel, The Conservationist.
- She received Nobel Prize in literature in 1991.
- Commonwealth Writers' Prize in 2002.
- In 2007Gordimer was awarded the French 'Legion of Honour'.
Amnesty is a short story originally published in the American weekly magazine The New Yorker in 1991and later selected to the anthology entitled Freedom published by Amnesty International to celebrate the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. The story takes place in South Africa during the time of apartheid. Flashback is the narrative technique used in the story. The story or narration moves from past to present and present to past. The narrator of the story is a young South African woman who tells the story of a man who is going to marry her. The story portrays the horrible face of racial discrimination in South Africa. Apart from that the story also highlights how women in Africa were oppressed emotionally and physically during the time of colonialism.
SUMMARY OF AMNESTY.
At the beginning of the story, a South African woman heard the news of releasing her fiancee and ran to the next farm to tell everybody. He was imprisoned on an island where all political prisoners keep. Last six years he was imprisoned on the island. Now he is released from the island and coming back home.
Now the narration takes us six years back. Six years ago he went to town and joined a construction company and came back home for the weekend once a month and two weeks at Christmas. In those days he has a plan to marry her. But unfortunately, he joined in union and participated in strikes. This brings a change in their life. He was always good at speaking even in English and he was also the best in farm school. he was an active member of the union. The union arranges speeches and marching. Instead of getting married the third year, she heard that he is the prison. She had passed 8th standard and worked in the farm school. Her family had short of money. Two brothers are not there in the home and they did not pay anything to home as they live with girlfriends. Her father and other brother work for Boer but the pay was very little.
Now she recalls an incident that happened when visited him in court. At the time, he looked more handsome in his shirt and tie. When born a baby she took her to the court first time. All comrades clubbed money as a present and gave it to the baby. Apart from that, he chooses a name for her, Inkululeko which means freedom.
After the trial was over, he got 6 years imprisonment and was sent to the island. The island was particularly for the political prisoners. He was allowed one letter in a month. He wrote a letter to her because his parents were not educated to read the letter. Therefore she used to visit another farm and ask them to pass anything to their son.
After the two years of imprisonment, she and his mother had saved more money to visit him on the island. They capture a train to Cape Town from where they can get Ferry (Boat) to the island. There were many people waiting for the ferry. The ferry doesn't go anywhere else in the world. It goes only to the island. They keep many things with them in order to give him. They kept sweets, biscuits, trousers and warm clothes for him. Unfortunately, they couldn't enter the ferry because they did not have a permit. They were not conscious of the permit. If anybody wants to visit prisoners on the island, they have to take prior permission from the authority. They are not well educated to be conscious of the permit.
They turned back home by train. The only good thing that happened was that one of the other people took the sweets and biscuits for him. He wrote a letter to her saying he got biscuits and sweets. But that was not a good letter. Because he blamed her by saying that she should have known about the permit. They never tried again to visit him in the prison. they could not find the money for the train.
Now he is coming back home after five years. She showed his photo to the little girl by saying this is your dad. You are going to see him very soon. She told other children at the school about her father.
She was really happy with the news at the same time she needs some more time to prepare. Because his mother now lives with one of the uncles. His father died earlier. There is no house for her and the child. If she gets a little more time her father and mother would build a house with baked bricks, and cut thatch for them.
They are not sure about the exact day when he would arrive home. They just heard the news on the radio and in the newspaper. That was on a Saturday, there was no school, she was working with her mother. A combi came over there, along with many comrades. He gets out of the car. All comrades were making noise. She wanted to run away from the spot and mother started to shriek in the old style aie! aie!. His father was clapping and stamping towards him.
She was really surprised when saw him. Because he put a lot of weight. Earlier he was so thin and she could feel his bones. Now he is stronger than earlier. All comrades used to exercise in the prison. He would run three miles a day, stepping up and down on one place on the floor of the small cell where he was kept.
Sometimes she would try to tell many things that happened in his absence of him. He just listens to her like any other who tells the story of what happened on the farm when he was in the prison. He just expresses mild interest in her words. He smiles and nod some times ask some question and then stand up and stretches. He always thinks about something else. He becomes busier than earlier.
After the release, he did not join other jobs. But he was not ready to be at home. usually, combi or some car comes and fetch him. he was not sure about when he back home. l
Later we came to know that he joined the movement, who interfere with the problems of workers or problems of African natives. He wanted to get land from the white people.
Usually, comrades would come to their place and discuss the future programs. She and her mother serve tea and beer to them. They like her mother's beer. Sometimes they used to sing the old song along with her mother. Her father did not like this noise because he was afraid of Boers, who possess the ownership of their land.
One day she came to know that they are going to organize a mass movement against white people with the support of the workers. They demand minimum wage, limitation of working hours, the right to strike, annual leave, accident compensation, pension, etc. At the same time the second child was growing inside her he was not conscious of it. He did not have time to spend at home. He comes home just for eating a meal and to change clothes.
The same thing happened what was she afraid of. The same routine began once again, All Saturday there is no school, therefore, she works with her mother. Sunday there is no work only a prayer meeting held under the tree. She spends her time just like when she was a child. She talks to herself nobody was there to listen to her. Once again she started to wait for him...
Conclusion.
This is one of the stories that expose the problems faced by the Africans during the time of colonialism. Especially sufferings of the African women have to face the doubles layers of suffering. Just like any other woman they suffer and sacrifice their life for their men. Apart from that like any other colonized they are also oppressed physically and emotionally in the hands of colonized.
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