Cry, the Beloved Country

While Kumalo waits to go to Shanty Town, he spends time playing with his nephew. He does not know what to say to Gertrude, but Mrs. Lithebe speaks with and tries to help her. Playing with his nephew makes Kumalo think about his son. As he contemplates where Absalom is, Msimangu arrives to take him to Shanty Town. In town, squatters tell the men that the government sent Absalom to a reformatory. They enter an office where a young white man sits. The man tells them that Absalom left because he wanted to marry a girl whom he got pregnant. He takes Kumalo and Msimangu to where Absalom and his partner live. The girl answers the door and tells them that Absalom left a week ago and never returned. The young white man calls the factory where Absalom works and learns they have not seen him for a week.

Msimangu suggests Kumalo rest while the young white man from the reformatory tries to find more information. He then takes Kumalo to the Ezenzeleni, a colony where a white priest named Father Vincent attends to people who are blind. While the men are with Father Vincent, they read a newspaper that announces the murder of a white man, a city engineer. Father Vincent knows the murdered man, Arthur Jarvis, who fought for equality for Black South African citizens. Kumalo knows Arthur’s father James Jarvis, whose farm is in the hills near Ndotsheni. Father Vincent reads the newspaper article aloud, which describes how intruders entered the Jarvis house when Mrs. Jarvis and the children were away. Arthur was sick, so he was home with a Black servant name Richard Mpiring when three Black South African men entered the home. The intruders knocked out Mpiring, and when Arthur went to investigate, one of the intruders shot him. Mpiring was in the hospital, and authorities hoped he would be able to identify the culprits when he regained consciousness. Before he died, Arthur was writing an unfinished essay entitled “The Truth about Native Crime” (104).

The beginning of this chapter outlines different voices arguing over what to do about South Africa. One speaker suggests they increase the number of police to handle crime. Another voice wonders why they do not segregate more areas, so white children do not have to interact with Black children. Another voice suggests white people do not fear Black people, but “the loss of [their] whiteness” (110). Msimangu receives word that police visited places where Absalom lived. He and Kumalo visit Absalom’s partner, but she did not ask the police why they wanted Absalom. Msimangu gives her their phone number to call if the police return.

In Ezenzeleni, Kumalo sits outside while Msimangu works. He contemplates the trajectory of his son Absalom’s life, and his shame around his thievery. He thinks about Arthur’s murder, the depravity of killing another human. Despite his joy over helping his sister Gertrude, Kumalo despairs that the tribe is broken and “would be mended no more” (120). He expresses his depression to Msimangu, who reminds him that depression Is a “sin.” He listens to Msimangu preach, and remembers God has not forsaken him.

The next day, Msimangu and the young white man from the reformatory visit Kumalo. The white man tells Kumalo that Absalom murdered Arthur. Absalom entered the Jarvis house with John’s son Matthew and another boy, but Absalom is the one who fired the gun. The white man offers to take Kumalo to visit his son in prison, and Kumalo agrees but wants to stop at John’s shop first.

At John’s shop, Kumalo tells him about Absalom, and that Matthew was one of the intruders. John agrees to come with him to the prison. At the prison, Kumalo asks Absalom why he killed Arthur, and Absalom says he was scared and killed him accidentally. He starts to cry, but Kumalo does not know if he cries for himself or out of remorse. After the visit, John tells Kumalo that there is no proof that his son was in the house, other than Absalom’s testimony. Kumalo feels helpless, realizing his brother will accuse Absalom of lying to save his own son from prison.

Father Vincent tells Kumalo that he knows a lawyer who may want to represent Absalom. Kumalo admits he fears God has turned his back on him. He says Absalom cries only for himself and feels no shame. He begins to weep, but Father Vincent tells him to pray, rest, and think about all the goodness in the world.

The next day, Kumalo goes to Absalom’s partner’s house. He tells her that Absalom is in prison because he killed a white man. She still wants to marry Absalom. Kumalo tells her that if she marries his son, he will take her to live with him and his wife in Ndotsheni. In the meantime, he arranges for her to stay at Mrs. Lithebe’s house. As he leaves, he sees her watching him with a smile, and he remembers Father Vincent’s words about hope and compassion.

Kumalo visits his son Absalom again. He tells him that Father Vincent knows a lawyer who can help him. Absalom says his cousin Matthew and other friend are angry at him for implicating them in Arthur’s murder. Kumalo reminds Absalom to tell the lawyer the truth. He meets with Father Vincent, who introduces him to the white lawyer named Mr. Carmichael. Mr. Carmichael tells Kumalo that he will take his case pro deo (“for God”). He will try to convince the judge that Absalom did not mean to kill Arthur, that he fired out of fear. Father Vincent walks Kumalo out, and Kumalo asks how much Mr. Carmichael will charge him. Father Vincent explains Mr. Carmichael will not charge him. This kindness overwhelms Kumalo, and he thanks Father Vincent again.