Previous Next

I was a child of Africa, a white child to be sure, but nevertheless Africa's child. The black breasts that had suckled me and the dark hands that had bathed and rocked me had left me with a burden of obligation to resist the white power that would be the ultimate gift from those who now trained me.

In the quotation above, from Chapter Sixteen, Peekay reflects on his training as a "spiritual terrorist" in the brutal context of apartheid South Africa. Interestingly, it is more a responsibility than a desire he feels for the cause. Peekay, Doc, Geel Piet, and Peekay's Granpa are all characters who represent this new kind of morality-a self-constructed morality that does not rely on religion to decide what is good and evil. In the above quotation, Peekay shows his awareness simply of what is right-that is, to resist the white regime.

Previous section Important Quotes Explained Page 2 Next section Important Quotes Explained Page 4

Popular pages: The Power of One

Take a Study Break