Previous Next

Petrus’s ascent from Lucy’s former assistant and “dog-man” to a self-made landowner and farmer in the Eastern Cape represents a broader ascent of Black people in South Africa from oppression enforced by whites under Apartheid. It’s especially interesting, then, that Petrus uses Lucy’s rape, and the men’s motive to subjugate Lucy, as leverage to take over her land in exchange for his patronage and protection, thus swapping one form of oppression for another. Like David, Petrus’s character is complex and his actions raise many questions. Whether Petrus helped plan Lucy’s rape in a larger plot to take over her land or if he instead is an opportunist who merely decided to benefit by her attack demands discussion, as does the question of whether Petrus protected Pollux because he truly believed him to be innocent or because he felt Black people had already suffered enough persecution.

Previous section Melanie Isaacs Next section Bev Shaw

Take a Study Break