Genuinely Liberal-Minded?: Whether Maureen and Bam Are True to Their Ideologies Risini Paya Polwattage 12th Grade

The novel July’s People was written by the well-known South African author Nadine Gordimer. This is a futuristic novel in which the author envisions a political situation that would arise in South Africa. She envisions a situation where the minority white power will be overthrown by the majority blacks. This story revolves around the Smales family who run away from Johannesburg during the riots, with their black servant July to his village. The Smales couple, Maureen and Bam always considered themselves to be liberal minded and to dislike apartheid. However when reading this novel, the reader can question whether they genuinely support the liberation of blacks.

The reader can see that unlike other whites Maureen and Bam did treat their black servant in a fairly good manner. They provided him a small residence for him and also let his ‘town woman’ sleep with him. Maureen and Bam also taught July to save money by allowing him to have a bank account. Through the way Maureen treated July when he was sick, the reader can understand that she was thoughtful of July and cared for him. Maureen also took measures to send presents to July’s family for New Year and Christmas. She sent a ‘night gown and a handbag’ to July’s wife and toys...