Comparison of the character of Xuma and Johannes.

Xuma is the novel's protagonist. Xuma leaves his family farm in the economically depressed north to work in a Johannesburg gold mine, where he encounters the social problems and harsh living conditions that arise from racial and economic oppression. Xuma is characterized as naïve and good-natured, and he is often confused by the behaviors and attitudes of the city people he meets. Xuma is strong and good-looking, attracting the attention of multiple women.

Johannes is a mine worker who Xuma meets at Leah's. Johannes's personality changes when he drinks, turning him boastful and pugnacious. Johannes dies in a mine collapse at the end of the novel.