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Indu Shekhar Kumar

AAAS 2251

Dr. Lupenga Mphande

01 October 2013

Death and Apartheid in Sizwe Bansi is Dead

Colonization motivated by the desire to earn profits and expand business has always

resulted in the tussle for power, between the foreign power and the country being colonized. In

almost, all documented cases of colonization, the foreign powers have proved superior to the

locals. After, the initial war and subsequent revolts, the process of colonization starts. It starts by

educating the locals in the foreign culture and literature and constructing laws to firmly establish

the foreign rule. A lot of these laws marginalize the local people and they are bereft of basic

human rights. Thus inequality becomes prevalent in such a society. Taking Apartheid as an

example, Athol Fugard shows us the intricate details of the problems generated by the Apartheid

laws in his book Sizwe Bansi is dead. The lead character of the book Sizwe Bansi tries to make

his subjection more bearable by changing his identity to Robert Zwelinzima. But, such a life

comes at a price. Living under a stolen identity comes paired with the fear of being exposed.

This constant fear does not allow the person to reach his full potential and enjoy his life.

Moreover, the racial segregation, as seen in South Africa under Apartheid leads to frustration and

anger which ultimately destroys the self-worth of a person. I think, rather than living under a

false identity to make his/her existence more bearable, a person should fight against oppression

and strive to overthrow the foreign rule.

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A country under colonial rule faces discrimination in all spheres of life. The local worker

can’t rise to high ranking administrative positions within the organization. The menial labor jobs

are reserved for them. The working conditions for the local workers and the foreign workers are

different. The locals work in a hazardous atmosphere. Snippets of such behavior are

demonstrated in the recollections or dramatization of the characters in the play. “First stage of

general cleaning finished. We stated on the second………..spell it slowly.”(Fugard, 5). This

instance portrays Styles’s recollection. The plant was cleaned and the safety lines, boards were

put up just before the inspection of the plant by the boss. Before this incident, the local workers

did not know about the ‘No- Smoking’ and ‘Eye Protection’ area of the factory. This inherently

put their life in danger. Another instance in the recollection shows how the workers were treated

as objects which increased the aesthetic appeal of the factory. “Tell all boys they must now go

and wash themselves clean……………Armstrong on the moon.”(Fugard, 6) The workers were

asked to clean themselves. They were provided with fresh towels and new clothes. People like

Styles who worked in the hazardous section of the plant were provided with protective gear.

Moreover, the General Forman Bradley asked the workers to smile and sing happily up till the

inspection was over Such explicit ignorance for the well-being of others and portrayal of the

workers as ‘things’ to impress is contemptible.

Athol Fugard uses conversations of his characters to flesh out the evils of the Apartheid

system. These conversations shed light on the line of thinking of the character. Moreover, the

exchanges between the characters exemplify the circumstance that a black person under the

Apartheid system would face. Kolawole, explains in his article that “Fugard’s engagement with

power structures in this play is largely concerned with the effects of the misuse of power against

the marginalized, ordinary South African citizens, who like those at the ex-center in most

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oppressive situations in the world, have no input in making the laws by which they are governed.

He specifically uses the play to probe the insecurity and social tensions that can be faced by

those at the receiving end of power abuse, using the South African state under Apartheid as a

case study.”(Olaiya,“ Deconstructing Apartheid's Global Gaze: Death and Resistance in Fugard

et al/s Sizwe Bansi is Dead.”). For instance, when Sizwe talks to Buntu about the problems with

his identification card, the audience can relate themselves to this circumstance. Sizwe discussed

how his passbook card got stamped and that he was to be evicted from Port Elizabeth. Buntu

suggest a lot of alternatives, but in vain. Finally, they stumble on to the dead body of a person

called Robert Zwelinzima. Creating such an environment stimulates the audience to think about

how; they would have reacted to this situation. This renders a lasting impression on the mind of

the reader. Thus, by creating strong mental images Athol Fugard elicits the emotions of the

audience towards Apartheid.

The play also incorporates the use of the letter that Sizwe had written to his wife. This

demonstrates an event by event description of the various changes in the life Sizwe Bansi. The

account of the transformation of Sizwe Bansi to Robert Zwelinzima is descripted in this letter.

This letter is a key medium for the audience to understand, the way Sizwe wants to portray

himself to his family. This gives the audience insight towards the aspirations and morality of

Sizwe. Sizwe had to change his identity to make a living. This speaks volumes about the

condition of the black people in South Africa under the Apartheid system. This is one of the

reasons why Sizwe should have fought against the authorities in an organized rebellion.

One central aspect of this play is the comparison of the sociopolitical and existational

dimensions of the Apartheid era. André Brink, in his article emphasizes on this comparison by

stating-“Much of the impact of this moment in Sizwe Bansi derives from the way in which it

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represents an interface between the play's two key dimensions: the sociopolitical and the

existential. Sizwe Bansi has long been recognized not only as "an indictment of the depravity

and inhumanity of apartheid" (Vandenbroucke 123), but also as a "watershed" of a "new theatre"

in South Africa (Mshengu 46).”(Brink, "No Way Out": Sizwe Bansi Is Dead and the Dilemma of

Political Drama in South Africa). Brink suggests that Sizwe Bansi is constantly troubled at

having to choose between morality and self-preservation. This can be seen in the instant where,

Buntu suggests a mining job to Sizwe but he rejects it expressing concerns over the safety. Here

we can observe how Sizwe’s desire to stay and work at Port Elizabeth and instinct of self-

preservation collide. Sizwe is troubled again by the same decision when he is asked by Buntu to

change his identity to Robert Zwelinzima. Sizwe does not want to lose his identity but at the

same time he wants to sustain his family by working in Port Elizabeth. In this case the play

pertinently exploits the metaphor of ‘death’. ‘Death’ here means the action of abandoning

identity. Sizwe abandons his identity as Sizwe Bansi and takes the one of Robert Zwelinzima. In

doing so the identity of Sizwe Bansi dies and that of Robert Zwelinzima is born.

Having talked about the description of Apartheid in the play Sizwe Bansi is dead the need

to empathize with the native Africans in South Africa is felt. This is the core reason for the

success of this play. This play blatantly exposes the prejudice present in the white population

about the blacks and brings it out in a humorous way. The racial segregation of the blacks under

the Apartheid rules was extremely unjust and no human in his own motherland should be

subjected in the manner depicted in the play. Therefore, changing identity of a person to fit the

rules of the society plagued with injustice is not acceptable. Such rules and regimes should be

vehemently opposed and rebelled against.

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Works Cited

Fugard, Athol. Kani, John. Ntshona, Winston. Sizwe Bansi is dead and The Island. New

York: The Viking Press. 1976. Print.

Olaiya, Kolawole. “Deconstructing Apartheid's Global Gaze: Death and Resistance in

Fugard et al/s Sizwe Bansi is Dead.” The Global South, Vol. 2, No. 2, Africa in a Global

Age (Fall, 2008), pp. 75-91. JSTOR. Web. 01 Oct. 2013.

Brink, André. “"No Way Out": Sizwe Bansi Is Dead and the Dilemma of Political Drama

in South Africa.” Twentieth Century Literature, Vol. 39, No. 4, Athol Fugard Issue

(Winter, 1993), pp.438-454. JSTOR. Web. 01 Oct. 2013.

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