Perspectives On Colonialism: A Study Of Alex La Guma’s “a Walk In The Night” And R.k Narayan’s “a Horse And Two Goats”.

The spread of colonial empire was introduced in the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries by the American Revolutionary war and the Latin American wars of independence. Colonialism is “the policy of acquiring and maintaining colonies, especially for exploitation”. Colonialism therefore will be examined in Alex La Guma’s “A Walk in the Night” and R.K Narayan’s “A Horse and Two Goats”. They both showcase the ailments of colonialism in their respective works. Apartheid in South Africa has perpetrated on the lives of South Africans and perhaps death of a character in La Guma’s “A Walk in the Night”, due to ‘racism’. For clearer understanding of this study, it is pertinent that the concept ‘race’ and ‘oppression’ be defined. ‘race’ is “any major biological division of mankind, distinguished by colour and texture of hair, colour of skin and eye stature”. Oppression-  “is the act of oppressing, the imposition of unreasonable burdens, either in taxes, services, excessing rigorous government severity”. ‘Racial oppression’- “the severity or misery imposed on a particular people with the same biological features by another group or specie of mankind”. Therefore, colonialism will be examine in South Africa’s apartheid regime, how South Africans were treated and La Guma tells how a character (Willieboy) his killed unlawfully in “A Walk in the Night”. Also how Narayan showcases  instances of colonialism in “A Horse and Two Goats”. Really, colonialism has caused Africans so many problems, which some of these generate till date. The means to stop this phenomenon occurrence is for Africans to live in unity.       

Title page                                                                                                  i

Certification                                                                                             ii

Dedication                                                                                               iii

Acknowledgements                                                                                 iv

Abstract                                                                                                   v

Table of contents                                                                                      vi

CHAPTER ONE

1.1 Background of the study                    1                                                          

1.2.Introduction                                                                                      1

1.2.1.History of colonialism                                                                      1-3

1.2.2. Definition of colonialism                                                                  3-6

1.13 Race                                                               6

1.1.3.1 Oppression                                                   6-7

1.1.3.2.Racial Oppression                                           7-9

1.1.4 Indirect rule                                                9-11

1.2 Aims and Objectives                                           11-12

1.3 Scope and limitation                                             12

1.4 Justification                                                                                       12-13

1.5 End Note of study.           14-15

CHAPTER TWO

Literature review                      

2.1     Narayan Review                                                                              21-23

2.1.1  Malgudi    23-25

2.1.2  Critical reception    25-34

2.2   La Guma  Review                                                                             34-45                                               

CHAPTER THREE

Literary analysis of Alex La Guma’s “A Walk in the Night” and R.K Narayan’s “A Horse and Two Goats”.

3.1        Introduction.                                                                                       46-48

3.2        Plot                                                                                                    48-50

3.3        Themes                                                                                              50-52

3.3.1   Racial Oppression                                                                              50-51 

3.3.2       Racial discrimination                                                                         51

3.3.3       Racial violence 52  

3.4         Characterization                                                                                  53-58

3.4.1       Michael Adonis                                                                                   53-54

3.4.2      Willieboy                                                                                             54-55

3.4.3      Uncle Doughty                                                                                    55-56

3.4.4      Police Constable Raalt                                                                        56

3.4.5      Joe                                                                                                       56-57

3.4.6      Andries                                                                                                58

3.5         Setting                                                                                                 59

3.6         Point of View                                                                                       59

3.7         Conclusion                                                                                          60-61

CHAPTER FOUR

Literary analysis of R.K Narayan’s “A Horse and two Goats”.

4.1 Introduction                                                                                         62-63

4.2 Plot                                                                                                      63-64

4.3 Themes                                                                                                67-69

4.3.1 Culture clash                                                                                        67

4.3.2 Wealth and poverty                                                                              68-69

4.4 Characterization                                                                                   70-72

4.4.1 The man (American)                                                                            70 

4.4.2 Muni                                                                                                     70-71

4.4.3 The wife                                                                                                71-72  

4.4.4 The Shopman                                                                                        72 

4.5 Setting                                                                                                   72-73

4.6 Point of view                                                                                         74-75

4.7 Realism                                                                                                  75-76

4.8 Humour                                                                                                  76

4.9 Conclusion                                                                                             76-77

CHAPTER FIVE

Comparative work of Alex La Guma’s “A Walk in the Night” and R.K. Narayan’s “A Horse and two Goats”.

CONCLUSION                                                                                          82-83

BIBLOGRAPHY                                                                                       84-89

Perspectives on colonialism in Alex La Guma’s “A Walk in the Night” and R.K Narayan’s “A Horse and Two Goats”.

  History of Colonialism.

     [The word ‘colony’ comes from the Latin colonial a place for agriculture:] colonialism has a long history. In antiquity, the Egyptians, Phoenicians, Greeks and Romans all built colonies.

Modern colonialism started with the Age of Discovery (15th Century). Portugal and Spain discovered new lands across the oceans and built trading posts. For some people, it is this building of colonies across the ocean that differentiates colonialism from other type of expansionism. These new lands were divided between the seventeenth century in Spain and made the creation of the British Empire, French Colonial Empire and the Dutch Empire. It also saw the establishment of some Swedish overseas colonies and a Danish Colonial Empire.

The spread of colonial empire was reduced in the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries by the American Revolutionary war and the Latin American wars of independence. However, many new colonies were established after this time (late nineteenth century), including for instance, the German colonial Empire and Belgian Empire. In the late nineteenth century, many European powers were involved in the scramble for Africa. The Russian Empire and Ottoman Empire existed at the same time as the above empires, but are often not considered colonial, because they did not expand traditional route of conquest of neighbouring territories. There was, though, some Russians colonization of the Amerians across the slave trade.

Slavery has existed to varying extents, in different forms and at periods in almost all cultures and continents. Between the 7th and 20th centuries.Arab Slave trade (also known as slavery in the East) took approximately 18 millions slave from Africa, via Trans- Saharan and Indian Ocean routes. Between the 15th and the 19th centuries, the Atlantic slave trade took up till 12 million slaves to the new world. From 1654 untill 1865; slavery for life was legal within the bound of the present United States. According to the 1860 U.S census, nearly four million slaves were held in a total population of just over 12 million in the 15th states in which slavery was legal. Of all 1,515 605 families in the 15 slaves states, 393,967 held slaves (roughly one in four), amounting 8% of all America families.

In 1807, the United Kingdom becomes one of the first nations to end its own participation in the slave trade.

Furthermore, between 1808 and 1860, the British West Africa squadron seized approximately 1,600 slave ships and freed 150,000 Africans who were aboard. This was done to sweep the African and American seas of the atrocious commerce with which they were the infested. Action was also taken against African leader. Who refused to agree to British treaties to outlaw the trader, for example against the usurping king of Lagos deposed in 1851.Anti-slavery treaties were signed with over 50 African rulers. In 1827, British declared the slave trade privacy, punishment habit. The Empire of Japan modelled itself on European colonial Empires. The united state of American gained overseas territories after the Spanish - America war and the term ‘American Empire’ transit to colonialism was coined.