A Thematic Analysis of Nadine Gordimer’s The Train from Rhodesia

      

Nadine Gordimer (20 November 1923 – 13 July 2014) is beyond doubt the greatest South African woman writer and political activist in African Literature. The themes of her short stories and novels shift the focus of the reader to the issues which are directly related to the racial discrimination faced by South African society. Between the 1940s and 1990s the political ideology of Racial Apartheid was too common in African continent. Under the law the South Africans were divided on the basis of race and separate places were allotted to them for living. The government also forcibly moved many Blacks to places of scarce natural resources in order to torture them. The Blacks were thus given services inferior to the Whites and were looked down upon. It was during that period Nadine Gordimer used fiction as an instrument to voice against the long held policy of racial segregation which always undervalued Blacks and suppressed their identity. In the words of Eleanor Amioo, “Her writing reflects a commitment, to chronicle through artistic fiction, the distinctive realities of South African life for both white and black citizens” (Amioo 411).

Like other South African fiction writers such as Lewis Nkosi, Bessi Head, Njabulo Ndebele and Damon Galgut, Nadine Gordimer was very much concerned to demonstrate the dire sufferings of Black African community. “Her early novels namely The Lying Days (1953), Occasion for Loving (1963), Burger’s Daughter (1979), July’s People (1981) etc express anti-apartheid messages” (Haugh 192). Besides fighting against bigotry and colourism, the goal of Gordimer’s characters is to achieve self-definition as Black African. Gordimer writing in the tradition of Gustave Flaubert, Guy de Mauppasant, Antonin Chekov and Katherin Mansfield follows a concise and fractured style. As themes are the fundamental and often universal ideas explored in African literary works it should be clearly understood for identifying Gordimer’s social and political commentary in The Train from Rhodesia. The story encompasses the typical African Literature overarching theme of racial segregation and minor themes of cultural conflict, poverty, exploitation, alienation and class tension. 

The Train from Rhodesia revolves around a plain subject demonstrating the remonstration against the tyranny of apartheid and the belligerent attitude of Whites against Blacks. The eminent critic John Cooke comments on The Train from Rhodesia (1952) that “Gordimer confronted a country where the creative imagination, whatever it seizes upon, find the focus of even the most private event set in the overall social determination of racial laws” (Cooke 533).

The predominant theme of racism is explored throughout the story. Gordimer elaborates the dichotomy between the Whites and the native Africans during the time of the officially structured policy of racial apartheid. Kevin Durhheim observes: “But racism was not only a force created and maintained by government structures, the courts and the police. Racial hatred was established in a myriad of minute acts of indignity that were perpetuated by ordinary people” (Durrheim 7). Referring the Blacks as “piccanins” (895) and “performing animals” (895) is a strong derogatory remark to portray the status of Africans in their own country: “The piccanins were waving, the dogs stood, tails uncertain, watching the train go” (897). The White passengers in the train do not seem to be concerned with the irrefutable reality of the Blacks’ world. They distance themselves from the awful lives of natives and devalue them to the core. The travellers on the train look like caged animals cut off from the outside world. The narrator says: “Those sitting inside looked up: suddenly different, caged faced, boxed in, cut off after the contact of the outside” (896). One of the passengers demeaning actions of wasting food by literally throwing them to the animals instead giving it to the craving fellow native children again points out the level of racial discrimination. The Whites thus assure they are the superior race and have nothing to do with the Blacks. Hence it is evident that all passengers except the young woman represent the high class prejudiced White society. 

There is many a number Whites who are particularly sympathetic towards the experience of Blacks under apartheid. Gordimer -born to Jewish immigrant parents- through the characterization of young woman attempts to remind the readers that not all Whites have similar biased attitudes. The young woman though wants to stand up for a cause keeps herself silent. She must be of view that she would be alone if she breaks her silence and attempts to make a difference: “She sat there not wanting to move or speak, or to look at anything even” (898). Gordimer in the story has also overtly brought out the issue of colour and physical differences among Blacks than that of Whites. The portrayal of “the children’s black feet” (895) and the lion’s “black tongue” (895) render a clear picture of racial segregation. The narrator describes the lion in a racial tone: “Between the vandyke teeth, in the mouth opened in an endless roar too terrible to be heard, it had black tongue” (895). 

Another significant theme is cultural conflict. Culture is often a sentimental concept while cultural conflict is a sentimental phenomenon. In the words of Craig Mackenzie, “The well-known  story The Train from Rhodesia is about a misunderstanding that arises between a young married couple who acquire an item of African art at a station platform” (Mackenzie 96). The use of animals in African artwork is not a mere show for them but a juxtaposition of their cultural identity. In the story also, the artistic creation of lion is a part of African culture: “It was a lion, carved out of soft, dry wood that looked like spongecake; heraldic, black and white, with impressionistic detail burnt in” (895). The animal lion in African culture symbolizes pride, valour and fierce motherhood. It thus represents Africa and the grand culture of it. The narrator through the depiction of wooden lion also gives due credit to Africans’ skills in sculpturing. It is quite evident that even the young husband (White man) praises the art and artist. He says, “And round the neck of the thing, a piece of fur (rat? rabbit? meerkat?); a real mane, majestic, telling you somehow that the artist had delight in the lion” (895). On the contrary the same White man bargains with the native seller and buys the handicraft. He does not seem to be appreciating the artist’s talent and African culture when it comes to business transaction. Selling the sculptor of lion for a lower price to the young White man is equivalent to surrendering the Blacks’ cultural identity. At the same time the White young woman’s sense of shame and guilt for ‘achieving’ it for a lower price shows her reverence towards African culture. This is explicit in narrator’s words: “The heat of shame mounted through her legs and body and sounded in her ears like the sound of sand pouring” (898). Both husband and wife have different attitudes towards African culture. 

The themes of poverty and class tension are also seen in The Train from Rhodesia. There is an apparent clash between rich and poor in the story. The train passing through the poverty stricken corner of Africa from the White supremacist regime Rhodesia gives a detailed impression of nuances of class tension. The images of “barefoot children”, “grey mud huts”, “grey tin house”, “little brick station” (895) etc reflect the gradation of economic inferiority. When the train passengers seem to be merry-making in the train by “drinking beer” (895) and eating “chocolates” (896), the natives are struggling hard to earn their livelihood. Even the condition of the stationmaster -a government official- is not much different. The narrator’s description of the station master’s house exemplifies the same: “The stationmaster’s wife sat behind the mesh of her veranda. Above her head the hunk of a sheep’s carcass moved slightly, dangling in a current of air” (895). Also, the portrayal of child beggars who extend their hands pleading “Give me penny” (895) also points out the biggest financial crisis of Africans. As explained by Matsime Simon Mohapi in Poverty in the Land of Riches:
“We the people of South Africa, should continue to allow the rich and the powerful to exploit the masses of our poor Black people by turning them into beasts of burden to carry investor interests. There is no opening for us to enjoy the products of our toil and hard labour but continue to suffer and die in dire poverty” (Mohapi 74). 

Also the materialistic and consumerist notion of the Whites is viewed in their attempt to collect or buy all that they can. It is seen that the young lady and other fellow passengers have already done too much of shopping: “...the wooden buck, the hippos, the elephants, the baskets that already bulked out of their brown paper under the seat and on the luggage rack” (896). 

Another significant theme is alienation. The young woman drawing a distinction between the reality of world outside the train and the unreality of world inside the train is a question to the socially divided society. She fears if any of the souvenirs of the journey would give a meaning to their lives. Her question of “What will they mean away from the places you found them?” (896) is too meaningful in the context of apartheid. Living in one’s own homeland without enjoying much social and political privileges give the African natives a sense of alienation. For instance in the story, not a single native African finds happiness and solace in their own geographical place and they feel ‘other-ed’ in their cultural space. 

Also in the story the young woman discovers a sense of “weariness and tastelessness” (898) among the beer drinkers though she is demanded to be one of them. She puts herself in the place of the old vendor and identifies a sense of belongingness with the African people. But she finds it difficult to find a ‘space’ for herself among the White train passengers. There is therefore an unknown cultural and sentimental gap between the young woman and others. Yoshinobu Hakutani suggests both Africans and Europeans to go hand in hand. He states: “On both continents the white and the dark gods met in combat, it is on the outcome of this combat that the future of both continents depends” (64).

The theme of exploitation is also evident in the story. The young man is capable and wealthy enough of buying the handicraft from the old man at the original value. But his blatant bargaining with the old vendor shows the exploitative nature of him. He only takes advantage of the situation belittling the work of art for “One-and six” (897) and thinks the business transaction is just fun. The narrator states: “As one automatically opens a hand to catch a thrown ball, a man fumbled wildly down his pocket, brought up the shilling and sixpence and threw them out” (897). 

Nadine Gordimer’s The Train from Rhodesia also invites comparison with Karl Sealy’s The Pieces of Silver. Both the stories showcase the themes of oppression and social hierarchy. Gordimer’s young man and Sealy’s ruthless Headmaster Mr. Chase are all White supremacists. The only difference is Sealy’s story ends on a positive note while Gordimer’s on a negative note. 
In a nutshell, The Train from Rhodesia bears the message of exigent reality and the need for social change in Africa. Through the experience of apartheid and related issues Gordimer is able to illustrate the contrast between two races. She thus demands her readers not to be a part of racial segregation and human exploitation.  

Bibliography:

Amioo, Eleanor. Reader's Guide to Women's Studies. UK: Routledge, 1998. Print.
Cooke, John. “African Landscapes: The World of Nadine Gordimer Critical Survey”. Vol. 52, No.4 (Autumn, 1978), pp. 533-538. JSTOR. Web. 21 Sep 2015. 
 Durrheim, Kevin. Race Trouble: Race, Identity and Inequality in Post-Apartheid South Africa. Lanham: Lexington Books, 2011. Print. 
Gordimer, Nadine. Selected Stories: The Train from Rhodesia. New York: Viking Penguin Books, 1976. Print.  
Hakutani, Yoshinobu. Cross-cultural Visions in African American Modernism: From Spatial Narrative to Jazz Haiku. Ohio: Ohio State University Press, 2006. Print.
Haugh, Robert F. Nadine Gordimer. US: Gale Pub, 1974. Print.
Mackenzie, Craig. The Columbia Guide to South African Literature in English Since 1945. Columbia: Columbia University Press, 2012. Print.
Mohapi, Matsime Simon. Poverty in the Land of Riches - South Africa. UK: Xilbris Corporation, 2011. Print. 
Narine Singh, Roy. Insights: An Anthology of Short Stories. Cheltanham: Nelson Thornes, 2014. Print.