Plot+Summary

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=**Chapter 1 **=

Sets the scene in a valley in Africa. It describes that two very different cultures that live around the valley by the names of the surrounding towns. The grass is so rich and full that you cant see the earth, but in the valley below there is no grass. The ground is red and rough, so you must wear shoes. Here the earth is torn away and the streams run like blood. Things do not grow here. It is not a place for living. ~Corinna Basically the first chapter is describing roads and hills in Africa. The hills are so beautiful, and the grass is rich and matted and soft. They said the ground is holy. "Destroy it and man is destroyed." But as you go down the hill, and into the valley, the nature of the land changes. The streams are dry, cattle feed on the grass, and it is not kept guarded or cared for. -Sara

//Basically in the south African province of Natal, a lovely road winds it way up from the village of Ixopo Carisbrooke, a journey of seven miles. This misty vantage point looks out over one of the fairest valleys of Africa, where native birds sing and the grass is dense and green. The lush grass of the hills clings to the rain and mist, soaking up the moisture, which in turn feeds every stream.-SCOTT-//

Africa is filled with rolling hills and valleys. Although the grass has been torn away revealing blood red dirt that flows into the river. The soil is no longer filled with nutrients; men have destroyed it for irrigation. Only old women, old men, mothers and children remain, the young people are have left.-Melissa =**Chapter 2 **=

 **Introduction of Characters** (Umfundisi) // Stephen // Kumalo // (Mother)Stephen // Kumalo’s Wife John Kumalo Gertrude Kumalo Absalom Kumalo A small child ran to Umfundisi's house to deliver him a dirty letter that came from Johannesburg. He was hesitant about opening the letter because many of his people, including his brother John, sister Gertrude, and his only son Absalom had gone there and never returned. There was no indication on the letter as to who it was from, but they thought maybe it was something that concerned their son. His wife took the letter from him and slowly read the address, then laid the letter out, and read it. Basically the letter stated that his sister Gertrude was very sick and that Umfundisi was needed to come quickly to the Mission House in Sophiatown, Johannesburg and get advice from there. After reading the letter, his wife told him to take the money from the tin where they had been saving for their son to go to St.Chads. He didn't want to use it because it was the money for their son, and he didn't want to come with terms that it wouldn't be used for that purpose anymore. So his wife counted it, twelve pounds, five shillings, and seven pence. He took it all, plus ten pounds she had been saving for a stove. He apologized for hurting her about arguing about what to do, and she watched as he walked to the church to pray. He was leaving the next morning to take the train from Carisbrooke to Johannesburg.- Sara
 * A Reverend of St.Mark’s Church
 * Well respected.
 * Has a wife and son.
 * Very understanding
 * Characters mentioned:**
 * a Carpenter,
 * Stephen Kumalo’s brother
 * Lives in Johannesburg.
 * Stephen Kumalo’s sister.
 * 25 years younger than him.
 * Has a little son.
 * Located in Johannesburg.
 * Stephen Kumalo’s son.
 * Located in Johannesburg

//The reverend Stephen Kumalo, a native Zulu, sits in gis house writing when a young girl appears with a letter. After sending the girl to the kitchen for some food, Kumalo wonders who may have sent the letter. It is from Johnnesburg, but so many members of his family have been int he city for son long without word that it could be from any of them, and he can't recognize the handwriting. Kumalo's wife muster the courage to open the letter and reads it aloud in faltering English.//

A small child comes to Reverend Kumalo with a letter. He asks his wife to feed her while he looks at the letter. They decide that it is not from their son or his sister or brother. Kumalo makes her open it and read it, because he is afraid. The letter says that his sister is very ill and that he should come to Johannesburg right away. After the child has eaten she leaves. Umfundisi reluctantly takes the money that he and his wife had saved to send his son to St. Chad’s and the money saved for buying his wife a new stove and makes plans to leave on a train to Johannesburg. ~Corinna = **Chapter 3** =

The Chapter starts out with a train traveling though the hills,but Stephen is too distracted to even notice the scenery. He is worried about how sick his sister is, how much it will cost, if he has to bring her home, if he will get lost in the vast streets of Johannesburg or catch the wrong bus.The train finally arrives and his friend asks him for a favor. He asks if Stephen can look for Sibekos daughter in Johannesburg. Stephen asks why Sibeko couldn't ask him himself. His friend says that he is not from their church, but Stephen doesn't care, he still will help him.

Kumalo takes a train to head towards Johannesburg. He leaves the valley and heads towards the hills. The train is not very fast, so it would be easy to catch up to, if you missed it. He was busy thinking about his sister, and his greatest fear of fall; Where his son was, and why he didn't write anymore. Stephen was asked to to try and get information about Sibeko's daughter who moved to a town near Johannesburg with her husband. His friend said the Sibeko did not come to Stephen himself because he was not of their church. Stephen gets back on the train and all the fears of the unknown come back. -Sara

//Kumalo waits for the Johnannesburg train at Carisborooke. Genweally, this journey is shrouded in mist, which some find to be an ominous sign and other find a mysterious prelude to adventure. Kumalo, however, pays little attention to his surroundings. He is anxious about his sister health, the potential costs of treating her illness, and the chaos of Johannesburg, where there are many buses and one can killed just by crossing the street, as happened to a twelve-year old boy who was an acquaintance of Kumalo's. His gravest concern in his son. -SCOTT//

<span style="color: rgb(48, 9, 93)"><span style="color: rgb(48, 9, 93); font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif">The small train makes its way slowly through the misty hills and valleys. Kumalo is distracted questioning what he will find in Johannesburg. A man asks him to look for Sibecko’s daughter while he is there, though he is not of the church. Stephen says he will and that it should not matter what church he is from. As the train starts his journey, umfundisi’s fear returns and he reads from the Bible to help soothe him. ~Corinna =**<span style="color: rgb(73, 140, 223)">Chapter 4 **=

The train to Johannesburg travels a full day and night, climbing through many hills and villages. The regions Kumalo passes through are unfamiliar to him with foreign landscapes and signs written in Afrikaans, which he does not speak. The great mines of South Africa come into view, and Kumalo's fellow travelers, many of whom are mines, explain how the mines are painstakingly excavated. They point out the great pulley that hoists the broken rocks, and Kumalo is awestruck by the scale of it all. Overwhelmed by the modern surroundings, he keeps mistaking the passing landscape for Johannesburg, but his fellow passengers laugh and tell him of buildings in Johannesburg so tall they can barely describe them.

<span style="color: rgb(57, 16, 224)">Kumalo continues his trip to Johnnesburg, and gets on what he says is the greatest train of all, which is the last one to Johannesburg. He passes through a new, strange countries, where he doesn't understand what is being spoken because their language was Afrikaans, and he spoke English. He asked a man curiously about the mines on the way, and the work that was done there. A man tells him when they finally reach Johannesburg, and he sees the great high buildings He gets to the station, and carefully tries to move through the thosands of people, trying not to bump into anyone. He is confused as he's standing out in the street, hesitant about crossing the road because he is afraid. A young man, had seen Kumalo, and showed him to the bustop, and acted as a guide, but when they got to the bus, he cheated Kumalo for a pound. He told him he would buy his bus ticket for him, but instead took the pound and didn't return. An older man, Mr. Mafolo, takes Kumlao to Reverand Msimangu's house to stay<span style="color: rgb(199, 21, 203)">.- <span style="color: rgb(199, 21, 203)">Sara <span style="color: rgb(48, 9, 93)"><span style="color: rgb(48, 9, 93); font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif">Kumalo’s journey continues on the train. He is out of place as he does not understand these new places and things he can barely begin to imagine. When he arrives, he lets his pride falter, but is tricked by a young man who says he will buy his bus ticket. Then he finds Mr. Mafolo who helps him and takes him to a place he can stay. ~Corinna

=**<span style="color: rgb(73, 140, 223)">Chapter 5 **=

<span style="color: rgb(48, 9, 93); font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif">Mr. Mismangu says he has a place for him to stay. Kumalo eats with priests, both white and black and discuss what has been happening in Johannesburg. Mismangu and Kumalo speak of umfundisi's sister. He tell him that she is a prostitute, sells liquor, and has been to prison more than once. Mismangu tells him that he will take him to his sister and then help him find his son. ~Corinna <span style="color: rgb(57, 16, 224)">Kumalo will stay with an old woman named Mrs. Lithebe. He will have to pay three shillings a week. He would have dinner with many other priests. When he sat to eat, he was confused about all the silverware, so he watched the others to see what they did with it. They were all silent and listened as Kumalo speak lovingly of the countries he passed through. Then he talked about the sickness of the other land. They discussed the sickness in Johannesburg, such as young girls leaving and forgetting their customs, and young and old criminals, and how white Johannesburg was afraid of black crime. They brought out a newspaper that had a story about an old couple that was robbed and beaten in their home, and 4 natives were arrested for it. Msiminagu showed Kumalo to his room after dinner, and talked about his sister. He told him that his sister lives in Claremont, which is one of the worst parts of Johanesburg. He tells him that his sister sells and makes liquor and sleeps with men for money, and she been to prison more than one time. He figured that even if he can't save his sister, perhaps he can save the child. He also found out that his brother was a great politician in Johannesburg and has no use for the Church anymore<span style="color: rgb(199, 21, 203)">.- <span style="color: rgb(199, 21, 203)">Sara

//Msimangu informs Kumalo that he has found a room for him wit Mrs.Lithebe, a local churchgoer. Kumalo uses a modern toilet for the frist time in his village, he had heard of there devices, but he had never used one. The two men dine with the other priests, a group that includes both blacks and whites, at the mission. Kumalo speaks sadly and lovingly about his village, and about how both Ixopo and its neighboring villages are falling into ruin. One white rosy cheeked priest wishes to hear more, but he excuses himself to attend to other affairs. The other priests, in turn, tell Kumalo that all is not well in Johannesburg white people become afraid because of a rise in crime. -SCOTT//

=**<span style="color: rgb(73, 140, 223)">Chapter 6 **=

Msimangu is guiding Stephen Kumalo(umfundisi) to his sister. The city is shabby, dirty and children run everywhere when they should be in school. They are arrive at her door where Msimangu leaves him there to talk to his sister and tells him where he can find him when he is finished. He knocks on the door and his sister is scared to see him. They exchange words and he asks questions which she answers with short responses. Finally when the obvious can't be ignored anymore Kumalo says that she has shamed them, a liquor seller,prostitute, and doesn’t know where her child is. She breaks down and starts crying. She asks for forgiveness and says she doesn’t like Johanesburg. Kumalo forgives her, they say a prayer, and decides to take her and the child back with him. He got her and her things(table, chairs, bed, dishes, and pots) that afternoon and moved them to a room where he was staying. He was so happy to be able to bring someone back to the house and restoring their soul.<span style="color: rgb(57, 16, 224)">

Once Kumalo and Msimangu arrive to Claremont, Kumalo is shocked by the shabbiness and dirtiness of the city. The houses are very close, and there is mess in the streets. There are many children not in school either because them and their parents don't care, or because the schools are full. Once Kumalo gets to his sisters place she is taken aback and afraid when she seems him. She invites him in, and they talk. But the more they talk, the angrier he gets. He says that she has shamed them because of her actions. He is going to take her back, and she agrees to go because she says that her and her child are sick and she doesn't like it in Johannesburg. She gets upset, and he finally calms down, and they pray together. She and her son left with Kumalo and the few things they had, later that afternoon, and stayed with Mrs.Libethe. She gave his sister and her child some food, while he went back to the mission. They all prayed together that night in the dining room, and Kumalo was happy and felt like tribe was being rebuilt and the house and the soul restored. <span style="color: rgb(199, 21, 203)">-Sara //<span style="color: rgb(5, 0, 0)">Getrude is sullen and fearful at first, and she tells Kumalo that she has not yet found her husband. Kumalo reproaches her for not writing and demands to see her child. When it becomes clear that she doesn't not know where the child is, he tells Getrude that she has shamed them, and announces that he has come to take her back. She falls on the ground in hysterics, saying that she wants to leave Johnnesburg but is not a good enough person to return home. Softened by her remorse, Kumalos forgives her, and they pray together. Although Gertrude and Kumalo are now reconciled, she is unable to give him news of his son, although she says that their nephew john's son has spent time with Absalom and that he will know. a neighborhood woman brings in Gertudes son, and Kumalo urges his sister to collect her things while he secures her room at Mrs.Lithebe's. Kumalo returns with a borrowed trucks to collect Gertrude, and in the evening greatly encouraged by the success of his first mission, he feels as if the tribe is being rebuilt and the soul of this home restored.-SCOTT // <span style="color: rgb(48, 9, 93); font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif">Umfundisi is heartbroken by the lifestyle of his sister. He becomes very angry and she is ashamed and cries. She says that her life is not good in Johannesburg, but she is a bad woman who cannot go back. They pray together and he forgives her. ~Corinna

=<span style="color: rgb(73, 140, 223)">Chapter 7 = <span style="color: rgb(57, 16, 224)">Gertrude wore a dirty dress and a greasy knit cap, and so since Kumalo was ashamed of this, he bought her a red dress and a white turban for her head. He also bought a shirt, a jersey, and a pair of trousers, and handkerchiefs for his nephew. His sister had saved no money, which he thought was strange, considering he heard her kind of employment brought in good money. He wrote a letter to his wife telling her all the things that had happened so far, and that he was about to start the search for their son. Stephen went with Msimangu to his brother, John's, shop. John stood and greeted him with a hearty smile. John said he stopped writing because life is so different in Johannesburg from Ndotsheni. His brother talked about how he is nobody in Ndotsheni, but in Johannesburg he is a man of importance. He talks about how the white men go mad about the gold found in the mines, and how they keep getting the black men to go back and work in the mines for 3 shillings a day and everything is built from their labor, and the chief doesn't ever see or understand that. But in Johannesburg, it is different, and they are aware. He left his brothers after getting the information about where Absalom was. Once they arrived at Doornfontein, where Absolam supposedly was, they found out he had left about a year ago, and was last staying with a Mrs. Ndlela in Sophiatown. Absalom was not there, but she searched for a letter, to find out where he was staying now. She said he left because they did not like his friends. Msimangu and Kumalo left to go back to the Mission House for the night, and would head to Alexandra in the morning.<span style="color: rgb(199, 21, 203)"> <span style="color: rgb(199, 21, 203)">-Sara

<span style="color: rgb(48, 9, 93); font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif">He meets his brother who does not know where his or Kumalo’s son is, but gives him an address to where they might be. He also tells him news of happenings in Johannesburg. When they go to the address they are not there and he is disappointed. ~Corinna

<span style="color: rgb(239, 31, 31)"> //Kumalo sits in his lodgings, writnig a letter to his wife and listening to Gertrude sing as she helps mrs.Lithebe around the house while her son plays int he garden. Misimangu arrives and brings Kumalo to the shop of his brother, John. Although John does not recognize Kumalo at first, he seems pleasantly surprised to see him. kumalo learns that John's wife, esther has left him, and that john has since acquired a mistress. -SCOTT//

=<span style="color: rgb(73, 140, 223)">Chapter 8 = <span style="color: rgb(57, 16, 224)">The next morning Msimangu and Stephen set out for Alexandra. But as they went to get on the bus, a man stopped them and asked them not to take it, because the black people were boycotting riding the buses until they lower the bus fare back down to fourpence. At first Kumalo did not want to walk the eleven miles, but then he was reminded that even the people older than him, and woman and children, and the crippled are doing it everyday, and are running on barley any food at all, and not much sleep either. So they began to walk, and after many miles, a white man in a car stopped, and gave them a ride. When the man dropped them off, they still had a little ways to walk, so Msimangu told more stories about the things that happened in and around Johannesburg. They arrived at Mrs. Mkize's house and asked where Absalom was. But he had already left, but they could tell there was something she wasn't telling them. So, Msimangu told Kumalo to go on, and he will meet up with him. Msimangu returned to her and swore on the Bible that she would not get in trouble for anything she said. So, she told him that the boy and his cousin had been stealing things and left because they thought they might get discovered soon. Then, they spoke to the taxi driver, Hlabeni, who knew the boys. He said they stayed with squatters in Orlando, so it would be easy to find them. As he drove the two back to Johannesburg, the streets filled with the black people walking back to Alexandra from work. The white people would stop and offer rides, from the officers tried to discourage this. Msimangu began to beat his chest and said, "Take me to court, this is what beats me.<span style="color: rgb(57, 16, 224)">" <span style="color: rgb(199, 21, 203)">- <span style="color: rgb(199, 21, 203)">Sara //Kumalo and Msimangu walk the remaining distance as Msimangu explains that in Alexandra, Blacks are allowed to own property, but that the town is so crime- ridden that its white neighbors have prtitoned to have destroyed. he tells kumalo stores of whites being attacked and killed, and ends with the moving story of black couples resue of a white woman who had been raped and abandoned by a white man. he also says, however, that Alexnadra is more good than bad. Kumalo and Misimangu reach Absolom's new house, but its owner, Mrs.Mikize, is visibly afraid and will tell them only that Absalom moved a yrar ago. Kimalo knows that something is wrong, and Msimangu tells him to go on ahead and seek refreshment, then returns to question the woman again.-SCOTT//

<span style="color: rgb(48, 9, 93); font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif">Hmmm... yeah. well. because Sara and Scott basically said it all i think ill just mention what i think about the chapter. I think this chapter is very interesting because it shows very directly what is going on in Johannesburg. The city is full of troubles: from the bus boycotts, to the crime, to the arresting of whites who drive the boycotter around. ~Corinna <span style="color: rgb(48, 9, 93); font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif"> =<span style="color: rgb(73, 140, 223)">Chapter 9 = //A chorus of anonymous voices describes Shanty Town. From all over the land, people pour into the city of Johannesburg. Thee Waiting lists for houses are impossibly long, however, and there is little room in the house in Alexandra, Sophiatown, and Orlando. Families with homes take in boarders, but the accommodations fill up, often with dozen people crammed into two rooms. privacy is scarce and tempers flare. Some husbands and wives are seduced by their lodgers, others throw tenants out into the street in fits of protective jealousy. A well placed bribe may secure the right person a home, but there are no guarantees. The money to build housing is tied up because of war in Europe and North Africa. -SCOTT-//

<span style="color: rgb(48, 9, 93); font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif">I have to admit that when I first read this I had absolutely no idea of what this even was saying, mostly due to the fact that it veers off from our main characters. The author again recites the idea that "All roads lead to Johannesburg." The first paragraph gives the idea that when there are problems in other towns they go to Johannesburg to find jobs. The majority of the chapter is filled with conversations of someone asking to stay in another's house and that there is not enough money. Then comes Shanty Town that comes up overnight made of scraps of anything people can find. A child dies from illness because no doctor could come in time. ~Corinna

=<span style="color: rgb(73, 140, 223)">Chapter 10 = Kumalo waited for Msimangu with his sister and nephew. Him and his sister exchanged conventional conversation, but they never brought up the past. Kumalo liked to watch and play with his nephew, and he would tell him stories about his homeland and the hills and how beautiful it was. Every now and then Gertrude would listen to the stories, and be pleased when he asked her if she remembered any of it. But in the middle of telling his story, he would stop and think about his son, and his wife, and friends, and how much he missed them all.-Sara

//While waiting to go Shanty town, Kumalo spends time with Gertrude and her son. He and Gertrude have little to say to each other, but he takes comfort in telling his small nephew about Natal, and Gertrude finds a frined in Mrs.Lithebe. In Shanty Town, Kumalo and Msimangu ask a nurse about Absalom's whereabouts. The nurse send them to Mrs.Hlatshwayo, whit whom Absalom was staying. She tells them that Absalom was sent to the reformatory.~SCOTT//

<span style="color: rgb(48, 9, 93); font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif">There is a definate distance between Kumalo and his sister, but not just because of her life in Johannesburg, but also because he had been older when she was born and they had never had an brother/sister relationship and because they were very different people. Gertrude and Mrs.Lithebe talked together while Kumalo enjoyed talking and playing with his nephew. Kumalo finds his son was sent to a reformatory but was released only a month ago and was not to be found at his house either. The girl there says she has not seen him since Saturday and it was Tuesday. Kumalo wants to help the girl, knowing that she carries his grandchild, but Mismangu will not let him agreeing that they will come back again. ~Corinna

=<span style="color: rgb(73, 140, 223)">Chapter 11 = //Msimangu persuades Kumalo to take a few days rest while Msimangu goes to Ezenzeleni, a colony for the blind. Kumalo and Mismangu then enjoy a quiet evening at the Mission House with father Vincent, who listens to Kumalo's stories of natal and tells them about his native England. The tranquil evening is shattered, however when another priest enters with newspaper whose front page announces the murder of Arther Jarvis, a white engineer and crusader for the right of black South Africans. Jarvis, the paper reports was at home with a cold when intruders knocked out his servant and shot him at close range.-SCOTT-//

<span style="color: rgb(48, 9, 93); font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif">This is a very sad moment. Kumalo knows the father of the murdered man because they live in his town. The news of the murder is a huge blow to everyone. It is in this chapter that fully describes the whole feeling for the book and the title. I quote it here simply because it is beautifully written. "There is not much talking now. A silence falls upon them all. This is no time to talk of hedges and fields, or the beauties of any country. Sadness, fear, and hate, how they well up in the heart and mind, whenever one opens the pages of these messengers of doom. Cry for the broken tribe, for the law and the custom that is gone. Aye, and cry aloud for the man who is dead, for the women and children bereaved. Cry, the beloved country, these things are not yet at an end. The sun pours down on the earth, on the lovely land that man cannot enjoy. He knows only the fear of his heart"pg.104and105 ~Corinna

While they were at the mission house, Msimangu and Kumalo find out some very sad news. They have found out that Mr. Jarvis was shot. Kumalo kind of knew of him and his father, because they lived in a nearby town, and they use to ride by together. He was home alone when three native youths came in and the shot him. There was no signs of struggle. It's so sad because he stayed home because he was sick, and because of this tragedy, he leaves behind a wife and two children.-Sara.

=<span style="color: rgb(73, 140, 223)">Chapter 12 = //Mrs.Ndlela, whom Msimangu and Kumalo visited early in their// //Absalom, tells Msimangu that the police have visited her looking for Absalom and that she referred them to Mrs.Mkize. before Msimangu can slip out on his own to////, however, he runs into Kumalo. he allows Kumalo to come along. the two retrace their////, going first to Mrs.Mkize, then to Shanty Town, and then to the reformatory school,where the young man's assistant tells them that the young man seems troubled. Their last stop is Alexanda, Where Absalom's girlfriend tells them that the police have visited her but that she does not know why, and local woman says that the police seemed frustrated//.-//SCOTT-//

<span style="color: rgb(48, 9, 93); font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif">ummm...? Scott. that happens last chapter. anyways...Chapter 12 describes the cries of the people. Some cry for better police, others for better education for the children to stay off the streets, some believe that the pass laws will not work, and others still think that there should be recreation facilities. There is a divide in South Africa between black and white and man and his house and his tribe. With the divide comes many voices each calling for something different. And who is to say which way is ri<span style="color: rgb(48, 9, 93); font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif">ght? The police begin searching for Absalom in all the places Kumalo and Mismangu had looked for him. This worries umfundisi greatly. <span style="color: rgb(48, 9, 93); font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif"> ~Corinna

The people cry out for so many different reasons. They cry because things are so bad. They need better police stations, and protection, and education, and just want more opportunities. They say that they have so much native crime because they don't see any purpose and don't have any goals. So, they turn to crime, and drinking, and prostitution. They are in fear of the land, and don't want the unborn children to "love the earth too deeply" because they say that they fear will rob them of anything they give too much of. The police are looking for Absalom, but he does not know why.-Sara

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