Stephen_Kumalo_And_James_Jarvis

Stephen Kumalo And James Jarvis Two men, separated not only by race but also distance, come to share similar experiences in the classic novel “Cry, the Beloved Country”. The scene is South Africa and author Alan Paton depicts a story of its constant internal struggle between the whites and the blacks. Paton brings to light, not the difference between the races, but attempts to show equality among them. “The reader soon realizes it matters not a tinker’s dam what the color of their respective skins is.”(Schmitt 279). Stephen Kumalo, a Zulu priest, and James Jarvis, a wealthy plantation owner, are brought together by tragedy and exhibit similar traits and actions under the stress. This is done to easily draw distinction that the ethnic groups are very much the same and that they need to work together to save the country in which they live. The novels action begins with Stephen Kumalo, also referred to as umfundisi and his quest to find his lost family members. As he locates each one of them, he is stricken hard by what they have become. His sister, a prostitute, his son Absolom, an unwed father to be and future murderer, kumalo, jarvis, james, stephen, son, natives, come, together, similar, between, begins, arthur, two, something, new, much, men, human, himself, father, country, wishes, very, treats, tragedy, suffering, south, side, show, shaken, seen, same, realizes, people, paton