Cry The Beloved Country By Alan Paton

The novel “Cry, the beloved country” is the story of two South African fathers who are searching for their sons. One of the main themes of the story is fear of loss. Alan Paton describes the characters and theme of fear and human experience by narrating the story through two different perspectives. In the novel starts with the search of the son eventually finding him in the custody and the father must admit the fact that his son will face death verdict.

Everybody disappears in Johannesburg. The first chapter of the book states that all Stephan Kumalo’s relatives and his only son Absalom left to Johannesburg and never returned. He is afraid to open the letter because he is expecting the bad news from Johannesburg. As a father, he is cautious …show more content…
The fear grasps his soul. The father never expected his son to be involved in the illegal activities. He realized that he does not know his son. Later he finds out that his son shoot a white man and he suspects that he will be involved in the long process of legal prosecution. He meets his son in jail and tries to help him by arranging the marriage with his girlfriend. Stephan Kumalo recognized that his son will be hung. He prays god and admits his loss of the son. The end of the book gives hope that his son’s death actually brings other good things to the village. The church will be restored and new agricultural methods will stop the drought. At the end of the book, he prays to God and expressing the hope that God will take care of the soul of his son. “And now for all the people of Africa, the beloved country. Nkosi Sikelel’ iAfrika, God save Africa. But he would not see that salvation. It lay afar off because men were afraid of it. Because, to tell the truth, they were afraid of him, and his wife, and Msimangu, and the …show more content…
His search is more emotional and eye-opening. James Jarvis experiences series of losses as he finds out that his son is dead and later he lost his wife. He is disappointed and he discovers that it was too late to change something. He gets the message about his son’s death and goes to Johannesburg to find out the details of lethal results. He discovers that his son got involved in the community of young people who tries to fight against injustice towards blacks. James Jarvis reads his diary and he realizes that he was not aware of his son’s beliefs. He is moved by his son’s ideas and feelings about Africa, but it is too late to have a conversation with his son. The book describes his feelings and thoughts on the way to his son and he is changed from inside. He comes back to the village with the firm decision to change something in the lives of villagers. He contributes milk, money, time and knowledge to help Stephan Kumalo. He wants to restore the church and help people with irrigation of fields. “The truth is that our civilization is not Christian; it is a tragic compound of great ideal and fearful practice, of high assurance and desperate anxiety, of loving charity and fearful clutching of possessions. Allow me a minute…” This is the last words that James Jarvis son Arthur has written before his death. James becomes conscious that his son viewed new African people as educated and noble