Chapter 2: Nelson Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom (Nelson Mandela: Long Walk)

South Africa. Apartheid was a political system that separated people according to their race, and it lasted in South Africa until the first democratic elections of 1994.

(ii) South Africa

The ceremonies took place in the lovely sandstone amphitheatre formed by the Union Buildings in Pretoria. In India, the Red Fort, Rashtrapati Bhavan and the Parliament House are public buildings made of sandstone.

South Africa lies in the southern hemisphere, where the seasons are the opposite of those in India. When it is spring or summer in India, it is autumn or winter there, so May falls in autumn in South Africa.

The 'extraordinary human disaster' is the long period of apartheid, the cruel system of racial discrimination and oppression that 'lasted too long' in South Africa. The 'glorious human achievement' is the end of that system and the birth of a free, democratic and non-racial society, of which all humanity can be proud.

Mandela thanks the distinguished international guests for coming to take possession, together with the people of South Africa, of what he calls 'a common victory for justice, for peace, for human dignity'.

1. A society of which all humanity can be proud.
2. Freedom of all people from the continuing bondage of poverty, deprivation, suffering, and gender and other discrimination.
3. Justice, peace and human dignity.
4. An end to oppression: never again shall one person oppress another in that beautiful land.
5. Let freedom reign.

The highest generals of the defence force and police saluted Mandela and pledged their loyalty to him. Not many years before, they would not have saluted him but arrested him. Their attitude changed because South Africa now had a government that had been freely and fairly elected, and the military showed its loyalty to democracy.

Two anthems were sung to symbolise the unity of the new nation. Whites and blacks each sang the anthem of the other group, 'Nkosi Sikelel -iAfrika' and 'Die Stem', the old anthem of the Republic, which they had once despised. Neither group knew the lyrics at first, but they would soon know them by heart.

(i) In the first decade, the white-skinned peoples patched up their differences and erected a system of racial domination against the dark-skinned peoples. It became one of the harshest, most inhumane societies the world has ever known.

(ii) In the last decade, that system was overturned forever and replaced by one that recognised the rights and freedoms of all peoples, regardless of the colour of their skin.

To Mandela, courage is not the absence of fear but the triumph over it. The brave man is not he who does not feel afraid, but he who conquers that fear. He learned this from his comrades, who stood up to attacks and torture without breaking.

He thinks love is more natural. No one is born hating another person; people must learn to hate, and if they can learn to hate, they can be taught to love, for love comes more naturally to the human heart than its opposite.

Love is more natural to the human heart.

The two obligations are: (i) the obligation to his family, that is, to his parents, wife and children, and (ii) the obligation to his people, his community and his country.

As a boy, being free meant running in the fields near his mother's hut, swimming in the clear stream, roasting mealies under the stars and riding bulls, as long as he obeyed his father and the customs of his tribe. As a student, it meant the freedom to stay out at night, read what he pleased and go where he chose.

These were 'transitory', that is, temporary freedoms meant only for himself. The 'basic and honourable freedoms' are the freedoms to achieve one's potential, earn one's keep, marry and have a family, and not be obstructed in a lawful life. They are needed by everyone for a life of dignity.

No. Mandela says that the oppressor must be liberated just as surely as the oppressed. A man who takes away another man's freedom is a prisoner of hatred, locked behind the bars of prejudice and narrow-mindedness. The oppressed and the oppressor alike are robbed of their humanity.

They came to honour the end of apartheid and to welcome South Africa's first democratic, non-racial government. The ceremony was a 'common victory for justice, for peace, for human dignity'. It signified the triumph of freedom, equality and justice over racial oppression and hatred.

He means that he is not a great hero on his own. His success is the result of the courage and unimaginable sacrifices of thousands of freedom fighters before him. He carries forward their long and noble line, and the day was possible only because of them. He felt pained that they could not see what their sacrifices had brought about.

Yes, I agree. Mandela says that the decades of oppression and brutality produced great leaders such as Oliver Tambo, Walter Sisulu, Chief Luthuli, Yusuf Dadoo, Bram Fischer and Robert Sobukwe, men of extraordinary courage, wisdom and generosity. He says that perhaps it requires such depths of oppression to create such heights of character.

My own examples: under British rule, India produced leaders such as Mahatma Gandhi and Bhagat Singh, and in America the fight against racial discrimination produced Martin Luther King.

As a boy he thought he was free, but that freedom was an illusion. As a student he wanted only transitory freedoms for himself, such as staying out at night and reading what he pleased. As a young man in Johannesburg he wanted the basic and honourable freedoms of earning a living and having a family. Later he understood that his brothers and sisters were also not free, so his hunger became the greater hunger for the freedom of his whole people. Finally he understood that freedom is indivisible and that even the oppressor must be freed.

His hunger for his people's freedom transformed a frightened young man into a bold one, drove a law-abiding attorney to become a criminal, turned a family-loving husband into a man without a home, and forced a life-loving man to live like a monk. He gave up his family life and his comfort to serve his people.

Any such pairs found in the text are acceptable.

Martin Luther King's contribution (contribute) to our history as an outstanding leader began when he came to the assistance (assist) of Rosa Parks, a seamstress who refused to give up her seat on a bus to a white passenger. In those days American Blacks were confined to positions of second class citizenship by restrictive laws and customs. To break these laws would mean subjugation (subjugate) and humiliation (humiliate) by the police and the legal system. Beatings, imprisonment (imprison) and sometimes death awaited those who defied the System. Martin Luther King's tactics of protest involved non-violent resistance (resist) to racial injustice.

contribution, assistance, subjugation, humiliation, imprisonment, resistance

It means that Mr Singh invites famous film stars like Amitabh Bachchan and Shah Rukh Khan, that is, many well-known people of their type and status.

It means that Madhuri Dixit is a great and beautiful film actress of today, just as Madhubala was in her time. She is seen as the modern equivalent of Madhubala.

It means that history is not only about powerful conquerors and rulers like Alexander, Napoleon and Hitler, that is, men of their kind, but also about the lives of ordinary people.

(i) had not forgotten; was aware of the fact

(iii) felt that we could not endure the suffering any longer

(ii) help me continue to live in hope in this very difficult situation

(i) earning enough money to live on

Sample speech (open-ended):

Respected teachers and friends, freedom does not mean only the end of foreign rule. A person who is hungry, uneducated or treated as lesser because of gender, religion or class is not truly free. Poverty chains a family to hunger and ill health; it can be overcome through education, jobs and fair wages. Discrimination takes away dignity; our Constitution guarantees equality and human rights to every citizen, but we must also practise it in our homes and schools. As Mandela said, the chains on anyone are the chains on all. True liberty will come only when every person can live with dignity and self-respect. Thank you.

It requires such depths of oppression to create such heights of character. (v)

Courage was not the absence of fear but the triumph over it. (iii)

The brave man is not he who does not feel afraid but he who conquers that fear. (iv)

If people can learn to hate, they can be taught to love. (i)

I was not born with a hunger to be free. I was born free. (ii)

... it was the site of a rainbow gathering of different colours and nations for the installation of South Africa's first democratic, non-racial government. The signal words are 'for decades' and 'and now'.

... but arrested me. The signal words are 'only moments before' and 'not so many years before ... but'.

... know the words by heart. The signal word is 'although'.

... but I have always known that its greatest wealth is its people, finer and truer than the purest diamonds. The signal word is 'but'.

... a demonstration of the military's loyalty to democracy, to a new government that had been freely and fairly elected. The signal words are 'not only ... but'.

It was this desire for the freedom of my people ... that transformed a frightened young man into a bold one, that drove a law-abiding attorney to become a criminal, that turned a family-loving husband into a man without a home. The contrast is shown by the words 'transformed ... into', 'drove ... to become' and 'turned ... into'.

Sample paragraph (open-ended):

Yes, I think colour prejudice still exists in our country, though in a milder form than the apartheid of South Africa. Many people still believe that fair skin is more beautiful. Advertisements for fairness creams, and even matrimonial notices that ask for a 'fair' bride, show this. Some people from the north-eastern states or from African countries are teased or treated unfairly because of their looks. Such attitudes are foolish, for, as Mandela said, no one is born hating another person because of the colour of his skin. Our Constitution guarantees equality to all, but real change must begin in our minds and homes. If we teach children to respect every person, colour will never decide how we treat anyone.

Stanzas 1, 4 and 5 speak about the tiger in the zoo. Stanzas 2 and 3 speak about the tiger in the jungle, where he should be.

The poet uses harsh, closed words for the zoo (concrete cell, bars, locked, quiet rage), which make the tiger seem small, silent and helpless. For the jungle he uses open, lively words (lurking, sliding, snarling, terrorising) which show his freedom and power. Thus the contrast between a powerful wild animal and a prisoner is made clear.

The repetition of 'quiet' links the tiger's soft, silent walk with his silent, suppressed anger: he cannot roar or attack, so his rage stays hidden. The repetition of 'brilliant' connects his shining eyes with the shining stars, showing that his spirit is still bright and longs for the open sky and freedom. The repeated words also give emphasis and a musical effect.

Sample discussion (open-ended): Zoos can protect endangered species through breeding programmes, and they let people, especially children, see animals and learn about them. But the poems show the other side: a caged animal loses its freedom and becomes restless and sad. Alternatives are national parks, wildlife sanctuaries and nature reserves, where animals live in a natural habitat, and documentaries and virtual tours for education. A balance is possible if zoos keep only animals that are in need of protection and give them large, natural enclosures.

Sample answer (against zoos; open-ended):

I am against keeping wild animals in zoos. A tiger is made to roam miles of forest, but in a zoo it spends its life pacing a small cage, as Leslie Norris shows when he writes that the tiger is 'locked in a concrete cell' with his strength 'behind bars'. Animals in captivity often become restless and unhealthy.

Some people say zoos protect endangered animals and teach children. But the same lessons can be learned through films, books and visits to national parks, and wild animals are better protected by saving their forests. We should keep animals where they belong, in the wild.