“MASTER HAROLD” . . . and the Boys (Cyclopedia of Literary Characters)
At a glance:
- Author: Athol Fugard
- First Published: 1982
- Type of Work: Play
- Type of Plot: Political realism
- Time of Work: 1950
- Setting: St. George’s Park Tea Room, Port Elizabeth, South Africa
- Genres: Drama, Problem play, Psychological drama
- Subjects: 1950’s, Values, Africa or Africans, Parents and children, Tradition, 1940’s, Fathers, Ethics, South Africa or South Africans, Apartheid
- Locales: Port Elizabeth, South Africa
Characters Discussed
Sam, a black South African man in his forties. Sam has worked for many years for a white family and is a trusted presence in their lives. A figure of dignity and wisdom, he has become in many ways a surrogate father for the family’s young son, Hally, whose real father is an alcoholic. Sam’s genuine affection for the boy is tempered by a sense of self-worth that will not allow him to accept humiliating treatment from Hally as long as their relationship is a friendship not defined by the restrictions of apartheid. When Hally’s actions alter the tone of...
[The entire page is 695 words long]
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