Student Question
What contrasts Absalom and Matthew Kumalo in Cry, the Beloved Country?
Quick answer:
Absalom and Matthew Kumalo are contrasted through their backgrounds and moral dispositions. Absalom, raised in a small town by his minister father, is depicted as inherently good but naïve and easily influenced. In contrast, Matthew, raised in urban Johannesburg, is streetwise and lacks a conscience. Despite both being involved in the same crime, Absalom is held accountable for Arthur Jarvis's death, highlighting their differing paths and consequences.
In Cry, the Beloved Country, Absalom Kumalo and Matthew Kumalo are first cousins; their fathers are brothers. Both are young black African men living in 1960s South Africa. Absalom grew up in a small town where his father, Stephen, is a minister. Matthew, whose father is John, was raised in the city of Johannesburg. Alan Paton draws a strong contrast between them: Absalom is shown as being basically a good person who is naïve and easily led astray, while Matthew lacks a conscience and has become streetwise while still young because of his urban upbringing. Although both youths, along with a third friend, participate in the burglary that went wrong, Absalom alone is responsible for Arthur Jarvis’s death and pays for the crime with his own life.
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