Discussion Topic

The symbolism of the little boy in Nadine Gordimer's "Once Upon a Time."

Summary:

The little boy in Nadine Gordimer's "Once Upon a Time" symbolizes innocence and the tragic consequences of excessive fear and overprotection. His parents' extreme measures to keep him safe ultimately lead to his harm, highlighting the irony and danger of living in constant fear.

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What does the little boy symbolize in Nadine Gordimer's "Once Upon a Time"?

The boy symbolizes innocence. He is completely unaware of the dangers from which his paranoid, or could we say pragmatic, parents and grandmother wish to protect him. He ironically and tragically becomes in the most horrific manner the victim of their worst nightmare. In their exaggerated attempts to protect their lives and property, they unwittingly create an environment in which the naïve youngster is put at risk. In acting out a fantasy, which has obviously become real to him, he enters the barbed wire, believing himself to be a brave prince, resulting in a most profoundly tragic outcome.

Next day he pretended to be the Prince who braves the terrible thicket of thorns to enter the palace and kiss the Sleeping Beauty back to life: he dragged a ladder to the wall, the shining coiled tunnel was just wide enough for his little body to creep in, and with the first fixing of its razor-teeth in his knees and hands and head he screamed and struggled deeper into its tangle.

In another sense, the boy also becomes a symbol for the victims who are the products of society's fears. Gordimer paints a picture of a society divided and ruled by prejudice. In this regard then, members of especially a certain privileged class, are ruled by fear, suspicion and mistrust and, in order to protect and maintain their position and possession, go to extreme lengths.

So from every window and door in the house where they were living happily ever after they now saw the trees and sky through bars

is one such example.

In this, they unknowingly create greater harm--as our story so brutally illustrates.

It is important to consider that in a society where class rule and privilege are imposed by law, creating unfair inequalities and oppression, there is bound to be discord. The actions of all the characters in this story are inadvertently the result of an oppressive system in which innocence is the most unfortunate victim.

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What does the boy symbolize in "Once Upon a Time"?

The couple's son in "Once upon a Time" can represent at least three concepts: He can represent the future; he can stand for the importance of relationships over material goods; and he can portray a Christ-figure. As the only child of the "man and his wife who loved each other and were living happily ever after," the boy represents the "ever after." He is the next generation that will continue when the couple ages and dies. By giving way to their fear and prejudice, the couple ends up destroying their future happiness.

In the fairy tale, the couple is obsessed with insuring their material wealth against loss. It is because riot cannot be insured against that they take increasingly drastic measures to prevent theft from the "people of another color." Although in the beginning of the story they have put up a wall around their swimming pool to protect their son from drowning, later they ignore the potential hazard of their protective fence because they have allowed their concern for preserving their wealth and position in society to override their concern for the things that truly matter in life: love, relationships, and giving. The focus on material things rather than relationships results in the tragedy.

In a sense, the little boy is a Christ-figure. He is innocent and pure, displaying none of the fear and prejudice his parents show. His goal is to brave "the terrible thicket of thorns to enter the palace and kiss the Sleeping Beauty back to life." He is the person who displays courage rather than fear and love rather than racism. He receives the deadly wounds in his hands and head at the hands of "sinners"--his parents, who have succumbed to the darkness of the "wise old witch." One can speculate that the tragedy of his death will bring redemption to his parents as they consider the consequences of their fear and prejudice. 

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What does the boy symbolize in "Once Upon a Time"?

The boy in "Once Upon a Time" is the tragic victim of apartheid, the formal system of legalized racism that existed for several decades in South Africa. His parents, who live in an exclusively white neighborhood, are concerned that riots in the city might spread to their neighborhood. With that in mind, they build a large security wall around their property. For good measure, they top the wall with razor-wire, which in due course will be responsible for their son's tragic accident when he tries to climb through it.

The son's death is the death of innocence. He himself was never old enough to understand why his parents went to such incredible and extraordinary lengths to build such a monstrosity around their property. Nor did he have the slightest inkling of the racial motivations behind the increased security measures. His parents wanted to ensure that "people of another color" would be kept out of their home, should they try to invade the suburbs.

In some ways, then, the boy is an innocent victim of apartheid. Had such a system not been in place, then it's highly unlikely that his parents would have gone to such extraordinary lengths to protect their property. And had they not done so, then the boy's accident would not have occurred.

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