tsotsi theme of redemption essay

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Tsotsi Contextual Questions and Answers Grade 11

Tsotsi Contextual Questions and Answers Grade 11 :

Tsotsi Grade 11 Essay Questions and Answers (Memo)

List of Common Tsotsi Grade 11 Essay Questions and Answers

Question 1: identify the positive and negative occurrences that shape tsotsi’s life.

In the novel, Tsotsi by Athol Fugard, the main character can be seen as a dangerous criminal who manages to change for the better. The novel illustrates the idea that people are affected by the society in which they live whether it be positive or negative. The brutality of apartheid and Tsotsi’s desperate need for survival shaped his life. However, positive occurrences such as the baby and Boston gives the reader hope that, even in the darkest times, there are forces and people at work who can make changes better for them.

The brutality of apartheid filled Tsotsi with fear from a young age. The system not only left him being brought up by a single mother but later left him without a mother. This fear has a rippling effect resulting in Tsotsi running away, forcing himself to forget his past and live a life of crime. David Madondo is brought up by a single mother because his father is in prison. For a black man in apartheid in South Africa, being in prison did not necessarily imply that he had committed a crime. The fear of the police as well as the fear of his enraged father forms the foundation of Tsotsi’s life as a hardened criminal. Police arrest David’s mother during a midnight raid for people living without passes. David, scared of his father he never knew, and frightened when he sees his father’s violent abuse as he kicks the pregnant dog to death, runs away. These manifests itself the resulting in Tsotsi “giving into the darkness”. The apartheid regime not only left fear in the heart of a young boy but took away the one thing that once formed a positive and safe foundation in his life-his mother.

The only way David can deal with his trauma is to forget his past. He has to pretend that he has never known anything else so that he can survive and turns to a life of crime. A series of events leads Tsotsi out of the darkness of the life he has chosen for himself to a concept of love, light, god and forgiveness. Tsotsi commits to the darkest of crimes when he beats his associate, Boston, nearly to death. In the chaotic aftermath of the deed he runs away and tries to forget Boston’s warning that he may one day, feel. Running away from Boston catalyses the chain of events that will change Tsotsi further. Proof of his effect on Tsotsi is the fact Tsotsi consults Boston for advice once he realises, he wants to change. Tsotsi seeks redemption when he assists Boston with his wounds by taking him back to his shack and taking care of him and the changes in Tsotsi are revealed by the advice that he seeks from Boston.

On the fateful night that Tsotsi beats Boston up, he attempts to attack a young woman, but she hands him a box containing a baby instead. We see major change in Tsotsi’s thuggish exterior through this incident because Tsotsi chooses to take care of the child as best as he can. His careful care for the baby shows that he has the capacity for humanity. The decision changes him and he starts feeling for his next victim. He decides not to kill Morris Tshabalala because Morris expresses the desire to live. Tsotsi’s interaction with Miriam Ngidi introduces the idea that relationships and human interactions can be good. And Tsotsi remembers his past. He is made whole again.

The novel illustrates the idea that people are affected by society in which they live. It also gives the reader hope that even in the darkest times, there are forces and people at work who can make changes for the better.

It does not matter that Tsotsi dies at the end; he has found his goodness, and that is all that matters. He dies at peace with himself.

Question 2: Discuss the theme of redemption as seen in the novel, Tsotsi

The novel Tsotsi, by Athol Fugard, is a story of redemption and reconciliation, facing the past, and confronting the core elements of human nature. The character going through this journey, who the novel is named after, is a young man who is part of the lowest level of society, living in a shanty town in South Africa. Tsotsi is a thug, someone who kills for money and suffers no remorse. But he starts changing when circumstance finds him in possession of a baby, which acts as a catalyst in his life.

After beating up Boston he eventually takes Boston in and through caring for him, Tsotsi asks him a question pertaining to life in general. This nurturing and discussion allows Tsotsi to redeem himself not only to Boston but himself. Boston now knows Tsotsi is trying to fix himself and become a better person, therefore gaining respect for him. Next since Boston told Tsotsi he is looking for god, Tsotsi goes to the church and finds Isaiah, through their interaction Tsotsi learns more of god and what he and Christianity can do for you. Tsotsi agreed to return to the church later for a session. This shows us Tsotsi moving away from his state of sin and again moving closer to becoming David.

Once the baby came into Tsotsi’s life everything begins to change for Tsotsi. He starts learning to care or another human being and takes responsibility and not to pass the responsibility onto Miriam. Tsotsi cares for the baby- getting it milk and keeping it among the ruins so it can be safe. Tsotsi is unaware of the change taking place in him at his stage, but him hiding the baby shows the awareness that it goes against his sense of identity and doesn’t want anybody to know about it. His careful care for the baby shows that he has the capacity for humanity.

The final act of attains redemption is when Tsotsi attempts to save the bay at the end of the book. At the beginning of the novel Tsotsi was a life taker and by the end he moves to a life saver showing us his full circle of redemption. The author wants us to learn that although you may commit acts that are uncivil or incorrect you can always redeem yourself if you choose to do so. Tsotsi’s death while saving the baby shows his selflessness and is thus redeemable.

Tsotsi beings as a thug, showing no remorse. By the changes and his last deed is committing a great act of love, sacrificing himself for a baby. He regains memories of his childhood and discovers why he is the way he is. The novel sets the perimeters of being “human” as feeling empathy, having a mother, having morals, having an identity, having a spirituality and feeling love. Tsotsi learns these and is redeemed. It is a very moving story about the beauty of human nature and hope for redemption no matter what.

Question 3: Discuss the different gang members in the novel, including Tsotsi

In the novel Tsotsi, by Athol Fugard, all the gang members are victims of apartheid and turned to crime as mean of survival. Throughout the novel we see an evolution of Tsotsi’s’ character he starts off as a thug, killing for money and showing no remorse. But he starts changing when circumstance finds him in possession of a baby, which acts as a catalyst in his life.

Butcher is viewed as the most important member of the gang when it comes to killing and robbing people, he is very precise. Die Aap is an obedient follower, he is quiet and rather slow of mind, resulting in him not having very much to say and just does what he is told. Boston is the most civilized of the gang. He isalso the only gang member who is opposed to violence and his main problem is his curiosity he tends to ask too many questions which led to his demise with Tsotsi.

As a boy Tsotsi was innocent and content, living as a victim of apartheid. When his mother was taken from home, he was left to witness his father come home and upon realizing the house was empty, he lashed out on the dog, paralyzing its back legs and killing the litter. This scarred Tsotsi and pushed him to flee home and eventually get taken into Petah’s gang. This gang changed his identity; he became Tsotsi after several days with the gang participating in crime. Tsotsi becomes the leader of a gang who commit crimes in order to survive. Tsotsi has no morality, no memory and no history. He does not spend time trying to remember his past, he lives in the present moment. Our first impression of Tsotsi is that he is a violent man who is well respected within his gang. He beats Bostonbecause he attempts tobreak one of his rules- don’t ask questions- which is the only way he knows how to handle threats. After fleeing, Tsotsi is given a baby by a woman he intended to rape. This baby is the catalyst for his journey of self-discovery.

Tsotsi stalks his next victim, Morris who he plans to kill and rob, however; as Tsotsi stalks him he is given time to reflect and beings to build sympathy for Morris because the baby has changes his life values, and has learned to care and feel compassion. Morris also reminds him of the dog who was powerless in a similar situation. The sympathy he attains is translated to when he and Morris interact, and he decides to let him live. Not only has Tsotsi’s outlook changed but Morris now values his own life as well which he explains to Tsotsi. Their exchange leaves Tsotsi with the belief that he must value the little things in life in order to become redeemed. These events collectively influence Tsotsi to become David again,a human with a soul. No long is a murderous Tsotsi but a compassionate and loving young man. These new values are what drive him to attempt to save the baby at the end. His instinct of killing has evidently shifted to an instinct of saving lives without hesitation. When their bodies are discovered he has a smile on his face showing that he has no regrets and is pleased with who he has become. This is the ultimate sacrifice in life and the final step for Tsotsi to attain full redemption from past sins, becoming David- a new, admirable man.

Butcher, like all black males living in south Africa at the time, is a victim of apartheid. He was known as the killer; he never misses a strike and is the go-to man when the job needs to get done. Violence is the way he learned to survive because it is the only way he can. To Tsotsi Butcher isn’t much but a accurate, skilful and ruthless killer. This is evident whenBucher uses a bicycle poker to kill Gumboot Dhlamini. He skilfully pushed the spoke into his heart killing him. Bucher does not undergo any changes in the novel. When Tsotsi disappears Butcher joins another gang, continuing on with a life of crime.

Die Aap, like all the other characters were introduced to as a symbol of apartheid in South Africa. Die Aap is a very local character, he wants the gangto stay together when Tsotsi speaks of them to split, they are his brotherhood and he would sacrifice for them. Die Aap is very strong and has long arms, reflected in his name. The gang benefits from his strength. Die

Aap doesn’t play a huge role in the novel. For Die Aap, the gang was his sense of security. When Tsotsi tells him that the gang is over he is confused and lost.

Boston is the “brains’ of the group. He went to university but didn’t complete it because he was accused of raping a fellow student. This sent him down a path of resorting to crime for survival as he had no other way of making ends meet. Tsotsi’s gang benefits from Boston’s intelligence as he can evaluate their plan of action and whether or not it will work. He is a very knowledgeable character and always tells stories to the group when they aren’t out stalking prey. He is constantly asking Tsotsi questions- which go against Tsotsi’s two rules- and these questions began to make Tsotsi hate Boston.

In the outset of the novel Tsotsi beats Boston because of these questions and he accuses Tsotsi of having no decency. This influences Tsotsi’s decisions throughout the book. At the end of the novel Tsotsi seeks Boston out and cares for him in order to try and discover answers to similar questions Boston was asking earlier. Boston acts as a catalyst for Tsotsi’s search for god. He explains to Tsotsi that he must seek out god to get more answers and tells Tsotsi that everyone is“sick from life”.

Not only does he help Tsotsi understand what he must do to seek further redemption but the exchange they have also makes Boston realize he must go back home toseek redemption from his mother.

Tsotsi becomes a worthy man and finds redemption. Butcher eventually joins another gang and goes on with a life of crime. Die Aap loses his brotherhood and is confused and lost. Butcher has a realization and seeks redemption from his mother.

Essay Question 4: Tsotsi is influenced to undergo a process of personal development by his encounters with certain characters. Discuss the impact of Boston, the baby and Morris Tshabalala on Tsotsi’s growth so far in the novel.

Tsotsi starts the novel as a cold, hardened criminal. He has rules by which he lives his life by, and they involve staying in control. Despite being influenced by characters mentioned, his harsh lifestyle and the external conditions created by the politics of the day bring him to a tragic end.

Boston is the character who likes to question things and seemingly has some send of ‘decency’ or conscience in the gang. Proof of his conscience is seen when he gets sick after they kill Gumboot Dlamini. With Boston constantly questioning Tsotsi, he eventually gets provoked to beat him up and then runs away. Tsotsi can’t get the questions out of his head and he starts to reflect and is rattled by his encounter. Running away from Boston catalyses the chain of events that will change Tsotsi further. Proof of his effect on Tsotsi is the fact Tsotsi consults Boston for advice once he realises, he wants to change. Tsotsi seeks redemption when he assists Boston with his wounds by taking him back to his shack and taking care of him and the changes in Tsotsi are revealed by the advice that he seeks from Boston.

On the fateful night that Tsotsi beats Boston up, he attempts to attack a young woman, but she hands him a box containing a baby instead. We see major change in Tsotsi’s thuggish exterior through this incident because instead of doing away with the baby he decides to keep it and doesn’t know why. He cares for the baby- getting it milk and keeping it among the ruins so it can be safe.

Tsotsi is unaware of the change taking place in him at his stage, but him hiding the baby shows the awareness that it goes against his sense of identity and doesn’t want anybody to know about it. His careful care for the baby shows that he has the capacity for humanity. Tsotsi’s need for family is revealed when he refuses to give the baby to Miriam to take care of it because he feels a connection to the child. Tsotsi names the baby “David” after himself which reveals his need for family and the fact that he is embracing his lighter side once his memories open up.

Tsotsi dies trying to protect the baby at the ruins which shows that he has learnt to care for someone other than himself and something other than the “present moment”. With Morris Tshabalala there is an incredibly striking encounter in terms of witnessing a change in Tsotsi. It is a moment in the novel his inner darkness and cruel instincts are overcome. Morris is a paraplegic and his disability reminds Tsotsi of the yellow dog- he is triggered by his memories being present on Morris’ appearance and this moves him to action. Tsotsi feels sorry for him and when the moment comes to attack Morris, a conversation takes place between the two and there is a distinct change in Tsotsi. Morris asks Tsotsi if he wants to live and this question makes him consider what living is. Tsotsi also decides to spare the man. A very tangible change in Tsotsi’s choices are evident in his discussion with Morris which enable Boston and the Baby to influence him even further. After this encounter, the reader witnesses a turning point in Tsotsi’s life where he starts to seek redemption.

Essay Question 5: Discuss how Tsotsi, Morris Tshabalala and the baby all embody the struggle to survive:

The struggle for survival is embodied in the characters of the novel, Tsotsi. While Tsotsi’s struggle relates to his painful and emotional journey of self-discovery, Morris Tshabalala has to deal with both physical and emotional hardships on a daily basis. The baby, who is abandoned by his mother, shows resilience and a fighting spirit in spite of the difficulties he faces.

Tsotsi’s struggle for survival relates to the emotional journey he undertakes to rediscover his identity. It is not an easy journey as Tsotsi has blocked out the memories of his past because of his traumatic separation from his mother when he was ten years old, as well as the events immediately afterwards when the yellow dog died in agony after being kicked by Tsotsi’s father.

As a result of this separation and witnessing violence, Tsotsi suppresses all his memories and takes on a new identity. He turns to crime and gangsterism and is feared by others. His violent and powerful nature makes it seem as if he is strong and therefore not struggling to survive, but the world in which he operates in is actually fragile. This is shown in the way he needs to live by “three rules”. Significantly “if he failed to observe them the trouble started.”

Tsotsi’s struggle for survival is also shown when he sometimes remembers things from the past, which would “stir and start associations charged with pain and misery inside him”. Tsotsi’s journey towards self-discovery exploration of his memories are ultimately necessary for him to survive.

However, it is not easy to confront the past and Tsotsi’s new struggle for survival means turning his back on the gang as he allows himself to remember the past. While he finds redemption and purpose in his life, he ultimately loses the struggle for survival when he dies.

Morris Tshabalala’s struggle for survival is seen in his daily suffering as a disabled man. He has a “bent and broken body” because of a mining accident after which he lost his legs. He crawls along the pavements like “a dog” on a leash begging for money.

He is restless and bitter and sees those around him as walking on “stolen legs”. When Morris is pursued by Tsotsi, his struggle becomes one of life and death. However, when his like is spared, he is grateful for his existence and finds meaning in the small things in life. The reader is left with the feeling that even though he will be faced with difficulties and challenges throughout his life, survival is what he will fight for.

The baby’s struggle for survival begins when he is abandoned by his mother and shoved into the hands of someone who is the antithesis of a caring person. In the few days that follow he is subjected to difficult physical circumstances: being left in the ruins on his own; having to lie in soiled and dirty clothes; being fed with condensed milk and ants attacking him. Nevertheless, the baby survives and is thrown a lifeline when Miriam comes into his life.

Tsotsi, Morris and the baby all demonstrate resilience and toughness in their respective struggles for survival. During their respective journeys, Tsotsi finds his real identity, Morris discovers a new meaning in life and the baby shows a strong will to live.

Essay Question 6: Discuss the themes of human decency and morality with the characters Tsotsi, Miriam, Boston and Morris

All of these characters to some extent demonstrate the quality of human decency. Morris is resentful of his circumstances but finds it within himself to be kind. Boston, by questioning Tsotsi about decency tries to come to terms with the conflict inside of him after robbing and killing Gumboot.

Miriam is the embodiment of generosity and kindness. Tsotsi starts feeling empathy in his encounter with the baby and Morris Tshabalala.

Tsotsi shows compassion by caring for the baby and deciding not to kill Morris. Boston challenges Tsotsi after the murder of Gumboot. This is the first time he mentions decency “I had a little bit of it so I was sick.” It is clear that Boston not only has conflict about the gang’s actions, but also his role in it. He seems to have lost his sense of decency taking part in the gang’s crimes.

However, by challenging Tsotsi, Boston sets him on a path of finding decency within himself. In spite of his own sense of failure, he shows human decency by trying to answer Tsotsi’s questions even after Tsotsi had beaten him severely.

Morris feels he should give back something after Tsotsi spares his life. Even after enduring hours of being pursued, he feels he must “give this strange and terrible night something back”. He tells Tsotsi that mothers love their children. Although he is bitter about his disabled body, he still finds it in him to be decent and kind to his tormentor.

Miriam has a generous spirit and shows this by caring for and feeding the baby. She also shows that she cares for Tsotsi and helps him to see the value of life. Finally, even Tsotsi shows human decency and kindness. By allowing himself to remember his past, he starts to feel emotions too. This is evident in his caring for the baby, when he decides to spare Morris’ life and when he takes care of Boston. He shows the ultimate “decency” when he sacrifices his life to save the baby from the bulldozers.

Athol Fugard has shown that most people are capable of decency. Even Tsotsi, a murderer, gangster and criminal, eventually shows decency. Someone like Morris with huge physical constraints, also proves that decency can be found in the most unlikely places. Boston has a constant need to do the right thing. He is honest with himself and shows decency to others. Miriam is the epitome of human decency.

Contributor: Caylin Riley

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Isibonelo sokubhala umlando kamufi (isizulu obituary example & structure) grade 10 -12.

• About The Author: Athol Fugard
• A Look Back in Time
• Terminology
• The Baby (David)
• Related Links
• Works Cited

The theme of redemption is prominent throughout Tsotsi. In the beginning of the novel we are introduced to Tsotsi and immediately it is apparent he is a hateful criminal. From the murder of Gumboot, we see Tsotsi does not have any regard for human life and he does not have sympathy. However, after Tsotsi steals the baby, he slowly starts to change. He takes responsibility for another life and slowly starts to show emotion. When Tsotsi speaks to Morris Tshabalala, he is given a new outlook on life. The major shift in Tsotsi’s character takes place when he decides not to take Morris’s life and makes the decision to try and remember his past. When Tsotsi takes care of Boston he shows mercy. By being a merciful person, and forgiving others, he forgives himself. By forgiving others, Tsotsi allows others to forgive him as well. Near the end of the story, Tsotsi seeks redemption with the help of God at the church. At the church, he addresses himself as David. By referring to himself as David, he has left his identity as a tsotsi behind him. With the help of faith, he wants to return to the innocent, happy, loving, decent boy he once was. When he learns of the construction in the ruins, he makes a final act of sacrifice and redemption by attempting to save the baby. Tsotsi was once someone who took lives without any regard for his victims, and now he is someone who selflessly tried to save a life. The smile on his face at the end shows he died happy, able to forgive himself and ultimately redeem himself. 

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Redemption to a Kwaito Beat: Gavin Hood's Tsotsi

The authors provide an analysis of the film Tsotsi, with a specific focus on the musical score comprising both pre-recorded popular music (mainly the kwaito of Zola) and more conventional orchestral and choral components. We argue that the film is less concerned with political issues —significant given that the film is adapted from Athol Fugard’s novel—and more about the protagonist’s individual path to redemption. This journey is powerfully underscored by Hood’s deployment of contrasting musical genres in the film, signifying Tsotsi’s shift from sociopathic menace to an emotionally recuperated individual who takes responsibility for his actions. Zola’s influence on the film narrative is also investigated, leading us to propose that the film can be seen as reinforcing negative stereotypes of black masculinity in South Africa.

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Chris Jeffery

The thesis examines the role of music in South African film pertaining to representation of identity of South African peoples and cultures, from the country's earliest sound films until the industry expansion of the 1970s. Chapter 1 contextualizes the study in relation to South African film and music, mainstream (Hollywood) film music theory/analysis/history, and national film music studies outside the Hollywood context. Chapter 2 provides an analysis of nationalist trends in South African silent film and the transition to sound film. The subsequent two chapters analyse the filmic use of rural and urban African music as tools of representation of African identity across a continuum of films, from earlier colonial/Afrikaner nationalist-oriented films to later films with an explicitly anti-apartheid message. The final chapter returns to the themes of Chapter 2, exploring film-musical representation of Afrikaner nationalism. As with Chapters 3 and 4, the source material is eclectic, covering a broad spectrum of techniques to promote a nationalist agenda. The study reaches four principal findings. Firstly, film-musical representation of African identity develops nuance over time, as African subjects succeed in moving from being represented to achieving some self-representation. This representation remains within the ambit of diegetic music, however, and frequently maintains a subject/object relationship regarding white/black representation. Secondly, the use of diegetic African music functions as a form of othering, creating an illusion of representational "authenticity" while in practice ensuring the music remains external to the filmmakers' expressive universe, relegating it to the role of "ethnic" colour rather than engagement with characters' psychologies. Thirdly, film music is implicated in issues of land rights: rural African music questions the legitimacy of "whites only" city spaces, and is metaphorical of population displacement from rural to urban locales. Conversely, nationalist films use pastoral tropes to reimagine rural African spaces through European conceptualizations of "tamed" land, and sentimentalize spaces through song to lay claim to them through emotional ties. Fourthly, it evaluates African music's potential to function as dramatic, narrative, extradiegetic underscore, showing how this was partly achieved by certain films of the period, with possible implications for contemporary mainstream film scoring. http://hdl.handle.net/11427/27459

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Jordache A Ellapen

"This article examines the various representations of black masculinities in the films Tsotsi (dir. Gavin Hood, 2005) and The Wooden Camera (dir. Ntshavheni wa Luruli, 2003) in order to complicate the manner in which an authentic black African masculinity has become conflated with the tsotsi (gangster) figure in South African cinema. This article begins with the examination of two film posters used to promote Tsosti and The Wooden Camera in France. Both posters rely on stereotypes of the black African masculine as dangerous, deviant, and violent. By examining the various representations of black masculinities in these films, and by situating these representations within the sociohistorical and political contexts, this article complicates the overdetermined representation of the tsotsi figure that reinforces black masculinity as pathological on global screens. This article also examines the articulation of black masculinity within the township space, which the author theorizes as an in-between space. The article concludes with a call to consider the politics of race and representation, especially the implications of racializing Africanness and who can claim the rights to representation, particularly the representation of the black African body, after 1994.

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The poetry of Dennis Brutus the anti-Apartheid South African freedom fighter is often an intricate combination of content and form, with its sometimes overt, sometimes covert but pervasive structure of bipartition involving multiple units of paired (often volatile and conflicting) opposites. This paper shall largely explore how skilfully he casts that theme of horror against the contrasting backdrop of music, by which he further stresses the dimensions of the horrific conflicts between victims and victimizers. It is the persuasion of this paper that the binary vision of Dennis Brutus is the tacit censorious expression of his creative perspective on the social conflicts in Apartheid South Africa; unspeakable conflicts for whose imperative expression even the devices of music become a (sometimes camouflaging, sometimes accentuating) technical paradigm.

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Popular music has been used since the colonial times as an instrument of criticizing the various levels of authority in Zimbabwe. It was used as an artistic vehicle for denouncing colonialism. After independence, the same medium was used to agitate for social justice. More than thirty years after independence the same genre is being used to denounce impunity and political violence. Through the years what has changed is the language, which migrated from euphemism to confrontational lyrics, not the message, which has consistently attacked the authorities. The paper begins by theorizing popular music as an arts genre. This is followed by an analysis of songs that were critical of the colonial governments and those that criticized the post-independence government. The music of Thomas Mapfumo was singled out as protest music, which consistently spoke to the authorities about their perceived shortcomings. This view is presented using Mapfumo’s song titled Masoja Nemapurisa.

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This article addresses a South African music genre: maskanda, often marketed as “Zulu blues.” It describes the various ways maskanda is musically analyzed and interpreted by musicians, audiences, producers, and scholars, including myself. By treating music analysis as a form of participant observation (and indigenizing my own analytical conventions) the article aims, foremostly, to foster a cross-cultural dialogue about musical experiences (hearings) and the practices of finding words for these experiences (conceptualizations). Music analysis as participant observation also sheds light on local historiographies, critiques, and structural analyses of maskanda, and it bridges the artificial academic dichotomy of object-related observation (music analysis) and discourse related theorization (cultural analysis) that still impairs much music research.

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Tsotsi Wright-On Notes 1

Matt trick, ty readman, brandon hickey, mark matsuba.

Survival – At the beginning of the novel, survival is attained in a savage and animalistic way. To survive Tsotsi kills and ribs innocent people in order to get money. As the story develops, so does the theme of survival. It becomes less of a physical survival and shifts to an emotional and spiritual survival. Not only does Tsotsi save himself but others too, he gives them hope. In saving others Tsotsi saves himself & his conscious. Examples are shown through the secondary characters or Morris and Boston and MIRAM. When Tsotsi lets Morris live after hours of stalking him, he saved Morris from his ultimate fear of death & saves his own kind-hearted personality, taking one step closer to becoming his old self, David. Tsotsi saves a Boston from death, by nourishment, like a mother figure. After beating him only two days before because he asked questions. Along with taking care of the man, Tsotsi is also asking questions to Boston about life. Tsotsi has abandoned one of his rules that made him the thug he is. These actions show that Tsotsi is becoming a new man, regaining and saving his soul. Fugard wants us to understand that survival is not only your physical presence but the mental state of yourself. You can be alive but your respect for others, positive attitude and kind-heartedness is diminished then you are dead as a soul.

Redemption – At the outset of the novel Tsotsi is in a state of sin with his gang but through interactions with other he can redeem himself back to the young innocent boy he once was, David. Through caring for Boston, Tsotsi asks him question pertaining to life in general. This nurturing and discussion allow Tsotsi to redeem himself to not only Boston but himself. Boston now knows Tsotsi is trying to fix himself and become a better person, therefore gaining respect for him. Next since Boston told Tsotsi he is looking for god, Tsotsi goes to the church and finds Isaiah, through their interaction Tsotsi learns more of God & what he and Christianity can do for you. Tsotsi agreed to return to the church later for a session. This shows us Tsotsi moving away from his state of sin and again moving closer to becoming David. Through these interactions Tsotsi is walking the road of redemption and becoming David. The final act of attains redemption is when Tsotsi attempts to save the baby at the end of the book. At the beginning of the novel Tsotsi was a life taker and by the end he moves to a life saver showing us the full circle redemption. The author wants us to learn that although you may commit acts that are uncivil or incorrect you can always redeem yourself if you choose so. Tsotsi made the choice to interaction with the people he did, he wanted to become David.  Fugard knows if it’s possible for him, it is for anyone.

Decency – We are first introduced to decency at the beginning g of the novel when Tsotsi beats up Boston because Boston asks him questions about decency, referring to Tsotsi having none. Tsotsi doesn’t know how to answer and he feels insecure, which causes him to lash out on Boston. Violence like this along with killing is what causes Tsotsi and his gang to lose their decency all together. Boston later points out that they have become sick, from life, from the lifestyle that they have participated in, lacking decency. As the story progresses Tsotsi learns he can attain decency in his life. He learns this again through the seminal moments throughout the novel. Morris is a huge interaction for Tsotsi. As the two talk and eventually Tsotsi allows Morris to live, Tsotsi does this because he recognizes that Morris too has a valuable life and this is an enormous step in attaining decency towards others. Tsotsi also attains decency in his life through another important moment, remembering his past. When Tsotsi takes in the full memory of the boy he used to be, he remembers what his life was like before he turned into a savage. Although the memory may not have been the most positive it gives him a target of who he needs to become again & this person is decent. Fugard wants us to learn that even the most lost, darkest human can turn their life around and become a new person with new values.

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Theme of Redemption in Mapantsula and Tsotsi

Table of contents, recurring flashbacks, female guidance, alternate use of angles - mapantsula, flashbacks of tsotsi’s childhood- tsotsi, the spiritual sangoma – mapantsula, female empowerment – tsotsi.

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Grade 11 English

All about english hl for the grade 11 class of 2020, tsotsi – literature essay 1.

Date: 07 April 2020 Tsotsi (yellow)

Discuss the different ways in which characters understand what it means to be a man and/or a decent human. Use evidence from the novel to support your discussion.

Refer to: Gumboot Dlamini Boston Morris Tshabalala Miriam

length: 350-400 words

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Tsotsi essay grade 11

tsotsi essay grade 11

Tsotsi Essay for Grade 11

Answer: “Tsotsi” is a novel by South African author Athol Fugard, which was later adapted into an acclaimed film directed by Gavin Hood. The story centers around a young gang leader named Tsotsi. He lives in the impoverished townships of Johannesburg and embarks on a journey of redemption. This essay will delve into the novel’s themes, character development, and key literary devices to provide a comprehensive analysis suitable for a Grade 11 level.

Themes in “Tsotsi”

Redemption and Transformation:

• Tsotsi’s Moral Journey: The core of the novel revolves around Tsotsi’s transformation from a hardened criminal to someone who rediscovers his humanity. His journey is triggered by the unexpected responsibility of caring for a baby he finds during a robbery.
• Symbolism of the Baby: The baby symbolizes innocence and the possibility of redemption. It acts as a catalyst for Tsotsi’s change, making him confront his past and reconsider his life choices.

The Impact of Apartheid:

• Socio-economic Conditions: The novel is set against the backdrop of apartheid South Africa, which plays a crucial role in shaping the characters’ lives. The harsh realities of poverty, violence, and systemic oppression are ever-present.
• Loss of Identity: The oppressive environment fosters a sense of hopelessness and loss of identity among the characters, particularly Tsotsi, whose real name is lost to his violent persona.

Violence and Survival:

• Cycle of Violence: Fugard explores how violence begets violence. Tsotsi’s gang life is a survival mechanism in a brutalized society.
• Breaking the Cycle: Tsotsi’s gradual realization that he has the power to break the cycle of violence serves as a beacon of hope.

Character Development

• Initial Characterization: At the beginning of the novel, Tsotsi is depicted as ruthless and emotionless, a product of his environment.
• Conflict and Change: Key events, like the baby’s arrival and encounters with other characters like Morris and Miriam, force Tsotsi to confront his buried memories and emotions.
• Final Transformation: By the novel’s end, Tsotsi seeks redemption, symbolizing that change is possible even in the most adverse conditions.
• Role in Tsotsi’s Transformation: Miriam, a single mother, provides Tsotsi with both practical support and emotional guidance. She’s a symbol of maternal care and resilience.
• Contrast to Tsotsi: Her nurturing nature contrasts Tsotsi’s initial brutality, highlighting the novel’s exploration of human compassion.
• Representation of the Disabled: Morris, a crippled beggar, represents another marginalized aspect of society. His interactions with Tsotsi are pivotal in Tsotsi’s journey towards empathy.

Literary Devices and Style

• The Baby: As mentioned, the baby serves as a symbol of innocence and the possibility of redemption.
• Tsotsi’s Name: The protagonist’s name is a crucial symbol — in township slang, “Tsotsi” means thug, but as he finds himself, he sheds this identity.
• Setting: Fugard’s vivid descriptions of the township bring the setting to life and underscore the harsh realities of apartheid.
• Internal Conflict: Tsotsi’s internal struggles are depicted through poignant and often stark imagery, reflecting his tumultuous journey.

Narrative Style:

• Third-Person Omniscient: The novel employs a third-person omniscient narrative, allowing insight into Tsotsi’s thoughts and emotions, which is essential for understanding his transformation.

“ Tsotsi ” is a powerful exploration of redemption, set against the backdrop of apartheid South Africa. Through its rich thematic content, deep character development, and effective use of literary devices, it offers a profound commentary on the human capacity for change. Tsotsi’s journey from violence to compassion reminds readers that even in the darkest circumstances, there is potential for transformation.

Final Answer: This essay is an in-depth analysis of Athol Fugard’s “Tsotsi” , focusing on its themes, character development, and literary devices. Suitable for a Grade 11 level, it provides a comprehensive understanding of the novel and its significance within the context of apartheid South Africa.

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Athol Fugard

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[Tsotsi’s] knowledge was without any edge of enjoyment. It was simply the way it should be, feeling in this the way other men feel when they see the sun in the morning. The big men, the brave ones, stood down because of him, the fear was of him, the hate was for him. It was all there because of him. He knew he was . He knew he was there, at that moment, leading the others to take one on the trains.

[Tsotsi’s] own eyes in front of a mirror had not been able to put together the eyes, and the nose, and the mouth and the chin, and make a man with meaning. His own features in his own eyes had been as meaningless as a handful of stones picked up at random in the street outside his room. He allowed himself no thought of himself, he remembered no yesterdays, and tomorrow existed only when it was the present, living moment. He was as old as that moment, and his name was the name, in a way, of all men.

They stayed that way until the street cried, then laughter, and Soekie started her song again at the beginning, staying like that, Boston still, Tsotsi seemingly the same as always, the one in disbelief, the other at the explosive moment of action, and this moment precipitated when Boston whispered: ‘You must have a soul Tsotsi. Everybody’s got a soul. Every living human being has got a soul!’

The knife was not only his weapon, but also a fetish, a talisman that conjured away bad spirits and established him securely in his life.

He didn’t see the man, he saw the type.

This was man. This small, almost ancient, very useless and abandoned thing was the beginning of a man.

Tsotsi knew one thing very definitely now. Starting last night, and maybe even before that, because sitting there with a quiet mind to the events of the past hours it seemed almost as if there might have been a beginning before the bluegum trees, but regardless of where or when, he had started doing things that did not fit into the pattern of his life. There was no doubt about this. The pattern was too simple, too clear, woven as it had been by his own hands, using his knife like a shuttle to carry the red thread of death and interlace it with others stained in equally sombre hues. The baby did not belong and certainly none of the actions that had been forced on him as a result of its presence, like buying baby milk, or feeding it or cleaning it or hiding it with more cunning and secrecy than other people hid what they had from him.

Gumboot had been allocated a plot near the centre. He was buried by the Reverend Henry Ransome of the Church of Christ the Redeemer in the township. The minister went through the ritual with uncertainty. He was disturbed, and he knew it and that made it worse. If only he had known the name of the man he was burying. This man, O Lord! What man? This one, fashioned in your likeness.

It was the awareness of alternatives that disturbed Tsotsi and seemed to paralyse his will. Up to that moment he had lived his life as the victim of dark impulses. They had been ready, rising to his moments of need all through his life. Where they came from he never knew, and their reasons for coming he had never questioned. What he realized now was that something had tampered with the mechanism that had governed his life, inhibiting its function.

[Morris] looked at the street and the big cars with their white passengers warm inside like wonderful presents in bright boxes, and the carefree, ugly crowds of the pavement, seeing them all with baleful feelings.

It is for your gold that I had to dig. That is what destroyed me. You are walking on stolen legs. All of you.

Even in this there was no satisfaction. As if knowing his thoughts, they stretched their thin, unsightly lips into bigger smiles while the crude sounds of their language and laughter seemed even louder. A few of them, after buying a newspaper, dropped pennies in front of him. He looked the other way when he pocketed them.

Are his hands soft? he would ask himself, and then shake his head in anger and desperation at the futility of the question. But no sooner did he stop asking it than another would occur. Has he got a mother? This question was persistent. Hasn’t he got a mother? Didn’t she love him? Didn’t she sing him songs? He was really asking how do men come to be what they become. For all he knew others might have asked the same question about himself. There were times when he didn’t feel human. He knew he didn’t look it.

What is sympathy? If you had asked Tsotsi this, telling him that it was his new experience, he would have answered: like light, meaning that it revealed. Pressed further, he might have thought of darkness and lighting a candle, and holding it up to find Morris Tshabalala within the halo of its radiance. He was seeing him for the first time, in a way that he hadn’t seen him before, or with a second sort of sight, or maybe just more clearly. […]

But that wasn’t all. The same light fell on the baby, and somehow on Boston too, and wasn’t that the last face of Gumboot Dhlamini there, almost where the light ended and things weren’t so clear anymore. And beyond that still, what? A sense of space, of an infinity stretching away so vast that the whole world, the crooked trees, the township streets, the crowded, wheezing rooms, might have been waiting there for a brighter, intense revelation.

I must give him something, he thought. I must give this strange and terrible night something back for all it has given me. With the instinct of his kind, he turned to beauty and gave back the most beautiful thing he knew.

‘Mothers love their children. I know. I remember. They sing us songs when we are small. I’m telling you, tsotsi. Mothers love their children.’

After this there was silence for the words to register and make their meaning, for Tsotsi to stand up and say in reply: ‘They don’t. I’m telling you, I know they don’t,’ and then he walked away.

So she carried on, outwardly adjusting the pattern of her life as best she could, like taking in washing, doing odd cleaning jobs in the nearby white suburb. Inwardly she had fallen into something like a possessive sleep where the same dream is dreamt over and over again. She seldom smiled now, kept to herself and her baby, asked no favours and gave none, hoarding as it were the moments and things in her life.

On she came, until a foot or so away the chain stopped her, and although she pulled at this with her teeth until her breathing was tense and rattled she could go no further, so she lay down there, twisting her body so that the hindquarters fell apart and, like that, fighting all the time, her ribs heaving, she gave birth to the stillborn litter, and then died beside them.

Petah turned to David. ‘Willie no good. You not Willie. What is your name? Talk! Trust me, man. I help you.’

David’s eyes grew round and vacant, stared at the darkness. A tiny sound, a thin squeaking voice, struggled out: ‘David…’ it said, ‘David! But no more! He dead! He dead too, like Willie, like Joji.’

So he went out with them the next day and scavenged. The same day an Indian chased him away from his shop door, shouting and calling him a tsotsi. When they went back to the river that night, they started again, trying names on him: Sam, Willie, and now Simon, until he stopped them.

‘My name,’ he said, ‘is Tsotsi.’

The baby and David, himself that is, at first confused, had now merged into one and the same person. The police raid, the river, and Petah, the spider spinning his web, the grey day and the smell of damp newspapers were a future awaiting the baby. It was outside itself. He could sympathize with it in its defencelessness against the terrible events awaiting it.

‘Last night I was sad and I bent on my knees and did pray for something and a voice said, “Why should I give you what you ask me for, when you got no milk for babies.” Please give him to me.’

‘What are you going to do with him?’

‘Keep him.’

He threw back his head, and she saw the shine of desperation on his forehead as he struggled with that mighty word. Why, why was he? No more revenge. No more hate. The riddle of the yellow bitch was solved—all of this in a few days and in as short a time the hold on his life by the blind, black, minute hands had grown tighter. Why?

‘Because I must find out,’ he said.

‘Why Boston? What did do it?’

A sudden elation lit up Boston’s face; he tried to smile, but his lips wouldn’t move, and his nose started throbbing, but despite the pain he whispered back at Tsotsi: ‘You are asking me about God.’

‘You are asking me about God, Tsotsi. About God, about God.’

To an incredible extent a peaceful existence was dependent upon knowing just when to say no or yes to the white man.

‘Come man and join in the singing.’

‘I’m telling you anybody can come. It’s the House of God. I ring His bell. Will you come?’

‘Listen tonight, you hear. Listen for me. I will call you to believe in God.’

It was a new day and what he had thought out last night was still there, inside him. Only one thing was important to him now. ‘Come back,’ the woman had said. ‘Come back, Tsotsi.’

I must correct her, he thought. ‘My name is David Madondo.’

He said it aloud in the almost empty street, and laughed. The man delivering milk heard him, and looking up said, ‘Peace my brother.’

‘Peace be with you’, David Madondo replied and carried on his way.

The slum clearance had entered a second and decisive stage. The white township had grown impatient. The ruins, they said, were being built up again and as many were still coming in as they carried off in lorries to the new locations or in vans to the jails. So they had sent in the bulldozers to raze the buildings completely to the ground.

They unearthed him minutes later. All agreed that his smile was beautiful, and strange for a tsotsi, and that when he lay there on his back in the sun, before someone had fetched a blanket, they agreed that it was hard to believe what the back of his head looked like when you saw the smile.

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