Kaffir Boy



Posted: Sunday, December 02, 2007

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The autobiography Kaffir Boy written by Mark Mathabane is a true story that details the life of a young African youth growing up during the reign of Apartheid in South Africa . Not only is this book true but it is incredibly inspiring considering the obstacles that the author had to overcome to achieve his lofty goal.

Kaffir comes from an Arabic origin and it means infidel. During the years of Apartheid it was used as a derogative term to refer to blacks by whites. It is often compared to the word nigger.

The exact date of Marks birth is unknown. It is guessed that he was born in the early sixties. His life is distinguished by many different nation wide actions like the Soweto Rebellion in 1976. Mark was called Johannes when he was growing up but changed his name later in life. He was born in Alexadra , South Africa which is right outside Johannesburg . He lived a long hard life just barely scrapping by living in the ghettos hardly having enough food to eat.

This book is an incredible story to read. Not only did it open my eyes to the brutality that was Apartheid but it helped me to realize just how terrible people can be to each other. I was shocked as I read some of the horrible things that Mark had to go through and witness. I was even more shocked to hear about how he not only survived those things but came out victorious. This is a classic story about a man going against all the odds and winning the ultimate prize. The one thing that I find different from this story is that he is not winning a sports event he his fighting for his life. He is not practicing for the championship but he is determined to overcome the racial injustice that he and the rest of black South Africa must face.

There is nothing to change about this story because it is the true story told by a man who experienced the harsh life in every detail. Mark spares no points, and brings to life every terrible thing that happened to him. He gives amazing specificity to the way that Apartheid worked and all the evil it caused in South Africa .

Apartheid in South Africa is not something my generation hears much about. To be honest I had never heard about it until I read this book and I would not have read this book had it not been from one of my classes. However, I am thankful that this book was assigned because it opened my vision a little bigger and I was able to see just a small bit more of the world.

I would suggest this book be read by an older more mature audience. Some of the scenes are not suitable for children. I do believe that this book should be read so that everyone can see what terrible things have happened in South Africa and the world can be a witness to not ever let these things happen again. I would also suggest this book so the readers can see the evils or greed and power.

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Top-level comments on this article: (1 total)
» left by Nick
from Alaska 3 years 247 days ago.
Tyler, I am currently reading this book. It is nice to hear that I am feeling the exact same as you that reading of Apartheid opened my eyes to a very different and almost alien world to us. I live in the US and had not heard of the Apartheid until my senior year of high school. This book as you say is truly inspiring and makes me want to change how I treat people as a whole. I hope this gets to you, if you would like to discuss this more people feel free to email me at 24.bradford at gmail com Thanks
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