Corruption in Cry, the Beloved Country

A detailed Summary of Corruption in Cry, the Beloved Country

Corruption is probably the most prominent theme in Alan Paton's Cry, the Beloved Country, as well as in today's world. In this story, the author pictures many different characters in order to illustrate this widespread corruption of society. John Kumalo, Absalom, and Gertrude are a few of the characters he uses to help carry out this theme. Johannesburg, itself, is the sum of all that is wrong in cities today. There is corruption and poverty; crime runs rampant, and law-abiding citizens are forced to live where only the strong survive.

John Kumalo is one of the most typical products of corruption in Cry, The Beloved Country. He lives with a woman that he is not married to. He has no problem hiring a lawyer that will lie to condemn his nephew to death. His only positive trait is that he uses his political power to help further the cause of the African natives, but even this is marred by the fact that he is only d

In the novel, Allan Paton presents Johannesburg as a nest of corruption. As a matter of fact, all the other corruption mentioned in the story stems from Johannesburg: John, Absalom, Gertrude, crime, prostitution, racism, and segregation. Johannesburg isn't only corrupt in itself; it corrupts almost all that it touches. This city is essentially a downscaled version of all the major cities in the world today. It is a sad day when a man of God cannot walk through the streets without getting harassed. The city is overcrowded, and everyone is so poor that they must stoop to robbing priests just to feed themselves.

Gertrude, the most pathetic character in the novel, is another good example of what Johannesburg does to a person. She has been chewed up and spit out by a city that has no room for decent black people. She goes off in search of her husband and ends up by herself with "many husbands" as Msimangu said. Gertr

Some common words found in the essay are:
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Approximate Word count = 622
Approximate Pages = 2 (250 words per page double spaced)

Category: Novels

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Corruption in Cry, the Beloved Country

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