A Party for the Colonel

By F T Kola

All evening, groups of white people came up to shake the Colonel’s hand and to say sweet things to his wife. (…)

Source: Kola, F.T. “A Party for the Colonel.” In: One Story. Edited by Hannah Tinti. Issue 200. 25 December 2014.

Available at [🔗].

current affairs

Apartheid legislation in South-Africa was repealed in the early 90s, but there still is large scale economic inequities between racial groups. The New York Times “End of apartheid in South-Africa? Not in economic terms” explores what causes the persistence of racial inequity.

links

Peter S. Goodman “End of apartheid in South-Africa? Not in economic terms.” New York Times, 24 October 2017. [🔗]

questions

  1. The Colonel decides to become an insurance salesman, because, he says, “money is the great equalizer.” (p. 13) Is it?

  2. Comment on the passage: “The Colonel simply replaced the inevitable with the illusion of choice.” (p. 15) Would you say that the Colonel is an Uncle Tom?

  3. What function does honouring the Colonel by means of a party serve in the apartheid regime? How are the Colonel and his wife treated by the other guests at the party? 

  4. The Colonel, his wife and their son Mohammed all have different ways of dealing with the Apartheid regime. Contrast their respective attitudes.

  5. What Is Elizabeth’s position? Discuss the following two passages: “She said nothing, but stared at the Colonel’s wife with a look of apology on her face that the Colonel’s wife did not understand.” (p. 6) and “‘… she said, ‘… I have been supporting the Progressive Reform Party, you know …’” (p. 23)

  6. What are the multiple causes of the persistence of racial inequities in South-Africa according to The New York Times article “End of apartheid in South-Africa? Not in economic terms”?