Overview of Crackling Day

Overview of “Crackling Day”

Characters

- Lee (the narrator) - Andries - The white boys - Uncle Sam - Aunt Liza - The white man

Setting

- Elsburg - The location (home)

Plot Summary

- On Cracking Day, Lee and Andries travel to Elsburg to buy a square of pig’s rind (crackling). Lee and Andries make the long trek barefoot in the bitter cold. When they arrive, they are forced to wait in line. The white man who sells the crackling humiliates lee by insisting on being called “baas.” As Lee and Andries journey back home, they are approached by a group of white boys who call them names and insult Lee’s father, who had passed away. That night, Lee, Uncle Sam, and Aunt Liza are visited by the boys and a white man who threatens Uncle Sam into beating Lee “to teach him a lesson.” Aunt Liza later comforts Lee by tending to his injuries and cuddling him to sleep. Uncle Sam, feeling sorry about being forced to beat Lee, brings Lee an orange, some boiled sweets, and an old picture book.

Key Ideas

- Lee was only wearing a t-shirt, shorts, and no shoes because the poverty within the black community. - “Baas” is the term that black people were forced to call white people by, as a sign of respect. - Although Uncle Sam does not say “I’m sorry,” his gifts to Lee are a sign of apology; adults in that time did not usually apologize to youngsters. - Blacks and whites are not equal in South Africa. To be black to be inferior. Being black in South Africa is to be bound by a different system from the white man. Blacks must act subserviently and humbly. The author shows us the injustice of racism through Lee’s eyes.

* Remember to read through the story again. Make sure that you understand the general plot as well as the meaning behind the story.