July's People

Describe July.

July's People by Nadine Gordimer.

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July is the servant of the Smales. He is a father and a husband. He also has a mistress in town. He worked for the Smales for fifteen years, and they prided themselves on treating him very well. He lived a dual existence—city servant and rural villager—and throughout the novel, the reader witnesses the tension existing between these roles. He is a leader in his family’s community of huts but expected to merely follow the orders of his white bosses while in the city. The tension between these two roles is felt most deeply when the Smales take up residence in his village. His two worlds collide. While he is aware the Smales no longer have power over him, he still behaves in a servile manner—preparing their food, taking their clothes to be laundered by the women, and telling Maureen she should not engage in the same work as the other women.

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July's People