Sheila Kohler's "Africans" was first published in Story magazine in 1998. It received greater exposure when it was published the following year in Kohler's collection of interlinked stories One Girl: A Novel in Stories. The book is divided into four sections, each one representing a life stage. "Africans" is included in the largest of the four sections, "Courtship and Marriage." The story, like many of Kohler's works, is set in South Africa, where she grew up. The main theme concerns the betrayal of a woman by her abusive husband, and her ultimate betrayal by her loyal African servant.
However, the story, which takes place in the mid-to late-twentieth century, also contains references to apartheid, the legalized racial segregation that took place in South Africa during this time. Apartheid denied blacks many rights, including the right to vote. Kohler published her story four years after Nelson Mandela became South Africa's first black president in the country's first free election. One Girl: A Novel in Stories was received well by the critics and inspired Cracks: A Novel (1999), which was based on one of the other stories in the collection. "Africans" can be found in The Best American Short Stories 1999, which was published by the Houghton Mifflin Company in 1999.
This complete Introduction contains 209 words. This
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