Themes

The main themes in “The Journey to the Brothers’ Farm” by Pippa Gough are the difference between skin colours and revenge.

The difference between skin colours

The difference between white skin and dark skin is the basis of the short story. Since she was young, Annelie has known that whites and black Africans are treated differently, and that white skin has always been associated with certain advantages:

For many days I puzzled over the mystery of skin, bones, faces and fortunes. I knew about skin – black skin and white skin – but how did all the other things link together? I studied the other children in the playground.

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Revenge

The theme of revenge is illustrated by the ending of the story when Annelie encourages Hendriks to commit suicide. When she was 13, Annelie misinterpreted Hendriks’ attention and never saw his sexual assault coming. After she had been raped, Annelie was dominated by shame and regret, which made her hide the event all her life and only confess it to her aunt. When she returns to the Veldplatt farm after 30 years, Annelie sees that Hendriks is hurt and on the verge of death.

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