Structure

The story “The Middle Children” by Rayda Jacobs is structured in two main scenes or episodes—Sabah meeting a high school classmate in the subway, and then being called in by Criminal Investigations because she has an illegal white card. The scenes are connected because they both reveal aspects about the situation of middle children (mixed- race children) in South Africa. The two parts of the story follow a traditional plot structure, with an exposition, rising action, climax, falling action, and resol…

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Beginning

The short story begins in media res, by introducing readers to the main character, who appears to be a trendy young woman: “Smartly dressed in knee-high boots, mini skirt, Beatles jacket, and black beret, Sabah got off the bus at Mowbray station, and walke…

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Middle

The rising action focuses on Sabah’s inner conflict about her racial identity. This conflict is increased when Sabah meets a former classmate in the subway, Stephanie.

Their conversation introduces tension into the story as Stephanie makes Sabah fe…

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Ending

In the falling action, the lawyer convinces Sabah to take the deal: “Was Canada not worth a try? He himself had friends there, who reported a better li…