My Children! My Africa! - Vocabulary & Key Concepts

Vocabulary and key term flashcards based on the Mind the Gap study guide for Athol Fugard's drama, My Children! My Africa!.

boycott

To withdraw from commercial or social relations as a punishment or protest, such as South African teenagers refusing to attend school until Apartheid ended.

affluent

Wealthy.

Afrikaner

An Afrikaans-speaking person in South Africa, usually denoting one descended from 17th-century Dutch and Huguenot settlers.

Amandla

A Zulu and Xhosa word meaning "power".

apartheid

A policy or system of segregation or discrimination on grounds of race.

Baas

What non-Whites call masters or bosses.

Bantu

A member of an indigenous people of central and southern Africa that speaks a Bantu language.

coloured

Defined in South Africa as anyone of mixed racial descent.

comrades

Fellow members of an activity or organisation, used in South Africa primarily to refer to those in the struggle against apartheid.

Confucius

A Chinese philosopher, teacher, and politician (551-479 BCE) whose philosophy put emphasis on morality, sincerity, and justice.

eloquence

Fluent or persuasive speaking or writing.

generation

A group of people of a similar age.

inequality

People not having the same opportunities or standards of living.

inglorious

Causing shame or a loss of honor.

intuitive

Using or based on what one feels to be true even without conscious reasoning.

mealie-pap

A staple food of the Bantu resembling a polenta made from ground corn.

perspective

A way of seeing something, or a point of view.

platteland

Country districts of remote South Africa.

pondok

A roughly made house built of metal sheets, reeds, mud, etc.

privileged

Having special rights, advantages, or immunities.

racism

Belief that all members of each race possess characteristics or abilities specific to that race.

sabotage

To deliberately destroy, damage, or obstruct.

suppressed

Stifled, overpowered, or put an end to something by force.

vandalism

Deliberate destruction of or damage to public or private property.

Zionist

A religious movement represented by a group of independent churches practicing a form of Christianity incorporating elements of traditional African beliefs.

Playwright

A person who writes plays.

Protagonist

The main character or hero in a story who appears from start to end and drives the story.

Antagonist

A character, group, or difficult situation that plays against the main heroic character.

Brakwater

An Afrikaans word meaning brackish water; figuratively, a Black location in the Eastern Cape symbolising poverty, suffering, and misery.

Camdeboo

A word derived from Khoi meaning "green hollow", symbolising beauty, contentment, and a good life.

The school bell

A symbol in the play representing authority and order.

Matchboxes

A literal reference to small classrooms or rented rooms that symbolises the poverty, oppression, and limited opportunities endured by Black people.

The dictionary

A symbol of education, learning, the power of language, ideas, and communication.

The stone

A symbol representing violent protest and destruction.

Ozymandias

An Egyptian Pharaoh used as a symbol of political power, pain, and oppression.