The Grass is Singing

Institutionalized racism runs rampant through the novel, with the rural farmers relying on this racism for their very survival. Though racism is a troubling darkness with historical roots in South Africa, in the narrative, racism is a beacon for the white farmers who use the suppression of the natives to ensure that they have a work force. The natives are treated little better than slaves by the whites, though there are rules and guidelines amongst the farmers as to how to treat the natives to maximize their efficiency. Unlike Mary, who despises natives and berates them to the point that they quit and badmouth her to others, Dick and the other farmers know that they should treat their natives with some manner of dignity to ensure that the natives continue working. Dick uses the same hate-filled language to describe the natives, but he also knows how to spot “a good worker.” Above all, Dick Turner is concerned with keeping good help around to man his fields.

One of the general rules of “the district” is that natives cannot be abused, and if they are, they are entitled to complain. Though most of the farmers observe this rule and refrain from physical violence, Mary breaks it by striking Moses and injuring him. In doing so, she has broken a rule of the farmers, though she rightly reasons that the police and the courts are on her side. However, the farmers see these rules as instrumental in keeping the natives in check. When the natives get angry, or “cheeky,” the precariousness of the master-servant hierarchy begins to unravel. The natives usually accept the abuse and poor working conditions because many will not find anything better. They also know that living and working conditions will not improve much from one farm to another. Mary striking Moses, however, or her rudeness to Dick’s longtime native, Samson, cause natives to leave or do unspeakable things, as is seen with Mary’s murder. Racism is accepted, but followed with unspoken rules so as not to upset the balance of power.

Identity is a major theme in the novel, especially with Mary Turner. Mary constantly fights to establish an identity for herself. The novel opens with Mary’s death and the fact that some think of the Turners as “poor whites.” Being viewed as a poor white is something that Mary would not like to be identified as, as the term is usually associated with poor Afrikaners, not the British. The Turners’ level of poverty and dislike by many of their neighbors, even those who have never met them, lend to them being identified as poor whites, with much of the blame falling on Mary Turner for her pride.

Though poor, there is also a strong drive for Mary and other farmers not to be viewed as the natives are viewed. Whites identify themselves as superior in every aspect. This is another reason that so many dislike the Turners. Their house on the farm is so squalid that even some natives have a house as basic as theirs, a fact that angers the Turners’ white neighbors. There are also instances in the novel where Mary looks at Dick Turner and compares him to natives, which upsets her. Regardless of the task at hand or how poor they are, Mary tries her best to ensure that she is superior to the natives. Her interest in Moses, however, is a sharp break from her view of natives as savages. Whites believe that native women seduce white men, but not the other way around. Mart’s feelings are taboo, especially among her fellow whites who rely on the hierarchy between the races. Mary’s attraction to Moses shows a complete breakdown of identity for her. It also points to the fact that her identity is being born anew, but that she struggles with this identity as she has been taught to despise natives her entire life.

Mary also faces her desire to identify as a woman separate from her mother. Her mother also lived in poverty due to her incompetent husband. Despite her strong will, however, Mary finds herself cast into the same role as her mother. With her marriage to Dick, she feels like a spurned woman who yearns for freedom and a different life but is unable to achieve it. Dick’s introduction of a native store on their farm is an example of this. The store disgusts Mary and reminds her negatively of her childhood and parents. Having to work in the store brings back memories of her mother and father, and though she does not tell Dick about this, she refuses to be associated with the store and what it represents for her. Her identity as a child was tied to the store, and as an adult, she wants nothing to do with it, so shirks her responsibility and the store suffers.

Mary also identifies as a city woman, even though she now lives on the farm. She wants nothing more than for Dick to strike it rich and for the Turners to be able to move back to the city. She feels alive in the city, and sinks into depression when on the farm. Even when Mary breaks and slips into apparent madness, she still thinks of herself as a city woman. In a troubling scene, when Charlie Slatter visits the farm in Chapter Ten, Mary puts on gaudy, native-style earrings and clothing and flirts grotesquely with Charlie as if she was a young woman. Her appearance unnerves him and Dick. Her break in reality signifies her identity as something other than a farm wife, and ultimately leads to her death.