Cry, The Beloved Country

           Even though Kumalo really never had a negative point of view, most times he always wanted things to be positive instead of negative because of his life style.  He had a realistic personality because even today people try to live life the way that God wants them to. In the book he also played apart as a realistic parent because most parents are going to be there for their children through thick and thin.

           One way Kumalo was negative was when he stated, “This is a bitter journey”. He starts to suffer hearing that his brother had lost faith in the church. In Chapter 5, “what God has not done for South Africa, man must do” is what John, Stephen Kumalo’s brother said. This gave Kumalo a negative mindset, but he soon started being positive. He starts to understand the life of Johannesburg more and more. He then realizes why they had so much crime and poverty. He started being positive once he said, “I am a Christian”.

            Kumalo wanted people to do right, especially people that were close to him. He was very upset when he had heard that his son killed a white man. He was confused about what was going through his son, Absalom’s head as he committed a murder. He didn’t raise his son to do harsh things. “Why did you leave the work that I got for you?” is what Kumalo asked his son. He wanted Absalom to stay with the work that he gave him so that he would do right and not be in any trouble while he was gone away to Johannesburg. He expected his son to do right while in Johannesburg, but turns out his son didn’t do as told. His son let their family down.

            He experienced a lot throughout this journey. Personally, I believe it became a positive outlook on Kumalo’s life. He was changed man and he had better understandings about situations. He was very apprehensive at first and did not know exactly what he would be getting himself into, just like a normal journeyman. After some hardships, his realization came to him. So far this journey has been a learning cycle, placed with many obstacles and lessons. “So they closed with hymn and prayers”, also “thanks to Mrs. Lithebe for her kindness to these people” shows that he had lots of positive people around him. When you’re around a positive atmosphere, you seem to be positive also. His final result is change.

            In conclusion, although Kumalo really never had a negative point of view, he wasn’t perfect so there were some negative points in his life. He was positive and negative for two main reasons. First, he wanted people to do right and for situations in life to work out for the better. But most importantly, this journey changed him and he learned how to handle many situations that he never thought he’d have to handle. This shows the comparison of Kumalo being realistic in the book, “Cry, The Beloved Country”. We as humans have to do that every day of our lives.