The Rain Of My Blood Analysis: George Mujajati

The Rain of my blood:Act 3,Scene 4 Analysis

Setting shifts from the bush to Altena Farm. It is evening at twilight. Twilight refers to the time when the sun is setting, when its light is disappearing. Twilight in drama usually symbolizes or signifies the end or death of something. In this scene we see the end of Francis Sanderson, Jeffries Sanderson,death of Bulala the foreman and  the capture of Bertha, Jeffries’ wife and the betrayal of the guerillas (Chamunorwa and Co.)by The Traitor Nyati.

The scene opens with Jeffries Sanderson receiving a telegram that informs him that his son has been murdered by ‘terrorists’. The sitting room is expensively furnished to show the affluent lifestyle of Jeffries’  family. There is sadness shown by Bertha who is crying and inconsolable because of the murder of her son Francis. The sobs show she is greatly pained. On the other hand, Jeffries is enraged and curses the freedom fighters and calls them ‘terrorists’, a derogatory term to denigrate the freedom fighters. A voice off stage announces the death of Francis and three black soldiers. The voice says forty terrorists have been killed in the same battle. The Rhodesian radio was usually used for propaganda purposes by spreading lies to dampen the spirits of the civilians. Jeffries is determined to fight the terrorists.

Immediately after the voice message, Bulala enters to inform Jeffries and wife that terrorists have arrived. Jeffries kicks Bulala in the stomach as a sign of extreme contempt for him. Immediately, Jeffries and wife are panic- stricken and Jeffries asks for his gun. Bertha is shaking. There is darkness on stage. Gunfire erupts. Chamunorwa’s voice calls for Jeffries to surrender and come out since the house is surrounded by the guerillas. Gunfire erupts again. There is screaming from Bertha as Jeffries and Bulala are shot dead. Bertha is sqatting in a corner, terror stricken. Chamunorwa and another guerilla enter pointing guns and capture Bertha alive. Bertha is bound with a rope. Stage directions tell of a suspicious looking guerilla who drops a note. The note is probably meant to direct or guide soldiers to track the guerillas. This comrade is probably Nyati the traitor. This further brings out the theme of betrayal during the liberation struggle. Nyati continues to drop notes each time guerillas march across stage to give soldiers directions. Stage directions also say that sometimes he draws an arrow to guide soldiers. This is unseen by others. The suspicious looking guerilla mumbles something inaudible and is cautioned by Chamunorwa. He urges everyone to be vigilant. He warns the suspicious guerilla of the dire consequences of selling out. A guerilla questions the logic of traveling for long with Bertha but Chamunorwa tells him they are taking her to Zambia for reeducation. Chamunorwa reaffirms the notion that they are not murderers but people who tolerate all people regardless of race, language or creed. As Chamunorwa is explaining to Bertha, Nyati fires a shot into the air. All guerillas are bewildered or confused. Chamunorwa asks why he has done that but Nyati says it was a mistake. The shot was Nyathi’s way of calling the soldiers. As the guerillas try to run away with their good for fear of the gunshot being heard, a voice off the stage calls out. The guerillas are instructed to drop their guns because they are surrounded. Immediately Chamunorwa and the guerillas are captured by the Rhodesian soldiers. Bertha flies away from the stage. Nyathi, the traitor salutes a white soldier and is patted on the back for selling out. The white soldier shout ‘, Fire the bastards. There is singing of a revolutionary song “Ropa rakadeuka” to remember the blood of fighters who shed blood and lost their lives during the liberation struggle. The scene ends on a very sad note, the capture of the protagonist Chamunorwa through the betrayal of the guerillas by the Traitor Nyathi.

The scene reveals the ugly side of war. There are casualties on both sides. There is also the theme of betrayal, seen through the work of Nyathi who betrays fellow comrades to the whites.

They are singing ‘Ropa rakadeuka’. Alex demands that they stop the singing. He tells Tawanda to pack his belongings and leave immediately. Borrowdale is the location that was inhabited by the affluent whites during the colonial era. Now it is inhabited by affluent blacks like Alex. Before he leaves, Tawanda tells Alex that he is what he is because of the sacrifice that Tawanda and fellow fighters made. He Alex is enjoying the fruits of their labour. Tawanda sadly leaves Alex’s home but Alex is touched by Tawanda’s words so he follows in hurried steps and asks where Tawanda is going.

The Rain of my blood: Act 3, Scene 3 Analysis

The scene introduction takes readers to the theatre of war again, in the bush, at a guerilla camp. Armed guerillas are patrolling the camp. The atmosphere is very tense because of the rifles being carried by the guerillas. Chiedza is part of the guerillas and is sitting close to Chamunorwa at the center.

Chamunorwa starts by narrating an ominous or frightening dream he had the previous night. Chiedza believes in dreams and that they have been saved by the dreams on numerous occasions. Chamunorwa says he dreamt about his father being mauled (bitten) by a pack of four leopards but they never killed him. Each time the leopards tried to kill him, Negomo escaped. Chiedza and Chamunorwa fail to interpret the dream. However, the dream mirrors the capture and escape of Negomo from Rhodesian soldiers. Another bad omen or sign comes-this time a black eagles flies in the sky. The eagle, according to superstition, is a harbinger or bringer of sad or bad news. The guerillas agree to relocate to a new camp.

Immediately after the eagle, a guerilla brings Father Lamont, a priest from Chegato who is of Irish descent to Chamunorwa who is the commander. Cde Mago salutes and leaves the stage. Father Lamont is a priest who is sympathetic to the guerillas. He has brought sad news about the arrest of Chamunorwa’s parents by the Centenary Police. Father Lamont also brings Chamunorwa a letter in which he Father Lamont is warned by Centenary Police to refrain from supporting guerilla activities in the district. This immediately raises the suspicion of Chamunorwa about the existence of a traitor within their camp. Someone was hobnobbing between their camp and the police camp, betraying the struggle to the enemy camp. Father Lamont also admits that traitors are part and parcel of every struggle. In a biblical allusion, Father Lamont relates the story of Judas Iscariot who betrayed Jesus Christ. He says traitors love money . Chamunorwa urges fellow comrades to be vigilant or watchful about traitors and enemy movements. Chamunorwa thanks Father Lamont for his support to the Zanla forces. Father Lamont also hands over a Bible as a gift to Chamunorwa to encourage him to fight for freedom the same way Biblical heroes such as Moses, David and Jesus Christ fought for freedom of the masses.

This scene demonstrates beyond doubt that there were some whites who genuinely supported the blacks in their quest for freedom such as the Jesuit Priest from Ireland based at Chegato. The issue of traitors or sell outs among the guerillas is also raised to show that there were other comrades who betrayed the struggle to the enemy, The Rhodesian soldiers.