Master Harold and The Boys

“Master Harold”. and the Boys was a well-written play by Athol Fugal. He used his own personal memories to bring the play to life. Athol Fugard was born in South Africa, which is where almost all of his plays take place. When he was a child, his mother managed the St. George Tea Room in Port Elizabeth, South Africa. Meanwhile, Fugard’s father was disabled, which kept him from working. He was also an alcoholic, going in and out of hospitals, and he held extremely racist opinions. When Fugard was young, he went by “Hally” and was very close to two of his family’s older black servants, Sam and Willie. When he was ten, Fugard had an argument with Sam and spit on him. He wrote in his journal and that entry eventually served as the inspiration for “Master Harold”.

Around the 1950s, there was a influential movement taking place. Apartheid was the South African race policy that separated black and white citizens and remains an awful scar on the country’s history. It began in 1948 and ended in 1994 resulting in terrible violence, persecution, and suffering. Fugard was forbidden from staging his plays in South Africa because white and black actors could not be on stage together. As a result, Fugard directed the world premiere of “Master Harold”… and the boys. It received excellent reviews. The Apartheid affected and influenced Fugal to write the play which addressed this societal issue. Hally, Sam and Willie are the main characters in the play. There are major conflicts between the men that are not revealed until the end of the play. Hally is frustrated that he will have to take care of his dad. After he gets off the phone, Hally is bitter and angry and starts to lash out against his dad. Sam warns him not talk bad about his father, so Hally starts to shout at Sam and Willie instead. He becomes increasingly aggressive, and starts commanding the men to get back to work. He reminds Sam and Willie that they have to listen to him, his dad, and any other white man in South Africa. This argument is an example of tragedy because Hally ruined his relationship with Sam through his own actions.

During the story, Sam and Hally reminisce about how they made a kite when Hally was just a little boy. Sam’s withdrawal and quietness when Hally remembers that he was left alone with the kite because Sam “had work he needed to finish” foreshadows that there may be more to the story. The reader discovers that the real reason Sam left Hally alone on the park bench with the kite was because the bench was labeled “white’s only.” As a seventeen-year old boy, Hally is at an important stage in his life. He is growing up and trying to decide where he belongs in the world and what he believes in. He possesses curiosity, and celebrates Sam’s vision of hope. Like many teenagers, though, Hally is prone to fits of anger, apathy, and stubbornness. He lashes out at some of the only people who care for him and revels in his power over the black servants. Fugard leaves Hally in an unclear position at the end of the play, but it is unknown whether he will learn from his mistakes or if he will follow in his father’s footsteps.

Works Cited

1. Fugard, A. (1982). "Master Harold". . . and the Boys. Alfred A. Knopf.
2. Fugard, A. (2011). Notebooks: 1960-1977. Theatre Communications Group.
3. Fugard, A. (2012). Cousins: A Memoir. Theatre Communications Group.
4. Fugard, A. (2014). The Captain's Tiger: A Memoir for the Stage. Theatre Communications Group.
5. Fugard, A., Kani, J., & Ntshona, W. (2017). Statements: Two Plays. Theatre Communications Group.
6. Fugard, L. (2012). Athol Fugard: His Plays, People, and Politics. Ohio University Press.
7. Gibson, C. (1994). Athol Fugard: The Politics of the South African Stage. Cambridge University Press.
8. Magaziner, D. R. (1993). Athol Fugard. Twayne Publishers.
9. Smith, M. (2015). Athol Fugard: His Plays, His Politics. University of California Press.
10. Törnqvist, E. (1995). A Dream Deferred: The Theatre of Athol Fugard. Rodopi.