54 Study Guide Master Harold and the Boys  study guide During most of the last four decades, Athol Fugard has dedicated his art to fighting apartheid, remarkably keeping together an all-black theater troupe in extremely difficult conditions and appearing in many of his own plays as often unsympathetic white characters. Many of his plays were banned in his homeland, and were premiered instead at the Yale Repertory Theatre. He is generally considered the finest South African playwright, and his works have been widely performed abroad. Of all his plays, none is more personal than "Master Harold" . . . and the Boys; because it relates a boyhood incident which involved himself and which haunted him for years until he tried to atone by writing this play in 1982. In 1950, Fugard was 17. It was in these years that apartheid began (starting in 1948). The play has been criticized for not overtly acknowledging this fact, yet awareness of increasing racial tension may lurk in the background. If we see the play as reflecting the world as viewed by "Master Harold," he may not have absorbed the impact of these changes. 1 .Note the distinctly unromantic words to the song Willie sings at the beginning. Boet means "brother" or "comrade." 2. Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers were the most famous dancing team in Hollywood. Why do you think Willie has to understand romance through their image? 3. Sarah Vaughan was a great American jazz singer, some say the greatest ever. "Struesgod"="It's true as God" or "I swear by God it's true." "Wellfed"="Welfare." 4. Count Basie: leader of the one of the most famous jazz bands ever, very popular with dancers. 5. Watch Hally's relationship with Sam and Willie. How friendly is he with them? Does he treat them as an equal? Do they treat him as an equal? Are there tensions between them? 6. "Bum"=rear end 7. What is Hally's reaction to learning about how black prisoners are beaten? Does he see it as a racial issue?8. "Naught"=zero. 8.Why is it ironic that Hally has hidden Darwin in the Theology section of the library? 9.How does Hally react to Sam's choice of Abraham Lincoln as a hero? Note the strong influence of America on this culture. 10. Hally's knowledge of Tolstoy is somewhat scrambled. He wrote War and Peace 1865-1869, long before he abandoned literature to become a full-time social reformer, working in common with the serfs on his estate. War and Peace is notoriously one of the longest novels in the Western canon. 11.Why does Sam know about so many of the great figures of history? 12."Donkey's years," a common English cliché for "many years," punning on "donkey's ears." 13. Characterize Hally's relationship to Sam and Willie when he was younger. 14.  The Nazis used Joe Louis' defeat at the hands of the German Max Schmeling in 1936 as a demonstration of the superiority of the white race. However, when Louis defeated him in one round in 1938 to become heavyweight boxing champion of the world, the event was celebrated across America, especially by American blacks, who felt his victory was not only a blow against fascism but against American racism. Clearly he became an idol in South Africa as well. It is not clear whether it is Willie's or Fugard's memory that is at fault in remembering a longer fight. 15. What does the kite story tell us about Hally? Try to distinguish between what must be going through the minds of the men and what is going on inside Hally throughout this scene. 16. Note how Hally compares a little boy with a crippled father to a white boy with a black man. 17. What do we learn about Hally's father? 18.How does Hally change in his attitude toward the men after the phone call? 19.Note how Hally goes from bad to worse in his treatment of Sam and Willie during the following scenes. Why is he behaving so badly? What does his behavior reveal about him? What are the cruelest things he says? 20. Why does Hally realize "he has to be careful?" 21.Is Hally's choice of an essay topic a compliment or an insult to the blacks? 22. How does Sam turn the dance contest into a metaphor for their lives? 23."Kip and a toss in your old Uncle Ned;" "snack and drink in your bed." Note that the comics are for Hally's dad. 24. What does Sam mean by saying "If you make me say it once, I'll never call you anything else again." 25. In many cultures "mooning" is an extreme insult, a gesture of contempt. What is Sam's diagnosis of what's wrong with Hally? 26. Earlier Hally told Sam that he'd failed in educating him. Note how Sam more seriously says the same of his attempt to educate Hally. 27. What was it that Sam tried to prevent? What is the significance of the story of the bench? How does Sam behave toward Hally after his long speech to the boy? 28. Note how Sam's example influences Willie. What do you think is the significance of the song at the end of the play? 29 .This play has been accused in some quarters of personalizing racism and avoiding confrontation of its systemic, societal qualities. What do you think of this argument? What do you think is the significance of the play's title?