What drives Benjamin to war?

Charles Dube

WE pick up our story when Benjamin is caught in the act of bullying a newcomer by a white priest. Benjamin is avenging the treatment he suffered in the previous year. Seniors dispossessed him of all the provisions he had brought to school. As per undeclared tradition Form Twos used to bully Form Ones as they would have suffered the same fate in the previous year.

It was the case with Benjamin. The newcomer fell prey to Benjamin’s desire for revenge. Benjamin went to extremes and appropriated the newcomer’s goodies. He forced the newcomer to be a “good dog” telling him to bark at the bones he had thrown to the floor. The newcomer barks as instructed and Benjamin orders him to snarl and growl like a good dog. The new comer kneels and growls and snarls at the bones. Benjamin cracks at the newcomer with a wet towel. The newcomer yells as Benjamin brutalises him.

The white priest cannot accept that. He reminds Benjamin that he was in his office for punching up a fire extinguisher the previous term. The white Priest is racist as he tells Benjamin that he is going to leave school and become one of those “terrorist thugs now murdering innocent farmers, women and children”. This was during the time of the liberation war when people were fighting Ian Smith’s racist government. Liberation fighters were referred to as terrorists by the government of the day. The white priest says: “Here we are, God-sent missionaries trying to make gentlemen out of you savages and you terrorise your own brothers. Do you know what Ian Smith’s soldiers will do to you, Benjamin?”

This reveals the white priest’s highest form of racism. He claims that they are God-sent missionaries as if God has nothing to do with black people represented by Benjamin. The white priest has the guts to call Benjamin and the like savages. This brutalises the blacks as the term savage refers to barbarians, brutes, ruffians, thugs and beasts. To the white priest blacks are just beasts far from civilisation as he tells Benjamin that they are trying to make gentlemen out of them, savages. What an insult to the blacks.

The white priest was heavily incensed by Benjamin’s untoward behaviour to the newcomer. But, did that warrant such racist comments? He adds that Ian Douglas Smith’s soldiers would send a bullet into Benjamin’s devilish skull or would be sentenced to life behind bars. Benjamin, following the white priest’s orders bends down and the priest whacks him hard, three times. Life is getting tough for Benjamin at school as the priest instructs him to report to his office first thing in the morning.

The priest had to speak to his parents about that matter. Benjamin is troubled by what he has done. After the white priest and the new comer have left he crawls on the floor mourning, he is bewildered and hears voices. He is in a confused state as he recalls hearing voices from the past. These are signs of a confused mind. He hears Clopas’s voice echoing. Remember Clopas is Benjamin’s father who was enraged when Benjamin almost cut off Peter’s leg. Peter was crippled for life.

Clopas’ voice says: “Tell the truth, Benjamin. Only the truth will set you free”. Clopas goes on in his anger: “Child of the devil!” Some of these voices are for Benjamin’s welfare. The voice he hears from the church woman says: “Open your heart to the Lord, Benjamin.” She encourages him to repent. While these could be interpreted as wise words form the church woman, the white priest’s words are racist: “You little black savage terrorist”. Such voices rupture Benjamin’s heart and he loses confidence. Benjamin hears more voices. There is a voice which calls out: “Sell-out! Sell-out!” The white priest’s voice still insists: “Terrorist! You know what Ian Douglas Smith’s soldiers will do to you? You know what happens to stubborn black boys who get expelled from school in Rhodesia?”

All these voices confuse Benjamin. He does not know what to do. But all this is in his mind. He is guilty of crippling his brother Peter for life, drawing the ire of his father Clopas who almost disowns him as he called him “child of the devil”. Clopas has become a Christian and in his view anybody who commits a crime is a child of the devil. These are the days of the liberation struggle and anybody opposing the revolution is a sell-out.

Clopas refuses to join the strike and decides to go to church and is deemed a sell-out. Benjamin is confused as he hears all these voices. Benjamin is also guilty of bullying a newcomer so he hears his voice torturing a newcomer: “Bark, newcomer! Snarl.” Another voice is heard: “Uri mwana Wevhu. Child of the soil. Everyone is a child of the soil.” The people are in a revolutionary mood hence Benjamin cannot find himself out of that. Political slogans are in the air and everybody hears them.

“Power! Heavy! Ziii . . . Ziii . . .! Down with Ian Douglas Smith and the Rhodesian Front. Black majority rule now. One man one vote.” But then, such voices were met with ridicule from Ian Smith as at one time he retorted: “Black majority rule? Not in a thousand years”. These are some of the voices Benjamin heard and left him confused.

Book review: Harvest of Thorns Classic: A play by Shimmer Chinodya. For views link with [email protected]  or sms to 0772113207.