July's People

The day after the pork feast, July tries to calm his mhani (mother) about the Smaleses’ presence in her hut, promising that if need be, he’ll build her a new house. However, she insists that “white people bring trouble” (82). July tells her that he can evict them whenever he wants. His claim of authority over them provokes his wife to ask about his duties back there (like who gave him his orders and whether he cooked for the white people). She knows little about his 15 years in Johannesburg; the fatalism stemming from her long loneliness has made her hesitant to find out. July tells her that the Smaleses had a Xosa servant named Nomvula (or Nora), who did the cooking. Suspiciously, his wife asks if she had a man, and July says that a Zulu man slept with her. To cover her relief at hearing this, she asks him what became of the cook. July says that he doesn’t know, but his voice trails off, as if he’s thinking of something (or someone) else.