Forbidden Love Notes

FORBIDDEN LOVE
The title: Forbidden Love

 Forbidden = not allowed; banned.
 Mixed relationships were prohibited during apartheid
 Certain families were against family members in relationships with other
races.
In this story
Reflects a situation
where family Reader can clearly
members (and see the apartheid Racist attitudes stem
society) do not government's
from fear or self doubt
approve a mix race practice of
classifying people.
relationship.
LOVE
BULLYING FEAR
THEMES
HYPOCRISY APARTHEID
Dora and Michael (Mike) love each other.
 They love each other despite the challenges of their
different racial groups during Apartheid.
 “Dora’s disgrace was on everyone’s lips. To everybody,
LOVE except to Dora herself, this was disaster. She decided that
it was release from the long months of stolen, forbidden
love. And fell a thrill in defiance. “ page 15
 She also shows her commitment to Michael by caring for
him after he was assaulted by Davie’s group. “I’m with you in
this to the end.” Dora remains defiant and does not care
that others know she is in love with Mike. (page 15)
Davie loves Salome but doesn’t want to accept responsibility for the
child.
Salome loves Davie, she doesn’t tell that he is the father of the
child.
Page 12 “A woman in love is operating at the lowest level of intellect”
The theme of fear is woven throughout the story.
 Dora’s family lives their life in fear, as they feel that

they do not want to have any involvement with black
people.
 Their peers’ actions and beliefs that make them think
that black South Africans are beneath them or are
less human…
 p. 11 Michael tells Dora that “…everybody’s trouble is that he is afraid.” Mr
Van Vuuren and Dora’s father are afraid their old world is turning over and
they will now have to fight for things.
 Louisa is afraid politics may tear her away from her family, because she had a
darker complexion. (p. 11)
 Davie is afraid to accept responsibility for his child and admit his love for
Salome. “There’s one letter at home, the one in which your son begged me not
to expose him.
➢ Davie is the father of Salome’s child, but he is too
afraid to admit his love for Salome. (p. 17)
➢ Davie is also the one who organises the beating up of
Michael (Mike) because he is in love with Dora,
➢ Ironically Davie has had a relationship with Salome in which a
child was conceived.
➢ Despite this Davie still considers it appropriate to

beat Mike up due to him having a relationship with
Dora.
➢ Davie calls Michael names, meanwhile --- not only did

he have relationship with a black girl, he has a baby
with a black girl.
➢ We also have:
➢ Meneer Carelse was “sanctimonius” (p. 14) when telling the principal that
Dora’s family should know about her relationship with Mike.
➢ BUT he is the one that made sure that “the whole world came to know of it”,
➢ to spite her because she rejected his marriage

proposal.
BULLYING
❖ Bullying had become part of the school tradition.

“They were teasing each other in the age-old school
tradition.”(p. 13)
❖ At the bioscope, Michael, being black, is beaten up
by a group of boys under the leadership of Davie,
because he loves Davie’s sister (who is coloured)
Setting (the when and the where)

WHEN – during apartheid
WHERE - Western townships of Johannesburg, Sophiatown; (the “natives”)
- Noordgesig area. (the coloureds)

The story is told from an omniscient narrator’s point of view of his personal
experience with apartheid laws.
Structure and plot development:

Exposition - “Dora Randolph was now running in the dark … ’not here, darling,
some car-lights may strike upon us.’ He led her higher up the road into the tall
grass ” page 10
The narrator introduces us to the story through two lovers from different
racial backgrounds who have to hide in ’tall grass’ due to prohibitions on mixed
relationships.
Rising action – the fight
Dora’s brother, Davie, with a few of his coloured friends go out looking for
Michael. They meet him at the Rhythmic Cinema and beat him. Dora tries to
stop them but they are determined to beat him. The other African boys run
away and Michael and Dora are left by themselves with the angry crowd of
coloured boys.
Climax - Salome exposes the truth that Davie, Dora’s brother, is the
father of her child..
After learning about the story of Michael’s beating by Davie and his friends,
She shows the family evidence in the form of love letters that Davie has
written to her.
Both families are shocked.
Resolution - Michael and Dora are no longer living under fear

anymore.
• There is a feeling that the rivalry and the fighting has subsided forever.
Narrator’s point of view
▪ The story is narrated in the third person, by an unnamed narrator.
▪ The narrator tells a story using a bird’s eye/ omniscient view.
▪ This means that the narrator knows everything about the actions,
attitude, secrets and even thoughts of all characters.
▪ The narrator helps us to understand how fear and shame are relentlessly
part of a community that seeks to prove that black people are beneath
them in all areas of their being.
Style
• An easy flowing literary style has been used throughout the story.
• This is maybe, due to the fact that the narrator wants to demonstrate
apartheid norms as lived by different racial groups in the townships.
• This narrative explores deeply into the practices of the apartheid system
and its cruel tendencies.
Tone and mood

TONE
Secretive:
➢ there are secrets not told by Salome about the identity of
her child’s father.
Tension:
➢ the community lives in a tense or rather fearful environment
whereby black people are treated as inferior to coloureds. and
this separated them most of the time.
➢ The fact that Dora and Mike having to hide in the bushes for
them to be together and being fearful of what the people in
the community will say, is gross.
MOOD
→ Shame
→ Hopelessness
→ Fearful
→ Optimistic

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FORBIDDEN LOVE

The title: Forbidden Love

The theme of fear is woven throughout the story.

 Dora’s family lives their life in fear, as they feel that

➢ Despite this Davie still considers it appropriate to

➢ Davie calls Michael names, meanwhile --- not only did

➢ to spite her because she rejected his marriage

❖ Bullying had become part of the school tradition.

Setting (the when and the where)

WHERE - Western townships of Johannesburg, Sophiatown; (the “natives”)

- Noordgesig area. (the coloureds)

Structure and plot development:

Rising action – the fight

Both families are shocked.

Resolution - Michael and Dora are no longer living under fear

Tone and mood

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