Book Review: The Road to Mecca by Athol Fugard
08:20:00
Before I begin, I must say that having
access to your laptop after one whole week feels like a unique kind of
blessing! Since I am mostly free nowadays, I have been doing extended
‘sleepovers’ with the cousins and that is why my poor blog ends up suffering.
Coming back to today’s post, I was recommended
this one by my cousin; it is actually a part of his literature course at
school. “The Road to Mecca” is a script
of a small play written by South African playwright Athol Fugard and has
nothing to do with Mecca or Islam.
To avoid any spoilers, I am going to
describe the book as briefly as possible. The setting of the story is a village
in Karoo, South Africa, in the home of Helen, an old woman in her seventies. The
play revolves around Helen and her strong friendship with Elsa, a young
schoolteacher in Cape Town, who has come to visit her for a day to discuss some
rather pertinent matters at hand. Divided into two acts, act two of the play
introduces a third character, Pastor Marius.
Brief Summary:
In the years following the demise of her
husband, Helen created a splendid and intricate work of art out of her house
and garden. She calls it her “Mecca”. The garden filled with statues of
different creatures and her house’s walls lined with coloured glass and glitter
that reflect the light in a way that steers everything to the East and in Helen’s
words, directs on to the road to Mecca are a complex yet beautiful depiction of
the elderly woman’s dreams and battle with depression. Unfortunately, the
townspeople don’t see Helen’s Mecca like that and are convinced that she
requires help. Pastor Marius, who has
always had Helen’s best interest in mind, especially after she was widowed,
tries to convince her to move to an old age home while Elsa is furious at Helen
for even considering the prospect and tries to encourage her to continue
pursuing her art to express her freedom and rights.
Synopsis:
Various themes are seen in this play:
religion (the strong Christian community of the village sees Helen’s love for
life size sculptures as idolatory), racial differences (between the English and
the Afrikaners), the quest for freedom and individual rights and the bond
between two individuals of different ages hence different mindsets.
The protagonist’s character is inspired by the
real life story of Helen Martins who’s “Owl House” is now a museum in South
Africa.
Recommendation and Rating:
I would recommend this to anyone who is
looking for a quick yet profound read covering the above mentioned themes. I give
the book 3.5 stars (since I think it would have been a better experience watching
the play rather than just reading the script).
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