Nadine Gordimer\'s the Moment Before

Nadine Gordimer's The Moment Before The Gun Went Off

Nadine Gordimer's short story "The Moment Before the Gun Went Off"

Nadine Gordimer's short story "The Moment Before the Gun Went Off" chronicles the accidental death of a young black man in apartheid-era South Africa. The death is apparently an accident: the white owner of a large estate, Marais Van der Vyver is driving in his car with a loaded pistol on the dashboard, and the gun accidently fires, killing his twenty-year-old field hand Lucas. The story is told in the third-person limited point-of-view of the white Afrikaner, who feels sadness at the death of the black man (or 'boy' as he calls him) but is unable to comprehend the limits of his perspective and how his way of life is dependant upon the exploitation of other people.

The story depicts the complex nature of the relationships between black and white people in South Africa and the oppressive mindset of Afrikaners. The narrator is not an inhumanly cruel person. Van der Vyer feels terrible that the young man is dead but he cannot understand that his relationship with the 'boy' would not exist were it not for apartheid. When the black people who knew the young man come to the funeral, he does not see the tragic nature of the fact that these people have been shackled to the land for their entire lives, and have no hope of bettering themselves because of apartheid. He views them with prejudice and distain.

The author's point is conveyed primarily through the use of point-of-view. There is a distinct contrast between Gordimer's real view of race relations in South Africa and Van der Vyer's limited point-of-view. After the shooting, the narrative voice dwells on how Americans will see this crime. He views opponents of apartheid with great hostility, and rages how they do not understand 'the truth.' The truth for the narrator is that he cared for the young man, and regarded him as a dear friend, even though he would not invite him into the house to eat or drink. While it is true that this sentiment may not be acknowledged in the rhetoric of the opponents of apartheid, it is equally true that the man does not see this 'boy' as his social equal. When he sees the boy's mother he can only think of how 'they' (blacks) have children at a younger age than whites and how 'they' spend too much money on 'their' funerals (without considering why and blacks are so poor in South Africa in the first place).

Van der Vyer is repulsed by the idea of living in close proximity to blacks, as is reflected in Gordimer's physical description of his home. He is angered by the calls for freedom of blacks such as Nelson Mandela, protesting in the townships. He is also angry at himself that his accident has given anti-apartheid activists more 'ammunition' in the fight to end state-imposed segregation. He feels sad for Lucas, but it does not occur to him that Lucas may have wanted more in life than merely serving Van der Vyer. Lucas' life is a tragedy, not simply because it has ended but because it never really began, due to the fact he was denied an appropriate education and opportunities.

It is interesting that the story is entitled "The Moment Before the Gun Went Off:" surely the story is about what occurs afterwards, the reader might initially suspect. However, Gordimer's point is that the murder occurs before the accidental gunshot. The gunshot may be an accident, but the system of oppression is not. The shocking part of the story, the gunshot for the reader, is how the advocate of apartheid Van der Vyer sees Lucas: as his son. He feels affection for this young man he spent so much time with in his daily business, more so than his cold wife. He sees Lucas as separate from the blacks who call for equality, so he can love him.