RJ #2: Nadine Gordimer – Town and Country Lovers

Gordimer’s story utilizes characters from divergent backgrounds to induce intense

feelings of empathy and understanding. Her story “Town and Country Lovers” finds us deeply
entrenched in the interracial relationship of Dr. Franz-Josef von Leinsdorf and the “coloured”
girl. The story brings to light the complicated relationship of a young girl and an experienced
man. It makes the reader question whether their relationship is based on love or power, or maybe
a combination of intertwined factors. The goal of Gordimer is to question what love is, and to
question what is expected and even permitted of certain individuals and groups of people. The
author has created a beautifully intricate story of growth between people of conflicting
backgrounds.
The story’s central theme created through juxtaposition is based on the support of
interracial relationships. Gordimer suggests that South African apartheid is obstruction to
genuine affection. This concern for legal impositions is displayed when Leinsdorf says he
“accepted social distinctions between people but didn’t think they should be legally imposed” (p.
88). Although Leinsdorf is relatively progressive for a man of relative privilege, he recognizes
the harms legality can conjure. For his relationship with the cashier did not end in mutual
agreement rather it ended through a society that feared the idea of interracial relationships.
Interracial relationships were a threat to a power dynamic that had gripped South Africa, it
threatened the status quo and the purity of whiteness. Although the relationship between
Leinsdorf and the girl is brought to life through everyday companionship, it calls into question
the legitimacy of their relationship given their status in society.
The narration of the story already sheds light onto who contains power and status, as the
geologist is referred to by his full and last name, whilst the cashier is primarily referred to as girl
or through her pronouns. Leinsdorf chose to involve himself with this girl due to the convenience
it provides him. She is able to do his shopping, clean, cook, act as hidden companion, and be a
sexual object for his desire. He is able to take what he desires even when there is lack of consent
as “[h]e made his way into her body without speaking; she made him welcome without a word”
(p. 85). Gordimer alludes that there is a mutual understanding between the two, there is a
justification for his actions. In a country based on hierarchy the girl knows she is not
his equal, and thus performs these duties to find fulfilment within herself, in
hopes of being his wife.
Lastly, both the girl and Leinsdorf made a conscious decision to break the social and legal
rules of a country that strictly forbids interracial relationships. Gordimer revealed that no matter
where they are, or how careful they may be, the social stigma and legality of their relationship
could not be avoided. The consequences eventually catch them and Leinsdorf being a white male
foreigner is subjected to less scrutiny in the courts and society than the mixed cashier girl.
Leinsdorf could afford his legal fees and was not questioned in the Sunday paper, whereas the
girl was interviewed and subjected to a physical examination to find evidence. Gordimer’s story
criticizes the South African government and society during its apartheid era. Her demonstrating
the legal consequences of the lovers suggests that personal relationships are not a concern of
government policy, and she be kept as they are, personal.

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