The Story of an African Farm

Waldo wanders out with his ostrich herd, and Em approaches. She is now 16, and she has put on weight, making her look older. She tells Waldo that an Englishman has come to the farm to work the half that Tant’ Sannie leased to him. Lyndall has been away at school but will be coming home soon, and Em is eager to see her.

Em takes her leave, and Waldo introduces himself to another stranger—not the Englishman—who has ridden up on a horse. The man begins to interrogate Waldo about his situation and whether he likes life on the farm. The discussion quickly turns to theological concerns: The man does not believe in God and wonders about Waldo’s beliefs. Waldo has been carving a post full of symbols to put on his father’s grave. While the stranger offers to pay him for it, Waldo will not sell it.

Instead, the stranger tells him a story about what he sees in Waldo’s crude carving. It involves a young man who seeks Truth, represented by a beautiful bird with silver feathers. An old man calling himself Wisdom tells the youth that it will take all of his life to track down this bird and that he will be distracted by lies. Indeed, the youth captures other birds—Immortality and Reward After Death among them—but they are not Truth. He is also briefly diverted by Human Nature and Excess, but he commits himself more devotedly to his search for Truth. At last, the youth becomes old; he is at the end of his life. He has spent all of his years looking for Truth. At the moment of his death, a single feather falls into the man’s hand.

The stranger tells Waldo that his carving contains all of that existential desire even if it lacks beauty. He tells Waldo that the boy is fortunate to have grown up on this farm. As the stranger readies to leave, he gives Waldo a book. Waldo, in turn, wraps his carved post in a handkerchief and ties it to the man’s saddlebags.

The Englishman, Gregory Rose, writes a letter to his sister saying that he is homesick and lovesick. He has fallen passionately in love with Em, and he implies that if she rejects him, he will have no choice but suicide.

After finishing the letter, Gregory approaches Em, proclaiming his love for her and demanding her devotion in return. He insists that she profess love only for him. She hesitates—she loves Waldo and Lyndall too—but ultimately acquiesces. Em has loved many people in her short life, but none have returned that feeling in such abundance. She vows that she will be obedient to him, and they become engaged. Tant’ Sannie approves. Em is eager for Gregory to meet Lyndall. She knows that he will think her as beautiful as a queen. She looks through the drawer holding her wedding items—linens and aprons, the ring, and a veil—every evening.

Em believes that Lyndall looks like a delicate princess upon her arrival. She has returned after four years away at school. The experience has left her jaded; a finishing school for girls is not the kind of education she sought. While Em is eager for Lyndall to like Gregory, Lyndall is noncommittal. She herself does not wish to get married or have children, she tells Em.

Lyndall instead seeks out Waldo, who tells her that she has changed. She talks to him about her years away and her unhappiness. She feels that she has learned about the world from her experience rather than her school. She asks Waldo if he would ever want to be a woman; when he says no, she laughs. If she could find a man who would wish to be a woman, she says, she would marry him. She talks about how women are trained to serve men and how this does not allow them independence. She believes that men and women are not so different; it is only society that demands that they become so. She notes that once their beauty fades, women are ignored.

Lyndall claims, however, that women ultimately have power over men because men are their sole object of concern. Men are afraid to allow women to be independent, she thinks, because then women would no longer cater to them. Lyndall points out that women are the ones who bear and raise children, yet they receive no education that would help them fulfill the latter responsibility. Lyndall claims that she will not participate in this social inequality (i.e., marriage) until love is separated from economic necessity. However, the political talk makes her weary; she realizes that she herself cannot change such an entrenched system.

Waldo gives her a wooden box carved with flowers. She comments that he is still seeking the meaning of life, while she looks for justice. They watch Gregory Rose pass by on his horse. Lyndall observes that he is fit to fill a woman’s social role, and Waldo says that he will not remain on the farm with Gregory in charge. Lyndall says that the world will disappoint Waldo. Waldo asks why she talks to him; she replies that Waldo is different from other people. Lyndall asks Waldo to teach her to drive the wagon. She goes back to the house with Waldo’s dog, Doss, following her.

Tant’ Sannie is courted by a younger widower, Little Piet Vander Walt. They “sit up” together, which is the traditional manner of courting: They stay up all night talking and discussing terms for the marriage. Vander Walt claims that he had a dream telling him to “marry a fat woman” (204), so he has come to Tant’ Sannie. They will marry before the sheep need shearing.

Gregory pens another letter to his sister, dismissing Lyndall for her arrogance. He also looks down upon the Boers and their traditions; Tant’ Sannie’s wedding is soon, and he dreads the uncouth nature of the all-night parties. He continues to criticize Lyndall for her independence and aloofness. He claims that any man worth his name would be able to make her obey.

Gregory and Em ride to the wedding as Lyndall and Waldo take the wagon. On the way, Lyndall talks about not wanting the responsibility of children, though Waldo thinks that the experience would be profound. Lyndall reminds him of the material responsibilities; she herself was left an orphan when her father died of consumption (tuberculosis) and her mother abandoned her. She tells Waldo that she loves him for listening to her.

The wedding itself is a frenetic affair, with dancing and eating all through the night. Later, Lyndall finds Waldo out at the wagon. She dreams about lives other than hers as she looks up at the stars. She tells Waldo that she wishes she could help him figure out what he must do with his life. She insists that he must cherish it. Waldo listens to her, but he does not always understand what she says. She thinks that the stars are mocking them.

When she is ready to leave the party, Gregory asks to drive her home. Waldo and Em follow later in the wagon. Em tells Waldo that she wishes she could have stayed a child her whole life.

Waldo is packing to leave, and Em tells him not to worry about leaving whatever he does not want to take; he will return, after all. He, however, is not so sure. Em walks back to the house but pauses by the window. She sees Gregory and Lyndall sitting at the table. Lyndall asks Gregory to get her some water, so he does. That evening, Em tells Gregory that she thinks they should break off their engagement. He halfheartedly protests but then acquiesces to her wishes, saying that if she does not love him, then they will not be married.

Waldo leaves the next morning, and Lyndall asks him to write. He leaves Doss, his dog, behind for her.