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Chapter 66
Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in Long Walk to Freedom, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Racism and Division
Negotiation, Democracy, and Progress
Nonviolent Protest vs. Violent Protest
The Value of Optimism
Summary
Analysis
Mandela gets his second prison visit from Winnie in 1966, during the hunger strike. Police have been harassing her, even raiding her home while she was getting dressed. They talk about family and reference ANC matters in code. Not long after, police arrest Winnie, and she spends four days in jail and loses her job. The government tries to strip Mandela of his law accreditation, but he makes plans to defend himself and eventually the government decides it’s easier to just quietly drop the matter. The warders at the lime quarry become laxer, allowing the prisoners to talk among themselves. They debate a variety of topics, such as the future of the ANC and whether or not tigers exist in Africa.
The fact that police continue to harass Winnie in her home even after Mandela is in prison shows how the government is attempting to control every aspect of Mandela’s life, even his family. Mandela’s law practice was a point of pride for him earlier in life (since he was perhaps the first Black man in the country to open his own law firm) and so holding onto his accreditation is not just strategic for him but also of symbolic importance. His strategy of overcoming the government by essentially just outwaiting them shows the value of being patient.
Themes
