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Chapter 71
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
Near the end of 1970, a new commanding officer named Colonel Piet Badenhorst comes to the island, and he is particularly brutal. He calls Mandela out at the quarry, provoking him by insulting his mother. When Mandela responds, Badenhorst drops several prisoners’ classification level down from C to D.
Although Mandela’s time in prison is generally one of slow progress, the arrival of Colonel Badenhorst is a reminder of how quickly progress can reverse, as quantified by Badenhorst’s decision to drop several prisoners down a letter grade.
Themes
