Godimer's The Stranger's World explores the racial politics in South Africa through Toby Hood's space roaming in Johannesburg. Taking Johannesburg as the background, the novel reveals the composition and colonial history of the two major white races, the British and the Afrikaans. Toby's identity symbolizes the liberal British Empire, while the first person narrative of the novel reflects the author's creative intention. Starting from the perspective of spatial politics, this article divides the depiction of racial space in novels into three levels: urban-rural space, artistic space, and political space. The displacement of urban and rural spaces reflects the post imperial melancholy and crisis awareness of British colonizers; The racial negotiation in the art space reveals the bleary state of black consciousness before awakening and the unrealistic color blindness consciousness of free white people; The 'no man's land' in political space symbolizes the ineffectiveness of negative resistance against pluralistic racism. The interpretation of racial spatial politics helps to understand Gordimer's creative shift from political unconsciousness to radical stance.

British sojourn: post imperial melancholy in space roaming

This paper probes into Gordimer's depiction of racial space politics in The Stranger's World, especially the British's guest experience in South Africa and post imperial melancholy. The novel reveals the pattern of urban-rural divide by depicting spatial discipline under racist rule, where white people reside in urban centers while black and colored people are isolated in peripheral towns. This spatial binary division is reflected in the novel through the symmetrical character relationships and storyline of black and white.

Alienation caused by the overlap of different ethnic groups: Art space negotiation in Sofia Town

In depth exploration of how Sofia, a black community on the edge of Johannesburg, South Africa in the mid-20th century, became an important landmark of the Black Renaissance in the context of urbanization. Sofia town has gathered numerous black artists, including musicians, singers, painters, etc. Their artistic creations and performances not only attract white artists, but also Indian laborers scattered in Africa, forming a multi-ethnic integrated art space. The cross disciplinary function of music and art, especially the improvisational swing melodies of jazz, has become a cultural and political expression that transcends skin color barriers, reflecting the resistance consciousness of oppressed races.

The Desolation of 'No Man's Land': Implied Author's Racial and Political Anxiety

Deeply explored Nadine Gordimer's portrayal of racial spatial politics in "The World of Strangers". By analyzing the communication and conflicts among different racial groups under the policy of racial segregation in the novel, the root of racial political anxiety is revealed. The English speaking white, Boer white, African black, and Indian communities in South Africa engaged in difficult communication within the racially segregated social structure, forming a 'no man's land' where different ideologies clashed and innovated. The novel portrays the weak consciousness of freedom outside of racial segregation laws, the contradictory mentality towards white privilege, and the radical stance against passive resistance through the representation of three ethnic groups: Steven, Toby, and Anna.