Chapter One
¬ We are given a detailed description of the township in which the story is set,
and it closely resembles the once bustling and vibrant suburb of Sophiatown.
¬ The members of the gang are gathered in Tsotsi’s room in a Friday afternoon
listening to Boston’s stories and drinking tea.
¬ Although Tsotsi was the youngest, he was their leader because of his ability
to devise their plans and was good at strategising.
¬ Die Aap and Butcher were to very strong men but not too bright and Boston
was the only intellectual amongst them.
¬ Gumboot Dlamini is their first victim, and he is a migrant worker who left his
home in the rural area to work in the mines to provide income for his family.
¬ Just a week away from returning home, Tsotsi marked him off as their victim
and the poor man unfortunately lost his life due to 3 fatal mistakes.
¬ Butcher lived up to his name by killing him with precision, using a bicycle
spoke, while Die Aap held Gumboot. He died at the hands of the ruthless
gang and the only person who showed any remorse was Boston.
Chapter Two
¬ Boston is upset with the guys because they were laughing at him for getting
physically ill after they killed Gumboot.
¬ They are in Soekie’s tavern drinking like they normally did after a job.
¬ Soekie is a product of a mixed relationship and was raised in the township by
people who had been paid off by her wealthy mother who came from the
white suburb. She has an identity crisis because she does not know her
birthday. The author is highlighting the social injustices of the Apartheid Era
here.
¬ Boston starts asking Tsotsi personal questions even though he was warned,
but because he was so drunk he forgot, and this resulted in disaster. Tsotsi
did not tolerate any questions of a personal nature, because he had forgotten
about his past deliberately and did not want to remember.
¬ Die Aap and Butcher end up sexually assaulting a woman from the tavern
because of the effects of drugs and alcohol.
¬ Tsotsi beats Boston to a pulp and would have killed him if Soekie, Die Aap
and Butcher had not intervened.
Chapter Three
¬ Tsotsi left Soekie’s tavern after beating Boston unconscious and walked away
without turning back.
¬ All the time Boston’s words cut into his very being and he could not shrug it
off.
¬ He starts running to block off the words that really upset him and he ran so far
out of the township, the no-man’s land and into the white suburb, where he
hid behind some blue gum trees.
¬ The white suburb is a stark contrast to the township with its pristine conditions
and police cars that patrolled it.
¬ We are given a detailed description of the township in which the story is set,
and it closely resembles the once bustling and vibrant suburb of Sophiatown.
¬ The members of the gang are gathered in Tsotsi’s room in a Friday afternoon
listening to Boston’s stories and drinking tea.
¬ Although Tsotsi was the youngest, he was their leader because of his ability
to devise their plans and was good at strategising.
¬ Die Aap and Butcher were to very strong men but not too bright and Boston
was the only intellectual amongst them.
¬ Gumboot Dlamini is their first victim, and he is a migrant worker who left his
home in the rural area to work in the mines to provide income for his family.
¬ Just a week away from returning home, Tsotsi marked him off as their victim
and the poor man unfortunately lost his life due to 3 fatal mistakes.
¬ Butcher lived up to his name by killing him with precision, using a bicycle
spoke, while Die Aap held Gumboot. He died at the hands of the ruthless
gang and the only person who showed any remorse was Boston.
Chapter Two
¬ Boston is upset with the guys because they were laughing at him for getting
physically ill after they killed Gumboot.
¬ They are in Soekie’s tavern drinking like they normally did after a job.
¬ Soekie is a product of a mixed relationship and was raised in the township by
people who had been paid off by her wealthy mother who came from the
white suburb. She has an identity crisis because she does not know her
birthday. The author is highlighting the social injustices of the Apartheid Era
here.
¬ Boston starts asking Tsotsi personal questions even though he was warned,
but because he was so drunk he forgot, and this resulted in disaster. Tsotsi
did not tolerate any questions of a personal nature, because he had forgotten
about his past deliberately and did not want to remember.
¬ Die Aap and Butcher end up sexually assaulting a woman from the tavern
because of the effects of drugs and alcohol.
¬ Tsotsi beats Boston to a pulp and would have killed him if Soekie, Die Aap
and Butcher had not intervened.
Chapter Three
¬ Tsotsi left Soekie’s tavern after beating Boston unconscious and walked away
without turning back.
¬ All the time Boston’s words cut into his very being and he could not shrug it
off.
¬ He starts running to block off the words that really upset him and he ran so far
out of the township, the no-man’s land and into the white suburb, where he
hid behind some blue gum trees.
¬ The white suburb is a stark contrast to the township with its pristine conditions
and police cars that patrolled it.
