Nelson Mandela: A long Walk
to Freedom
Key points for Grade 10, English
Prepared by Mehbob
Keypoints:-
1. Nelson Mandela's full name is Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela.
2. "Apartheid" is defined as a political system that separates people according to
their race.
3. South Africa is identified as the country with apartheid until very recently.
4. Nelson Mandela and the African National Congress (ANC) fought against
apartheid.
5. Mandela spent thirty years in prison for his activism.
6. Democratic elections were held in South Africa in 1994.
7. Mandela became the first black President of a new nation (South Africa).
8. The extract is from Mandela’s autobiography, "Long Walk to Freedom."
9. The extract discusses the historic inauguration of Nelson Mandela as President.
10.Nelson Mandela became South Africa’s first black President after over three
centuries of white rule.
11.The ANC party, led by Mandela, won 252 out of 400 seats in the first democratic
elections in South Africa’s history.
12. The inauguration ceremony was held at the Union Buildings amphitheatre in
Pretoria.
13.The event was attended by politicians and dignitaries from over 140 countries
worldwide.
14.Mandela, in his address, stated: “Never, never again will this beautiful land
experience the oppression of one by another.”
15.Jubilant scenes occurred on the streets of Pretoria after the ceremony, with
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blacks, whites, and coloureds celebrating together.
16.Over 100,000 South African men, women, and children of all races sang and
danced with joy.
17.Tenth May dawned bright and clear, early morning.
18.The past few days had been pleasant and clear.
19.Dignitaries and world leaders were coming to pay their respects before the
inauguration.
20.The inauguration would be the largest gathering of international leaders on South
African soil.
21.The ceremonies took place in the lovely sandstone amphitheatre formed by the
Union Buildings in Pretoria.
22.For decades, this had been the seat of white supremacy.
23.Now it was the site of a rainbow gathering of different colours and nations for the
installation of South Africa’s first democratic, non-racial government.
24.On that lovely autumn day, I was accompanied by my daughter Zenani.
25.On the podium, Mr de Klerk was first sworn in as second President.
26.Thabo Mbeki was sworn in as first deputy president.
27.The speaker pledged to uphold the Constitution and devote himself to the
Republic and its people.
28.The speaker addressed assembled guests and the watching world.
29.The speaker speaks of a newborn liberty out of an extraordinary human disaster.
30.He said that humanity must be born of a society of which all will be proud.
31.They were outlaws, but have become hosts to nations.
32.They thank all distinguished international guests.
33.They have taken possession with the people of their country of what is, after all,
a common victory for justice and human dignity.
34.They have achieved their political emancipation.
35.They pledge to liberate all people from continuing bondage of poverty,
deprivation, suffering, gender and other discrimination.
36.Never shall the beautiful land experience the oppression of one by another.
37.The sun shall never set on so glorious a human achievement.
38.Let freedom reign, God bless Africa!
39.A spectacular array of jets and troop carriers roared in formation over the Union
Buildings.
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40.It was a display of pinpoint precision and military force.
41.It was a demonstration of the military's loyalty to democracy.
42.Generals of the South African defense force and police saluted and pledged their
loyalty.
43.He was not unmindful of the fact that not so many years before they would not
have saluted but arrested him.
44.A chevron of Impala jets left a smoke trail of the black, red, green, blue, and gold
of the new South African flag.
45.The day was symbolized by playing two national anthems.
46.Whites sang 'Nkosi Sikelel -iAfrika' and blacks singing 'Die Stem', the old anthem
of the Republic.
47.Neither group knew the lyrics of the anthem they once despised.
48.They would soon know the words by heart.
49.The inauguration was overwhelming with a sense of history.
50.In the first decade of the twentieth century, a few years after the bitter Anglo-Boer
war the white-skinned peoples of South Africa patched up their differences and
erected a system of racial domination against the dark-skinned peoples of their
own land.
51.The structure formed the basis of one of the harshest, most inhumane societies
the world has ever known.
52.Now, in the last decade of the twentieth century, and his own eighth decade as a
man, that system had been overturned forever and replaced by one that
recognised the rights and freedoms of all peoples, regardless of the colour of
their skin.
53.The day had come about through the unimaginable sacrifices of thousands of
people.
54.That day, he was simply the sum of all those African patriots who had gone
before him.
55.He was pained that he was not able to thank them.
56.They were not able to see what their sacrifices had wrought.
57.The policy of apartheid created a deep and lasting wound in the country.
58.All will spend many years recovering from that profound hurt.
59.The decades of oppression and brutality had produced Oliver Tambos, the Walter
Sisulus, the Chief Luthulis, the Yusuf Dadoos, the Bram Fischers, the Robert
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Sobukwes of their time.
60.Courage, wisdom, and generosity may never be known again.
61.Perhaps it requires such depths of oppression to create such heights of
character.
62.The country is rich in minerals and gems that lie beneath its soil, but the greatest
wealth is its people.
63.It is from these comrades that he learned the meaning of courage.
64.Again and again, he has seen men and women risk and give their lives for an
idea.
65.He has seen men stand up to attacks and torture without breaking, showing
strength and resilience.
66.That courage was not the absence of fear, but the triumph over it.
67.The brave man is not he who does not feel afraid, but he who conquers that fear.
68.No one is born hating another person because of the colour of his skin, or his
background, or his religion.
69.People must learn to hate, and if they can learn to hate, they can be taught to
love.
70.Love comes more naturally to the human heart than its opposite.
71.Even in the grimmest times in prison, when his comrades and he were pushed to
our limits, he would see a glimmer of humanity in one of the guards.
72.Man's goodness is a flame that can be hidden but never distinguished.
73.Every man has two obligations: obligations to his family, to his parents, to his wife
and children; and he has an obligation to his people, his country, in a civil and
human society.
74.Each man is able to fulfill those obligations according to his own inclinations and
abilities.
75.In a country like South Africa, it was almost impossible for a man of his birth and
colour to fulfill both of those obligations.
76.In South Africa, a man was isolated.
77.He was inevitably torn from his family and his home and was forced to live a life
apart, a twilight existence of secrecy and rebellion.
78.He did not in the beginning choose to place my people above my family, but in
attempting to serve his people, he was prevented from fulfilling his obligations as
a son, a brother, a father and a husband.
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79.He was born free in every way that he could know.
80.He was free to run in the fields near his mother's hut, free to swim in the clear
stream that ran through his village, free to roast mealies under the stars and ride
the broad backs of slow-moving bulls.
81.As long as he obeyed my father and abided by the customs of my tribe, he was
not troubled by the laws of man or God
82.He began to learn that his boyhood freedom was an illusion.
83.He discovered that his freedom had already been taken from him.
84.He wanted freedom only for himself, the transitory freedoms of being able to stay
out at night, read what he pleased and go where he chose
85.He yearned for the basic and honourable freedoms of achieving my potential, of
earning my keep, of marrying and having a family - the freedom not to be
obstructed in a lawful life.
86.He saw that not only was he not free, but his brothers and sisters were not free.
87.He saw that it was not just his freedom that was curtailed, but the freedom of
everyone who looked like him.
88.That is when he joined the African National Congress, and that is when the
hunger for his own freedom became the greater hunger for the freedom of my
people.
89.It was this desire for the freedom of my people to live their lives with dignity and
self-respect that animated his life, that transformed a frightened young man into a
bold one, that drove a law-abiding attorney to become a criminal, that turned a
family-loving husband into a man without a home, that forced a life-loving man to
live like a monk.
90.He is no more virtuous or self-sacrificing than the next man, but he found that he
could not even enjoy the poor and limited freedoms he was allowed when he
knew my people were not free.
91.Freedom is indivisible; the chains on anyone of my people were the chains on all
of them, the chains on all of my people were the chains on me.
92.He knew that the oppressor must be liberated just as surely as the oppressed.
93.A man who takes away another man's freedom is a prisoner of hatred; he is
locked behind the bars of prejudice and narrow-mindedness.
94.He is not truly free if he is taking away someone else's freedom, just as surely as
he is not free when my freedom is taken from me.
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95.The oppressed and the oppressor alike are robbed of their humanity.
96.Dawned- (of a day) began
97.Pleasantly- giving a sense of happy satisfaction or enjoyment; satisfying
98.Besieged- to be surrounded by
99.Dignitaries- a person considered to be important because of high rank or office.
100. Sandstone- sedimentary rock consisting of sand or quartz grains cemented
together, typically red, yellow, or brown in colour.
101. Amphitheatre- an open – air theatre
102. Supremacy- the state or condition of being superior to all others in authority,
power, or status
103. Deputy- Second in command
104. Sworn- given under oath; determined to stay in the role specified
105. Pledged- committed (a person or organization) by a solemn promise.
106. Assembled- (of people) gather together in one place for a common purpose
107. Confer- grant
108. Glory- honour
109. Outlaws- because of its policy of apartheid, many countries had earlier broken
off diplomatic relations with South Africa
110. On our own soil- in our own country
111. Possession- ownership
112. Dignity- the state or quality of being worthy of respect.
113. Emancipation- the fact or process of being set free from legal, social, or
political restrictions
114. Liberate- free; release
115. Bondage- the state of being a slave
116. Discrimination- being treated differently or unfavourably
117. Deprivation- the damaging lack of material benefits considered to be basic
necessities in a society
118. Oppression- prolonged cruel or unjust treatment or exercise of authority.
119. Glorious- having, worthy of, or bringing fame or admiration.
120. Reign- rule; govern
121. Awe- amazed
122. Spectacular- beautiful in a dramatic and an eye-catching way
123. Array- an impressive display
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124. Troop- soldiers or armed forces
125. Precision- accuracy
126. Bedecked- decorate
127. Unmindful- not conscious or aware
128. Chevron- a pattern in the shape of a V
129. Trail- series; chain
130. Symbolised- be a symbol of
131. Lyrics- the words of a song
132. Despised- hated, had a very low opinion of
133. Overwhelmed- have a strong emotional effect
134. Erected- build; construct
135. Racial domination- when people of one race have power over another race
136. Inhumane-cruel, brutal
137. Overturned- reverse.
138. Unimaginable- difficult or impossible to imagine
139. Patriots- a person who vigorously supports their country and is prepared to
defend it against enemies
140. Apartheid- a policy or system of segregation on grounds of race
141. Profound- very great or intense
142. Unintended- not planned or meant
143. Comrades- a colleague or a fellow member of an organisation
144. Resilience- the ability to deal with any kind of hardship and recover from its
effects
145. Defies- refuse to obey
146. Triumph- great victory or achievement
147. Grimmest- very serious or gloomy
148. Glimmer- shine faintly with a wavering light
149. Pushed to our limits- pushed to the last point in our ability to bear pain
150. Reassure- say or do something to remove the doubts
151. Obligations- a duty or a commitment
152. Civil- courteous and polite
153. Inclination- natural tendencies of behaviour
154. Inevitably- unavoidably
155. Twilight- half-light, semi-darkness
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156. Secrecy- the action of keeping something secret
157. Rebellion- the action or process of resisting authority, convention or control
158. Stream- a small, narrow river
159. Mealies- a maize plant
160. Abided- obeyed
161. Boyhood- the state or time of being a boy
162. Illusion- a false idea or belief
163. Transitory- not permanent
164. Yearned- have an intense feeling or longing for something
165. Curtailed- reduce; impose a restriction on
166. Dignity- the state or quality of being worthy of honour or respect
167. Frightened- afraid or anxious
168. Monk- a member of a religious community of men typically living under vows
of poverty, chastity, and obedience
169. Virtuous- having or showing high moral standards
170. Indivisible- unable to be divided or separated
171. Prejudice- a strong dislike without any good reason
