The Grass is Singing by Doris Leasing

“The Grass Is Singing” is a novel by Doris Lessing, first published in 1950. It is one of the earliest works in postcolonial African literature and explores themes of race, class, gender, and isolation in Southern Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe).

Summary

The story begins with a newspaper article announcing that Mary Turner, a white woman, has been murdered by her Black houseboy, Moses. From this shocking opening, the novel moves backward to explain how this tragedy came about.

1. Mary’s Early Life

Mary grows up in a small South African town. Her childhood is unhappy and lonely—her father is an alcoholic, and her mother is bitter and poor. When her parents die, she enjoys a brief period of independence working in an office in town, living freely and socializing with friends.

However, as she nears thirty, people begin gossiping about her being unmarried, pressuring her to find a husband. Feeling the weight of social expectation, she impulsively marries Dick Turner, a struggling white farmer she barely knows.

2. Life on the Farm

Mary soon realizes that Dick’s farm is poor and failing. He is idealistic but incompetent, and they live in poverty and discomfort. The heat, isolation, and hard life of the African veld make Mary miserable.

She tries to improve things by taking charge of the household and the African workers, but she is harsh, racist, and cruel toward them. Her fear and hatred of Black people intensify as her life on the farm worsens.

3. The Arrival of Moses

After firing several servants, Mary eventually hires Moses, a tall and strong African man. Though she initially fears him, a strange, psychological tension develops between them. Moses begins to care for her in a quiet, almost protective way—bringing her water, helping her when she is ill.

Mary feels both repulsion and attraction toward Moses. This unspoken emotional conflict becomes unbearable for her. The local white community begins to gossip that Mary is “too close” to her servant, which is considered a scandal in the deeply racist colonial society.

4. The Murder

As Mary’s mental health deteriorates, she becomes increasingly paranoid and unstable. One night, left alone with Moses, he kills her—apparently out of a mix of pity, anger, and inevitability. When the police arrive, Moses calmly confesses and waits to be arrested.

Conclusion

In The Grass Is Singing, Doris Lessing portrays a tragic story of a woman destroyed by loneliness, racial fear, and societal pressures. Through Mary Turner’s downfall, Lessing critiques the moral corruption of white colonial society and the devastating effects of racism and isolation on human lives.