Arthur Jarvis

Arthur Jarvis was killed during the robbery of one of the gangs, in which was the son of priest Kumalo Absol. He himself said at the trial that Arthur had been killed accidentally simply out of fear, without having the slightest intention to do so. However, Absol is still convicted and sentenced to death despite all the efforts of his father and the lawyer hired by him. Kumalo, however, finds the girl of his son, who, as it turns out, is pregnant by him. Kumalo invites her to get married to his son for now and go to the village as a legitimate sister-in-law, to which she happily agrees.

They manage to get married before the execution of the death penalty.

Ultimately, the fictional character, Arthur Jarvis, does not intend to represent any particular person, but to embody the ideal: a non-racial outlook. In 1948, when the novel was published, any hope of progress in this ideal disappeared with apartheid. For almost 35 years, before the release of Nelson Mandela from prison, the prospect of a non-racial state seemed hopeless. Then, although many of the former liberals, including Alan Paton, were dead, the new constitution of South Africa developed the concept of a non-racial state.