From prior class
2. The Talisman
- When we first meet Tsotsi, he has three hard and fast rules: “The first was the rule of working in the moment” (35), specifically seeing and working with his knife. We learn that “he, Tsotsi, knew himself and his dark purpose, and everything was all right. The knife was not only his weapon, but also a fetish, a talisman that conjured away bad spirits and established him securely in his life” (36). Yet, strangely, after being “given” the baby, Tsotsi remarkably takes the baby as his new “talisman”(59).
- Big question: What is the SYMBOLIC significance of Tsotsi’s “talisman” shift from the knife to the baby? In what ways does this shift change Tsotsi and how we, the reader, know know and understand him?
- Working in groups, I'd like you to come up with a thesis statement and evidence to support your claim. We will then share thesis statements and discuss the topic more completely as a class.
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