The Grass is Singing

The chapter opens with a newspaper clipping announcing the death of Mary Turner, wife of Richard “Dick” Turner. The announcement also mentions that the house servant, a native named Moses, has confessed to the crime and been arrested. The narrative then switches to the reactions of “the district,” the white farming community to which the Turners belonged. Interestingly, though one of their own has been murdered, none of the white farmers really mention the murder. Charlie Slatter, the Turners’ neighbor, handles the case himself, though the silence of the community is seemingly agreed upon without him needing to saying anything.

Moreover, though the farmers are surprised by the news, they are not shocked. As the Turners are disliked by most of the community, no one really grieves for Mary, either. The Turners shirked their social responsibilities and never engaged with the other families, thus breaking the social code of the small white community. The community also dislikes the Turners because they lived poorly, and in some sense, as poorly as some natives. Their house is considered a hovel, one similar in design to even some of the natives’ houses.