Last paragraph of my essay
The end of the story is also interesting. By having Thoba run at first and then walk Ndebele manages to heighten the sense of insecurity that Thoba feels. An insecurity that develops further when Thoba sees the women getting off the bus. He feels embarrassed by the fact that he is shirtless and shoeless. So embarrassed that he begins to cry. However rather than being defeated Thoba manages to harness something from inside himself and begins to run again. Which may be important as for the first time in the story Thoba is no longer insecure about who he is. So secure is Thoba with his new found identity that he refuses to set the fire when he gets home. He knows there will be consequences however Thoba feels comfortable enough to disregard any action his mother may take against him. The fear that Thoba had felt earlier in the story is also gone. He is not afraid of any of the other boys nor is he afraid of his mother. It is as though Thoba has come of age. The struggle he has endured through the streets of the township has helped Thoba grow up. The fact that Thoba also discards his shorts prior to getting into bed may also be significant as symbolically Ndebele may be suggesting that Thoba is a new man. How comfortable Thoba actually becomes with his new found identity is noticeable by the fact that he wishes he could keep turning around in bed. The pain that Thoba had felt earlier is no longer his enemy. Through the pain Thoba has found a new independence.

Point
Thoba also appears to be confused when it comes to his parents. He doesn’t understand that both his mother and father have his best intentions at heart. Rather Thoba wishes that he could have the same independence from his parents that his friends appear to have from their parents. It is as though Thoba considers that the family values his friends hold and have are more important and desirable than the family values he has with his own parents.