July's People
What are the motifs in July's People by Nadine Gordimer?
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Trust and its presence or absence is determined in large part by who is in power and by whiteness. When the Smales are in the city and in complete control of July’s every move, they feel they can trust him. Even when they leave for periods of time for travel and entrust their home in his care, they still feel powerful and thus able to trust July. When they lose that sense of power that comes from possession and whiteness after moving to the village, their ability to trust July diminishes. They become distrusting to the extent they have no power and to the extent they are no longer in the majority.