Donker Web Chapter 12 Summary
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WHAT HAPPENED, IN 50 WORDS:
Chapter 12 reveals Greg's strained prison visit with his grimly changed father. Confrontation results in his father warning against seeking 'the Baker.' Yet, Greg's resolve intensifies, further fuelled by despair, guilt, and an alarming encounter with fellow prisoner, Dok Pienaar. Meanwhile, an unfamiliar man, André, forms a bond with Greg's lonely mother.
FULL SUMMARY:
In chapter 12, titled "Die plek van hoop en wanhoop" (The place of hope and despair), Greg returns home to Sandhurst and finds a strange man, André, in his house. It turns out that during Greg's absence, his mother struck up a relationship with André. Feeling shocked and betrayed, Greg confronts his mother who admits she was lonely and that there are more secrets in their family than Greg knows. The next morning, Greg embarks on a difficult journey to Kgosi Mampuru II prison where his father is being held. He brings a bag of hamburgers, which are inspected meticulously by the guards. Once inside, he encounters his father who is physically diminished and fundamentally changed by his time in prison. Their conversation is guarded and tense; they're no longer father and son as they once knew each other. His father eventually lashes out bitterly at him for tarnishing their family name, suggesting that it was Greg who got him imprisoned. Apologizing after his outburst, they endure an uncomfortable silence, with Greg torn between guilt and resentment. In the second half of chapter 12 of "Donker Web," Greg and his father finish their tense discussion. His father's hands, formerly well-manicured, are now rough and dirty. Greg wants to assist his father by tracking down 'the Baker', the still at large accomplice to his father's crimes; however, his father sternly warns him not to pursue. Despite his father's warning, Greg insists that he's already begun his search, urging his father to help. His father definitively refuses. Business hours end abruptly, leaving Greg's questions about 'the Baker' and also the mysterious 'Valkyrie' unanswered. Before his father leaves, there is a glimmer of fear in his eyes. Greg then sees an emaciated Dok Pienaar, the former principal of Lawson College, who was also charged alongside his father, glowering at him from behind the visitor's booth glass. Greg escapes from him and from the prison, his resolve to find 'the Baker' intact despite his chest of swirling emotions. He is now more determined than before; the secrecy tied to 'the Baker' is damaging his relationship with his father and contributing to his feelings of guilt and conflict. This leads Greg to ignore his father's glaring warning against pursuing 'the Baker'.
WHAT HAPPENED, IN 50 WORDS:
In "Donker Web" se twaalfde hoofstuk ontmoet Greg sy ma se nuwe vriend, André, en sy bittge pa in Kgosi Mampuru II-gevangenis. Hy voel skuld en verwarring oor sy ouers se nuwe situasies en ontmoet gevaarlike Dok Pienaar. Sy soeke na "Baker" duur voort.
FULL SUMMARY:
In hoofstuk 12, getiteld "Die plek van hoop en wanhoop", vind Greg sy ma met André, 'n chemiese ingenieur, in hul huis. Sy ma se simpatieë eienaardigheid en die intieme manier waarop sy en André optree skok Greg, wat hom laat wonder oor sy ouers se verhouding en sy moeder se getrouheid terwyl sy pa tronk toe is. Sy moeder lyk gelukkig, maar die onthulling van hierdie nuwe verhouding verskerp die spleet tussen Greg en sy ma. Met verwarring en verontwaardiging roerend in sy maag, gaan Greg weg vroeg die volgende môre en ry na die Kgosi Mampuru II-gevangenis – ook bekend as Pretoria Sentraal – waar sy pa gevang is. Daar ontmoet hy sy pa, wat bitter, verwerp en geïsoleerd voel in sy klein sel, en wie se gedrag wissel tussen beskuldigend en berouvol. Greg is mislik dat sy pa hom die skuld gee vir sy huidige situasie, maar worstelle ook met sy eie skuldgevoel oor sy pa se tronkstraf. Hy is ook ongemaklik oor sy ma se nuwe verhouding, wat hy steeds nie aan sy pa genoem het nie. Terwyl hy terugkyk na die ongemaklike ontmoeting met sy pa, voel Greg verlore, verward, en onseker met sy plek in sy familiestruktuur wat so drasties verander het. Gedissiplineerd, verontwaardig en verward, hervat Greg sy ontmoeting met sy pa by Kgosi Mampuru II-gevangenis. Hy onthul sy soeke na die ongrypbare "Baker" en uit sy vasberadenheid om sy pa te help met sy situasie, maar sy pa waarsku hom intens om van Baker weg te bly. Greg volhard egter ondanks sy pa se duidelike afkeer, maar word ontneem van verdere antwoorde wanneer besoektyd verby is en sy pa weggelei word. Hy probeer sy pa se verkeerde weergawe in sy geheue aanpas, terwyl hy ook stry oor of hy sy ma se nuwe verhouding met André moet onthul, maar besluit uiteindelik om dit te los. Net voordat hy die gevangenis verlaat, maak hy 'n skokkende ontmoeting met Dok Pienaar, die voormalige skoolhoof van Lawson Kollege, wat ook 'n gedeelte van sy huidige situasie vorm. 'n Man wat ook aangekla word in sy pa se regsaak, die haat in Dok Pienaar se oë laat Greg koud. Met 'n skerp rilling in sy lyf, vaar Greg uit die besoekersarea en voel hy eers sy vryheid wanneer hy buite die gevangenismure is. Ondanks alles, is Greg steeds vastberade om "Baker" na te speur.