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Chapter 88
Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in Long Walk to Freedom, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Racism and Division
Negotiation, Democracy, and Progress
Nonviolent Protest vs. Violent Protest
The Value of Optimism
Summary
Analysis
In 1985, Mandela goes for a checkup and finds that he needs prostate surgery. After the surgery, he is picked up from the hospital by a commanding officer, Brigadier Munro, which alerts Mandela’s suspicions. Mandela finds that he’s been moved to a larger cell but has been isolated from his friends. Mandela tries to turn his new circumstances into an opportunity, making a secret plan that he doesn’t even tell his fellow ANC members on the rare moments when he can still see them.
Mandela’s transfer in prison to a new cell is yet another sign of the how the government is trying to minimize his influence by separating him from his allies. The government’s secrecy and policy of keeping Mandela in the dark until the last minute are further attempts to isolate him. Although Mandela increasingly has to work alone, he doesn’t give up, continuing to make plans for himself for the future.
Themes
