Long Walk to Freedom

Long Walk to Freedom

by

Nelson Mandela

Car Symbol Icon

Nelson Mandela is one of the few Black men in South Africa to own a car, and the car becomes a symbol of his independence and self-sufficiency—which the government wants to take away under the apartheid system. Mandela’s ability to procure a car testifies to both his hard-working attitude as well as to the comparatively privileged situation compared to other Black South Africans, since he was born as a member of Thembu royal family. Importantly, however, Mandela doesn’t just use his privilege for himself—his car becomes a means for him to travel around the country and get involved in political organizing, even taxiing other activists around. When Mandela starts to become a popular figure, the government issues travel bans on him, trying to limit his autonomy by controlling where he can drive his car.

Although Mandela likes his car and makes good use of it when he can, cars also sometimes play a darker role in his life. Mandela’s son Thembi dies in a car accident, and his wife Winnie is later injured in another accident. This reflects how the freedom that cars represent also comes with dangers and costs. Still, the book ends with a triumphant image of Mandela in a car being driven out of prison with Winnie. Mandela’s drive from prison in a car reflects how his autonomy has been restored to him after decades of travel bans and imprisonments designed to take his independence away. Cars in Long Walk to Freedom thus represent the autonomy and mobility of Black South Africans that the government tries to take away, and while this autonomy can sometimes be difficult to attain or come with costs, Mandela’s drive out of prison at the end of the book offers hope for a better future in which all South Africans have autonomy and equal rights.

Car Quotes in Long Walk to Freedom

The Long Walk to Freedom quotes below all refer to the symbol of Car. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
Racism and Division Theme Icon
).
Chapter 99 Quotes

De Klerk again excused himself and left the room. After ten minutes he returned with a compromise: yes, I could be released at Victor Verster, but, no, the release could not be postponed. The government had already informed the foreign press that I was to be set free tomorrow and felt they could not renege on that statement. I felt I could not argue with that. In the end, we agreed on the compromise, and Mr. de Klerk poured a tumbler of whisky for each of us to drink in celebration. I raised the glass in a toast, but only pretended to drink; such spirits are too strong for me.

Related Characters: Nelson Mandela (speaker), Nomzamo Winifred “Winnie” Madikizela, F. W. de Klerk
Related Symbols: Car
Page Number: 558
Explanation and Analysis:
Get the entire Long Walk to Freedom LitChart as a printable PDF.
Long Walk to Freedom PDF

Car Symbol Timeline in Long Walk to Freedom

The timeline below shows where the symbol Car appears in Long Walk to Freedom. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Chapter 14
Negotiation, Democracy, and Progress Theme Icon
...rights. Meanwhile, Mandela gets his driver’s license—an unusual thing, because not many Black people own cars in the country. He begins to taxi other activists around, taking messages to Dr. Moroka.... (full context)
Chapter 18
Racism and Division Theme Icon
...still feels most at home in a rural setting, like when he drives in his car out to the Orange Free State to celebrate the end of the government’s travel ban... (full context)
Chapter 20
Negotiation, Democracy, and Progress Theme Icon
...from all over the country to Kliptown, a village outside of Johannesburg. Mandela drives his car to Kliptown in spite of his travel ban but stays at the periphery. (full context)
Chapter 21
Racism and Division Theme Icon
In September 1955, Mandela’s travel ban expires. He drives his car back to see several places in the veld near where he grew up. At one... (full context)
Chapter 38
Racism and Division Theme Icon
Negotiation, Democracy, and Progress Theme Icon
...think the police keep track of such things, so he makes plans to drive a car 300 miles to Pietermaritzburg for a meeting. He will return to Pretoria for a verdict.... (full context)
Chapter 49
Negotiation, Democracy, and Progress Theme Icon
Nonviolent Protest vs. Violent Protest Theme Icon
...day, while Mandela is out driving around the country with a friend, he sees a car with White men in it signaling for them to stop and knows that his “freedom”... (full context)
Chapter 70
The Value of Optimism Theme Icon
...July of the same year, Mandela learns that his son Thembi has died in a car accident at age 25. (full context)
Chapter 86
Negotiation, Democracy, and Progress Theme Icon
In 1982, Mandela hears that Winnie is in the hospital after a car accident. He gets Winnie’s attorney, Dullah Omar, to come and tell him the full story.... (full context)
Chapter 100
Racism and Division Theme Icon
Negotiation, Democracy, and Progress Theme Icon
The Value of Optimism Theme Icon
...of his release. He is set to be released at 3 p.m., driven in a car with Winnie, and he makes a point of wanting to say goodbye to his warders.... (full context)
Racism and Division Theme Icon
Negotiation, Democracy, and Progress Theme Icon
The Value of Optimism Theme Icon
Mandela and Winnie are driven in the car to Cape Town for a Grand Parade. They stop to visit Dullah Omar, and Mandela... (full context)