Fugard's Society

The most notable aspect of Fugard’s society was the Apartheid Era in South Africa. Apartheid in Afrikaans means “separateness”, and it was the oppressive system the white upper class minority placed on the black majority. Using racial segregation and discrimination the Government established an authoritarian regime based on white supremacy. Many of Fugard’s players had been arrested at one point or another for bogus charges. His Play The Island  was based on the real life experience of one of his actors for taking part in Fugard’s production of Antigone. Sentenced to Robben Island (where the majority of Apartheid prisoners went) he convinced fellow inmates to join him in recreating, from memory, Antigone at the end of a year. Fugard himself was no stranger to the government’s oppressive tactics. “Oh, I've had police searches in the middle of the night, my phone is tapped, mail has been interfered with, that sort of thing. But I've had friends who have landed up on Robben Island and lost years of their life” (Fugard). His whiteness allowed Fugard to stay out of prison and continue to provide a space for common resistance. With the laws dismantled in 1990 and Mandela’s release in 1994, Apartheid officially ended. Although, its effects are still prevalent in South African Society.