Bryce Courtenay's The Power Of One

Based on the 1989 novel by Bryce Courtenay, the dramatic motion picture ‘The Power of One’ narrates the life of English boy P.K and his numerous struggles to overcome the racism in the Apartheid era. As the film takes us through P.K’s brutal losses and his gains, we are able to clearly see the continuous injustice against the native South Africans and the aspects of P.K’s personality that evidently help him reject the racism apartheid system; the courage, love and friendship that are needed to fight injustice.

Courage is needed to overcome losses and to find the willpower needed to continue fighting for what you believe in. P.K, without courage, would not have been able to move on after the deaths of his loved ones. As the numbers of those
Friendship is a symptom of social need and interaction, its necessity is ingrained within humans’ mental functions. Without support and other people to offer diverse opinions humans would be lost as they would not recognize themselves as part of the community hence they would not be recognized as humane. P.K has many alliances, with the support of the Native South Africans, Maria, Doc, Geel Piet and his school friends P.K is able to accumulate and assimilate different opinions and the emotional power needed to fight injustice. P.K’s numerous friendships are displayed throughout the film. An example of when P.K’s friendships positively impact on his fight against injustice can be shown when, after Maria’s death and P.K was overcome by grief, Gideon shows P.K the difference he had made by teaching the Native South Africans. This causes P.K to continue fighting for his cause. Gideon offered P.K support by letting him know he had indeed made a difference and that what P.K was doing to fight against the apartheid system was indeed the right thing. P.K’s friendships and loved ones offered the support he needed by constantly believing in him and in his potential. PK’s friendships gave him the emotional strength one needs to fight strong