This line—spoken by the wife of Ebenezer, the census man who took Benjamin from the Long Kloof—expresses the normality of racism in 19th-century South Africa. The wife is shocked that Benjamin, a white child, has referred to her with the same terminology as a black person would do. This not only surprises her but also makes her pity Benjamin, as she and many others believe that life in a black family is inherently inferior. The irony, of course, is that Benjamin is much happier in the Komoetie home than with the van Rooyens and eventually makes his own decision to return there to live