THE REALM OF NATURE IN DORIS LESSING’S SHORT STORIES “THE OLD CHIEF MSHLANGA” AND “FLIGHT”

Abstract

Nonagenarian and Nobel Laureate of 2007, Doris Lessing’s love for the landscape of Africa is evident from her works. She grew up I Zimbabwe and many of her works has Africa as its background. Sha as a child spent most of her time in the veld and is familiar with the creatures of it and that impact is seen in her fictional world. Her fertile imagination has nature in the background and her encounter with the animals is avidly portrayed in her works. The landscape she describes adds beauty to her works. The short story The Old Chief Mshlanga is a short story about the white girl who changes her misconceptions about the natives after meeting the tribal leader. The conflict between the ruler and ruled is beautifully portrayed with the background of the farm. The other story Flight tells the mind of an aging grandfather who does not want to part with his last granddaughter and is compared with soaring birds only to return home in the night. Lessing to portray the affinity of man with nature has vividly used nature and animals in her short stories.