The iron of migrant workers
The book ‘The Pick Up’ starts by introducing a white woman called Julie, and her car breaks down in the middle of the street. Traffic starts piling up, but she manages to take her car to the garage. The mechanic who attends to Julia is an Arab migrant who is in South Africa illegally. The irony of the Arab mechanic is that he is highly educated, but he decides to live in South Africa illegally. The reader expects the Arab mechanic to use the right channels to live in South Africa legally.
The irony of Julie Summers
The decision by Julie to take her car for repair to an Arab mechanic is entirely satirical. The reader notes that Julie is the daughter of a white settler who believes that there no other superior race in South Africa other than the white society. The book is written in the post-apartheid era, but the minority whites dominate every aspect of the economy.
Post-modernity
The happenings in contemporary South Africa are absolutely the opposite of the Apartheid era. The author draws the readers' attention when she brings out the relationship between Julie and Abdu. During the apartheid era, the daughters of the whites were only permitted to date their fellow white men, and anyone who did the contrary was severely punished. However, things are changing because Julie is interested in Abdu, an Arab mechanic she meets when her car breaks down.
The irony of the Table Friends
The Table Friends are a group of individuals who call themselves civilized and always gather at EL-AY Café to have fun and discuss many issues concerning the country. When Julie gets interested in Abdu, she invited him to EL-AY Café to meet her Table Friends. Satirically, despite it being posted Apartheid era, the Table Friends ridicule Abdu behind his back. According to Table Friends, Abdu is Julie's man who is a greasy monkey. The Table Friends call Abdu a greasy monkey because he is a mechanic with black skin. Similarly, the Table Friends call Abdu Julie's man because she is the one who is interested in him. Therefore, it is satirical that the Table Friends are calling themselves civilized, but they are vampire racists behind the scenes.
