Growing up in South Africa and the United States, Lily Moya and Anne Moody both experienced white supremacy and segregation, which shaped and influenced their lives. Both young women strove to get a higher education, yet the paths they took to get there, in addition to how each was affected by their college experience, are two very different stories. Anne's initial curiosity about whites quickly turned into a general fear and hatred of them, whereas Lily viewed whites with a sense of optimism and as possible companions. Lily and Anne were both personally involved with whites during extremely racist times, however, the different sets of circumstances each country possessed and the individual events they encountered with white people directly shaped and pushed their lives in separate directions.
             Lily grew up in Umtata, a small village in South Africa. As a result of her father's death, and her mother leaving Umtata to acquire work, Lily was forced to live with her uncle. The combination of Lily's aspirations to further her education and Lily's resistance to her uncle's future plans for her to be married off, led her to seek the help of Mabel Palmer. Lily's letters to Mabel convey her attitude toward Mabel, as well as the ways she viewed whites in general. Lily is very intrepid in her correspondence with Mabel using very bold, demanding statements such as, "So, please do not forget your promise that you would send me to school to complete the Matriculation Course," and later in the letter Lily repeats herself, "Remember that you have promised to take me to school." (Page 95) This emphasized demand was partially due to Lily's urgent need to get out of Umtata, so as to escape the arranged marriage. Thus, in Lily's eyes, Mabel symbolized hope for a new and better life. Lily's letters to Mabel also insinuate that she sees herself not simply as Mabel's financial responsib...