ABSTRACT
This chapter analyses Christopher Mlalazi's representation of the violence in Matabeleland in the early 1980s known as Gukurahundi in his novel Running with Mother. The ultimate effect of the narrative technique is to show that the Matabeleland experience defies logic and is therefore senseless destruction. The Constitution of Zimbabwe outlines the legal ties that make all Zimbabweans kin regardless of race, colour, or creed. Central to Mlalazi's narrative is the family motif to represent the nation of Zimbabwe. A sociological definition of a family is an intimate domestic group of people related to one another by bonds of blood, sexual mating, or legal ties. The current nation state is a colonial heritage, but its boundaries and constitution are binding to all Zimbabwean citizens. All groups must make the effort to understand and cooperate with others for healing and future sustainable development.
