''The Claw'' is a 1911

novel A novel is a relatively long work of narrative fiction, typically written in prose and published as a book. The present English word for a long work of prose fiction derives from the for "new", "news", or "short story of something new", itsel ...

Cynthia Stockley Cynthia Stockley (7 July 1873 – 15 January 1936) was a South African novelist known for her romance novels usually set in Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe) and South Africa. Her name before her marriage was Lilian Julian Webb. Cynthia was an adopted name ...

. Set in Colonial

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...

and

Zimbabwe Zimbabwe (), officially the Republic of Zimbabwe, is a landlocked country located in Southeast Africa, between the Zambezi and Limpopo Rivers, bordered by South Africa to the south, Botswana to the south-west, Zambia to the north, and Mozam ...

, the work follows the adventures of an eighteen-year-old girl who was born in South Africa to Irish parents. From South Africa she travels to

Mashonaland Mashonaland is a region in northern Zimbabwe. Currently, Mashonaland is divided into four provinces, * Mashonaland West * Mashonaland Central * Mashonaland East * Harare The Zimbabwean capital of Harare, a province unto itself, lies entirely ...

in a time of political unrest when there is an uprising of the

Matabele people The Northern Ndebele people ( nd, amaNdebele) are an offshoot of the Bantu found in Southern Africa. Their three related Ndebele groups in South Africa are divided into (Northern and Southern Ndebele), the Northern Ndebele of South Africa c ...

. The novel was adapted into a

silent film A silent film is a film with no synchronized recorded sound (or more generally, no audible dialogue). Though silent films convey narrative and emotion visually, various plot elements (such as a setting or era) or key lines of dialogue may, when ...

twice.

Film adaptations

*'' The Claw'' (1918,

Select Pictures Selznick Pictures was an American film production company active between 1916 and 1923 during the silent era. History Selznick Pictures was founded in April 1916 by Lewis J. Selznick following his loss of control at World Film. Selznick moved p ...

) *'' The Claw'' (1927,

Universal Pictures Universal Pictures (legally Universal City Studios LLC, also known as Universal Studios, or simply Universal; common metonym: Uni, and formerly named Universal Film Manufacturing Company and Universal-International Pictures Inc.) is an Ameri ...

)

References

1911 novels Novels set in South Africa Novels set in Zimbabwe South African novels adapted into films {{1910s-novel-stub