Genre fiction
Narrator Hangwi Liphadzi
Language english
In An Experiment in Colour, South African writer H.I.E. Dhlomo tells the story of Frank Mabaso, a brilliant Black scientist at Fort Hare University who secretly develops a serum that can change a person's skin colour. Driven by a desire to test the boundaries of race, he administers the serum on himself—and awakens the next day as a white man. Frank's transformation allows him to navigate South African society with newfound ease and privilege. He gains access to elite institutions, job opportunities, and social spaces previously denied to him. But as he experiences the benefits of whiteness, he also begins to lose touch with his cultural identity, relationships, and inner self. Struggling with this duality, Frank becomes a kind of racial Jekyll and Hyde—torn between the social advantages of his white persona and the deep psychological cost of abandoning his Black heritage. Ultimately, he must choose between remaining in his new, privileged body or returning to his true self.