The story takes South-Africa is a setting of novel. South-Africa in during the time of novel full of a cornflict between white people and black people. White people in South-Africa at that time were minority, so the Turnners that is a white family in the story can not join with the society of South-Africa. Someone calls them as "a poor white". "A poor white" is shown clearly about a separated classes in South-Africa at that time.
The grass is singing is set on a farm in South-Africa. During that time the relationship between white people and black people in South-Africa were conflicting. They had separated classes. We can see clearly in the chapter1 that someone use the phrase “ poor white” for call the Turners.