bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Producing subjectivities, taking risks: New directions for teaching women?s poetry in South Africa
Authors: Ryan P.D.
Published: August 2012

This paper is based on five years experience of teaching an innovative poetry course at third-year level at a distance education institution. Conceived at a time when universities across the country were in the throes of academic and institutional transformation, the course departed radically from the so-called knowledge-as-accumulated-capital ethos and pointed toward assumptions initiated by Paulo Freire that knowledge can meaningfully emerge from the interaction of students from different backgrounds and asymmetrical social positions, especially when such knowledge is situated within a context which allows for creativity, self-reflexivity and critique. Most significantly, this course made available for students a forum for expressing subjectivity without the accompanying anxiety that they would be penalised for doing so. Questions are raised as to the value of presumed “objectivity” as a criterion for academic discourse, and theoretical considerations concerning the privileging of certain epistemologically suspect procedures are aired. Finally, I describe my particular contribution to the course as teacher of gender theory and show how students react to new, even revolutionary, ideas about the intersections of race and gender in relation to reading and writing about poetry.
The development of critical and cultural literacies in a study of Mariama Ba's So Long a Letter in the South African literature classroom
Authors: Latha R.H.
Published: August 2012

The Languages, Literacy and Communication learning area of Curriculum 2005 endorses “intercultural understanding, access to different world views and a critical understanding of the concept of culture” (National Department of Education, 2001:44). Although this curriculum is learner-centred and tries to create a better balance in the previously asymmetrical relationship between teacher and student, it does place great demands on the educator to avoid reinforcing cultural and multipolitical ideals which are not concomitant with the principles of a multicultural democracy. Since learners are expected to respond to the aesthetic, affective, cultural and social values in texts, the educator has to act responsibly in choosing texts which promote the values inherent in Curriculum 2005. Implicit in the curriculum statement is a commitment to critical pedagogy in the literature classroom with the general aim of promoting societal transformation. As the cultural assumptions underlying particular texts are often not known or shared by all learners, it is important for the educator to facilitate an examination of these assumptions in order to promote cultural understanding and values such as religious tolerance. This article will therefore investigate the development of cultural and critical literacies in the South African literature classroom with particular focus on So Long a Letter by the postcolonial African Muslim woman writer, Mariama Ba.
Imagologie en die bestudering van literêre stereotipes in die onderrig van Afrikaans as addisionele taal
Authors: Kruger E.
Published: August 2012

Imagology and the study of literary stereotypes in die teaching of Afrikaans as additional language Imagology is the study of national and ethnic stereotypes as represented in literature. These stereotypes are represented in literary images of identity and alterity when intercultural contact is portrayed in texts. The main concepts of Imagology are discussed to provide educators with a scientific framework in the teaching of Afrikaans as additional language, with specific reference to literature teaching. Learners from various cultural backgrounds bring with them their own stereotypes. Studying literary youth texts that portray images of national stereotypes can facilitate the process of intercultural understanding and reconciliation. Learners can be exposed to the representation of Self and Other in prescribed Afrikaans literary texts without their self-image being threatened, yet discovering the relativity of values, and learning respect for their own culture as well as for that of the target language. The background, scientific approach and principles of Imagology are described, as well as important concepts. By using Imagology as a literary tool in studying Afrikaans texts in the additional language classroom, literature teaching will include looking at the narrative and functions of youth literature to discern psychological and ideological focalisation, together with its influence on negative and positive representations of Self and Other.
Waardepeilings van die digkuns van C.M. van den Heever
Authors: Odendaal B.
Published: August 2012

Evaluations of the poetry of C.M. van den Heever This article traces the assessments of the value of the poetic work by the Afrikaans author C.M. van den Heever since the second quarter of the twentieth century. Appreciation of him as poet mainly revolves around his role as transitional figure in the important renewal of Afrikaans poetry in the 1930s, as can be seen from two rather divergent critiques by D.J. Opperman (completed in 1946 and 1952, respectively). An outstanding contribution by Van den Heever in this regard is the introduction of elements of Dutch poetry from around the turn of the nineteenth century to the Afrikaans literary world. A critic such as T.T. Cloete, in an article dating from 1957, convincingly argues that aspects of Van den Heever’s poetic style and technique, which other critics had sometimes judged harshly, are largely functional in co-communicating the specific (passively transcendental) attitude towards life and reality conveyed in Van den Heever’s work. Local and international shifts in the dominant literary approaches, however, have caused singularly confessional poetry – such as the bulk of Van den Heever’s poetic output – to be increasingly marginalised since the mid- 1930s. In this respect he shares the fate of Dutch poet A. Roland Holst, whose poetry was influential in shaping the characteristics of Van den Heever’s.
Vrouekarakters in enkele prosawerke van C.M. van den Heever
Authors: Botha E.
Published: August 2012

The role of women in some prose works of C.M. van den Heever Re-reading the C.M. van den Heever “classics” Somer (1935) and Laat vrugte (1939) within the framework of Van den Heever criticism through the years, one becomes aware that central themes in his oeuvre are acted out by women. The beautiful young girl Linda in Somer embodies the sadness of the transcience of beauty and happiness. Through Ouma Willa, Betta and Johanna – three women from three generations in Laat vrugte – the theme of the endurance of the memory of love and passion beyond decay and death is expressed. A cursory examination of other and earlier works by Van den Heever – Op die plaas (1927), Langs die grootpad (1928), Kromburg (1937) and the short story “Leuens” (Lies) from Vuurvlieg en sterre (1934) – bears out the observation that women express core meanings in C.M. van den Heever’s prose works.
Towards accountability: A point of orientation for post-modern applied linguistics in the third millennium
Authors: Weideman A.
Published: August 2012

In this article three difficulties in dealing with post-modern applied linguistics are identified, and three reasons are given for taking the trouble to define this emerging tradition of doing applied linguistics. In the context of earlier analyses of the history of applied linguistics, post-modernism is identified as a sixth generation of applied linguistic work. There are overlapping and unique features in each of these traditions. The discontinuity of a post-modern approach from first generation applied linguistics is noted, as are the numerous continuities with second, fourth, fifth and especially third generation work. These continuities go a long way towards characterising post-modern applied linguistics, yet are not sufficient to define it exhaustively. The biggest difficulty with such a characterisation appears to be a divergence within a post-modern approach. What holds this latest tradition together is the seriousness with which it deals with accountability, and in that lies, at present, its defining characteristic. Wherever one locates one’s work, in earlier or in current traditions within applied linguistics, the premiss must always be to do these labours with integrity. Perhaps the latest trend towards an accountable applied linguistics has contributed more than any previous tradition to make us sensitive to this responsibility.
’n Ondersoek na die identifisering van deiktiese ruimte in die prosa
Authors: Anker J.
Published: August 2012

The role and function of deictic context in a prose text This article examines the nature and function of deictics in a prose text. By referring to different theories of pragmatics and literature, the nature of communication in literary texts and the role that deixis plays in these texts become evident. In a prose text a process of communication exists in which the utterance produced by the speaker (author) is interpreted by a hearer (reader). The reader reconstructs a context for this communication by the interpretation of the speaker’s references to person, place and time – the deictic elements. The reader determines the deictic context in a text by defining and interpreting the communication of the abstract author, the different speaker’s references to persons, space and time and by interpreting the implications in the linguistic utterance. In this way a deictic context is formed in the mind of the reader which forms the basis for his understanding of the message in the text.
Stagnering en transformering: die rol van die nar in Paljas
Authors: Nel A.
Published: August 2012

Stagnation and transformation: The role of the clown in Paljas This article focuses on the central problem in the film Paljas, and the role of the clown in the process of transformation that is embedded in the story. The stagnation in interpersonal relationships and the accompanying problem of identity on a personal and social level constitute the problem underlying the narrative. The youngest child refuses to speak and dysfunctional family relationships and marital problems are evident. These problems can mainly be ascribed to the spatial isolation in which the characters find themselves. Attention is therefore paid to the way in which space functions in this film. The arrival of an absconded circus clown effects transformation and healing – especially by means of his picaresque performances and the notion of play. Subsequently this article concentrates on the characteristics of game/playing as a cultural activity and on its liberating value. The clown also has definite Biblical connotations as far as the aspects of betrayal and redemption are concerned. The process of transformation as depicted in this film is completed when the child starts speaking again, dysfunctional family relationships are restored and the family is reinstated in the community because of their restored social status.
Die spieël as blinde mond: die poësie van Breyten Breytenbach
Authors: Coetzee A.
Published: August 2012

The mirror as blind mouth: The poetry of Breyten Breytenbach The representation of reality, the word and the relationship between signifier and signified is the main theme of this article. In the poetry of the Afrikaans poet, Breyten Breytenbach, representation and “reality” are concerns constantly reflected on. The poem “drome is ook wonde” (“dreams are wounds as well”) can be read as a central “ars poetica” of Breytenbach’s work. Although it is a love poem it can also be read as literary theory, but not the same kind of theory as in, for example, Horace’s or Alexander Pope’s work. The poem discussed in this article does not deal with poetry as such, and what poetry should attempt to do; it is a presentation, the poetics being its representation. Breytenbach theorises an “epistemology of reading” in which the intuitive faculty of the reader – more than the cognitive – will guide the creation of meaning, and where the signifying value of the metaphor is beyond logical meaning. With the awareness of the impossibility of portraying reality by means of the poetic word, the mirror and mirror image acquire a meaningful function. For Leonardo (see Gombrich, 1986:5) the mirror was the painter’s master; the artist is the maker of mirrors, and then also the maker of dreams. The creation of a second reality, however, has boundaries because of the limitation of the poet’s medium. The creation then becomes more meaningful than the imitation, the presentation than the representation. After the analysis of Breytenbach’s poem one may come to the same conclusion as Lyotard (1984:81) concerning postmodern aesthetics which “ … allows the unpresentable to be put forward only as the missing contents; but the form … continues to offer to the reader … matter for solace and pleasure”.
The Beowulf manuscript reconsidered: Reading Beowulf in late Anglo-Saxon England
Authors: Viljoen L.
Published: August 2012

This article defines a hypothetical late Anglo-Saxon audience: a multi-layered Christian community with competing ideologies, dialects and mythologies. It discusses how that audience might have received the Anglo-Saxon poem Beowulf. The immediate textual context of the poem constitutes an intertextual microcosm for Beowulf. The five texts in the codex provide interesting clues to the common concerns, conflicts and interests of its audience. The organizing principle for the grouping of this disparate mixture of Christian and secular texts with Beowulf was not a sense of canonicity or the collating of monuments with an aesthetic autonomy from cultural conditions or social production. They were part of the so-called “popular culture” and provide one key to the “meanings” that interested the late Anglo-Saxon audience, who would delight in the poet=s alliteration, rhythms, word-play, irony and understatement, descriptions, aphorisms and evocation of loss and transience. The poem provided cultural, historical and spiritual data and evoked a debate about pertinent moral issues. The monsters, for instance, are symbolic of problems of identity construction and establish a polarity between “us” and the “Other”, but at the same time question such binary thinking. Finally, the poem works towards an audience identity whose values emerge from the struggle within the poem and therefore also encompass the monstrous, the potentially disruptive, the darkness within B that which the poem attempts to repress.
Het gezicht van de oorlog – het gezicht van de Ander: epifanie van het gelaat in Die son struikel van Dolf van Niekerk
Authors: Koch J.
Published: August 2012

The face of war – the face of the Other: Epiphany of the visage in Die son struikel by Dolf van Niekerk Traumatic war experiences are crucial in shaping the identity of Diederik Versveld, the main character in Dolf van Niekerk’s Die son struikel (The sun stumbles). In this article I want to explore the war experience that the protagonist has to deal with, its literary adaptation, and the construction of the protagonist’s identity. I indicate that the three stages of Diederik’s development are closely connected to the concrete philosophic contents of the novel. The thought of Emmanuel Lévinas serves as my interpretative framework. Central to Diederik Versveld’s experience of war is the reduction of the subject to merely and impersonally existing, to il y a (“there is”). In my opion Lévinian concepts are useful in outlining the route to a better understanding of the protagonist’s experience of the war. In analysing the processing of the trauma of war Lévinas’ notion of the epiphany of the face of the Other can be helpful. The encounter with the Other in the faces of other people plays a crucial role in Diederik’s attempt to come to terms with his experiences of war and death. In Totalité et Infini (Lévinas, 1961:188) the French philosopher wrote: “The epiphany of the face unlocks humanity”.
Op weg na ’n koherente siening van die taal- en tekspraktyk
Authors: Verhoef M. , Carstens W.A.M. , Van de Poel K.
Published: August 2012

Towards a coherent view of language and text practice The aim of this article is to investigate different possibilities by which generic principles underlying activities associated with the language profession are explored so as to extract uniform fundamentals inherent to all these activities. The following issues are attended to: • An exploration of the underlying historic principles of rhetoric and argumentation in search of the founding principles of current text and language practice. • An investigation of the communication models of Sebeok and Jakobson, as well as of Jakobson’s threefold distinction (intralingual, interlingual and intersemiotic translation) as a heuristic basis in the quest for a universal definition and delineation of activities related to text and language practice. The article concludes with the view that, despite the fact that more issues need to be clarified, it seems as if sufficient coherence could be located in the underlying principles of all activities related to language practice, thus enabling scholars and practitioners to view language and text practice as a single field.
Aspekte van die genetiese proses by Opperman soos afgelei uit ’n variantestudie van 'Gedagtes by ’n sarkofaag'
Authors: Meihuizen E.
Published: August 2012

Aspects of the genetic process in the poetry of D.J. Opperman based on an analysis of different versions of the poem 'Gedagtes by ’n sarkofaag' (Thoughts on a sarcophagus) A study of the genesis of a literary text reveals the systematic changes effected by the author during the creative process, and an understanding of these creative tendencies foregrounds structural principles of the final text. In studying a larger corpus of the author’s work, scrutiny of text development affords the means to gain insight into stylistic, semantic and thematic characteristics of the author’s oeuvre. This article focuses on the genesis of D.J. Opperman’s poem “Gedagtes by ’n sarkofaag” within the theoretical framework of Dutch edition theory as represented by Dorleijn (1984), Mathijsen (1997) and De Bruijn (2000) in particular. The different phases of development in the genesis of “Gedagtes by ’n sarkofaag” are identified and represented in a synoptic apparatus. In the analysis of the textual development particular attention is paid to the creation of a symbolic level.
Die gebruik van Wit oemfaan (F.A. Venter) in ’n imagologiese raamwerk vir die onderrig van Afrikaans as addisionele taal
Authors: Kruger E.
Published: August 2012

The use of Wit oemfaan (F.A. Venter) in an imagological framework for the teaching of Afrikaans as additional language The multicultural additional-language classroom has its own characteristics and requirements. An important element to keep in mind is that learners come from different cultures and all of them have their own perceptions of themselves, their own and other cultures. These perceptions can lead to conflict – something the educator has to deal with. Opportunities can be provided to work through the conflict and thereby facilitate intercultural understanding. Learners can be encouraged to become aware of their own stereotypes of the Other, which are influenced by historical and social realities and based on misperceptions. In order to grow in intercultural understanding, learners have to let go of their stereotypes and become willing to integrate the Other into their own identity. This article attempts to indicate why and how learners can be made aware of national and ethnic stereotypes in a youth text such as Wit oemfaan (1965) by F.A. Venter. The main aim is to train teacher educators at tertiary level to facilitate the learning process in an integration model for literature teaching by using imagology as theoretical framework. The teaching strategies aim to make the learner aware of the narrative voice and focalisation in the representation of stereotypes. The learner is guided to be confronted with the Self in the story, who is in unusual contact with the Other. This intercultural encounter in the secondary world of the literary text leads eventually to the maturation of the main character and can facilitate the maturation process of the additional-language learner of Afrikaans in the Further Education and Training phase at school.
Taalideologie en Afrikatale: universiteitstudente se persepsie daarvan in ’n postapartheidsbedeling in Suid-Afrika
Authors: Venter C.J.
Published: August 2012

Language ideology and African languages: The perception of university students in a post-apartheid South Africa Since the commencement of the new South African Constitution in 1996 student numbers in African languages at the Potchefstroom University for Christian Higher Education have dropped dramatically. It is argued in this article that this problematic situation should not be attributed to an inefficient language policy or ineffective course material, but rather to an ideological climate that is counter-productive to the optimal functioning of African languages as languages of education. It was found that second-language speakers, who do not have any innate sentimental attachment towards African languages, also do not really attach any instrumental value to them. In the questionnaire they rather revealed an apathetic attitude. First-language speakers, however, revealed a strong sentimental and instrumental point of view concerning these languages, but also revealed an even stronger sentiment towards English as an instrumental language. However, African languages have to compete with English in the instrumental sphere.
The butler in (the) passage: The liminal narrative of Kazuo Ishiguro’s The Remains of the Day
Authors: Scherzinger K.
Published: August 2012

This paper considers Ishiguro’s novel in the context of Victor Turner’s work on pilgrimage, and seeks to interrogate the apparently fixed opposition between the structural rigidity of Stevens’s position (his situation in the passage as an index of his situation as butler) at Darlington Hall and the liminal anti-structure of Stevens’s journey (in passage). The article will then offer some speculation about how the novel’s thematic preoccupations are underscored by liminal narrative techniques. This intimate relationship between content and form is reflected, in particular, in the structure and title of the text.
Meer dydelikhyt oor die punch en die vis: ’n Vergelyking van Niggie, Daar’s vis in die punch en Eilande
Authors: John P.
Published: August 2012

More clarity about the punch and the fish: A comparison of Niggie, Daar’s vis in die punch and Eilande In this article, three novels published in 2002 – namely Niggie by Ingrid Winterbach, Daar’s vis in die punch by Jackie Nagtegaal and Eilande by Dan Sleigh – are compared with reference to the perspectives the three texts furnish on the idea of creativity. The initial point of departure is the way in which language is used in the novels. This approach tangentially touches on the debate about “Engrikaans”, a form of code switching used by certain Afrikaans authors. The article illustrates how a certain kind of creativity can be associated with the consumer society and the culture industry, whilst a creativity which transcends the dictates of the culture industry proceeds from a position where the supposedly integrated subject is destabilised or put “in process”.
Mitisiteit as basis vir vergelykende literatuurstudie, met verwysing na waterslangsimboliek
Authors: Lombard J.
Published: August 2012

Mythicity as basis for comparative literature, with reference to water snake symbolism Mythicity can be defined as the deliberate intention of probing the numinous dimensions of human existence by means of literature, i.e. mainly narrative forms. In this article the water snake is chosen as prominent archetypal symbol in order to investigate the functioning of mythicity. The water snake is an important symbol in the Southern African context, with its origins in Khoesan ritual and mythology. Recently several stories about water snakes and related mythological creatures have been published in Afrikaans novels and short stories. The water snake has also assimilated influences, inter alia from European, Asian and other African cultures. In this article the potential of mythicity is specifically investigated insofar as it can be utilised as basis for comparative literature. For this purpose the numinous dimensions of a mythic story are treated as equally important as the narrative dimensions. This dialectical balance is therefore used as the main criterion for the comparison of mythic texts. Other related aspects are discussed, namely the importance of the historical context, Jung’s theory of archetypes and the unconscious, and the role of interpretational devices such as metaphor, metonymy, symbolism and allegory. If the balance between numinosity and narrativity is not maintained, the mythic potential of a text is usually reduced. When writers succeed in utilising mythicity as an “open”, dynamic interpretational process, mythic relevance can still be guaranteed within a present-day, postmodern context.
Good grief: Lord of the Flies as a post-war rewriting of salvation history
Authors: Van Vuuren M.
Published: August 2012

Golding’s Lord of the Flies, first published in 1954, reflects a bleak sense of post-war pessimism. But with undue attention focused on its portrayal of original sin and the problem of evil, readings have often remained reductive. In this article it is argued that the novel’s symbolic narrative is polysemic and, when it is read as anagogic myth, may be seen to span Judaeo-Christian Heilsgeschichte or salvation history, rewriting its chapters of creation, Fall, the problem of evil, the failure of law, the hope of salvation, the mission of a messianic figure, and – in the clearest departure from the Biblical narrative – an ambiguous representation of his return. This study examines the novel’s often paradoxical symbolism using Frye’s phases of anagogic myth, with its poles of apocalyptic and demonic imagery. It traces the relation of symbols to their counterparts in Biblical narratives, drawn in particular from the symbolic writings of the origin and end of humanity, to elucidate Golding’s bleak but certainly not hopeless rewriting of the salvation story for a post-faith readership.
Communicating social inclusiveness: Paul Slabolepszy’s Fordsburg’s Finest (1997)
Authors: Van Deventer M.A.
Published: August 2012

Paul Slabolepszy is a well-known South African playwright whose socially inclusive plays appeal to broad national and international multi-cultural audiences. His ability to reflect an authentic South African landscape with its stormy political background, diverse cultures and inhabitants, and to evoke empathy for all of his diverse characters within this South African milieu, adds to the dramatic impact of his plays. In his play, Fordsburg’s Finest (1997), Slabolepszy depicts an empowered woman as the focus of his concern. In this play he takes us on a nostalgic journey of recognition, and with sensitivity and insight relates the return of an exile from America to South Africa. A black woman, Thandi, returns to her place of birth to redefine her heritage and roots. I would also like to demonstrate how Slabolepszy combines various degrees of comedy in order to evoke empathy for Thandi, as well as for his white characters. In so doing he is able to foster social inclusiveness in Fordsburg’s Finest. Slabolepszy’s play also ends on a hopeful note, for he suggests that by freeing our souls, there is hope for South Africa’s emergent democracy.
Weerstand teen teksgebonde navorsing: ’n bydrae tot ’n omgekeerde benadering tot kultuurstudie
Authors: Tomaselli K.G. , Oets N.
Published: August 2012

Resisting text-bound research: Towards a reversed approach to cultural studies In this article an argument is developed for a reversed approach of cultural studies in discussing problems regarding fieldwork, academic access and accountability. We also argue for an empirical space in cultural studies, for a greater acknowledgement of fieldwork done by Third-World scholars vis-á-vis seminal theory development in the Western world. The article discusses relationships between observers and the observed in terms of dependency, inclusions/exclusions, and borders and othering. We reflexively analyse tensions and contradictions set in motion by the writing of articles on observer-observed relationships within both the San communities themselves and among researchers and development and other agencies working in one of these areas. Issues addressed relate to the ownership of information, the relationship between the local/particular and the national/general policy, and on how to ensure informal discussions around the campfire as well as involvement of, and general access to the written product by a-literate and non-English-speaking communities. Methodologically this article builds on two earlier studies, based on six years of fieldwork research in the Kalahari among three San communities in Namibia, Botswana and the Northern Cape.
The unwritten textbook of the folktale: A case study of 'Morongwa le Morongwanyana' (The Messenger and the Small messenger)
Authors: Letsie M.M.
Published: August 2012

This article explores the unwritten textbook of the folktale in the case of “Morongwa le Morongwanyana” [The Messenger and the Small messenger], a South African folktale recorded and published by A.T. Malepe. Against the background of current problems with the folktale tradition, it is argued that the unwritten textbook can help improve three educational practices, namely the practice of educating children at home, the practice of teaching and learning at school, and the practice of educational mass media. The nature and content of the unwritten textbook of the Batswana culture as defined by Ong (1982) and other scholars on orality are examined in a case study of the selected folktale. Lastly, the implications of the case study and of the unwritten textbook for the three practices are spelled out.
Shaping the self: A Bildungsroman for girls?
Authors: Noomé I.
Published: August 2012

This article proposes that two alternative forms of the “Bildungsroman” developed from circa 1860 to 1960, featuring young female protagonists and aimed at girls as a readership. To explore this proposition, the article initially focuses on three girls’ series to see whether they meet the criteria for classification as a “Bildungsroman”: the South African “Soekie” series written in Afrikaans by Ela Spence, the well-known Canadian “Anne of Green Gables” series by L.M. Montgomery, and the German “Pucki” series by Magda Trott. In these series girls have to learn through experience as they move toward happiness and maturity. Secondly, the article explores the presentation of the female quest, as well as some development options “in parallel” in such novels as Louisa May Alcott’s now classic “Little women” and “Good wives”. The article concludes that some novels for girls move towards an exploration of personal development from childhood to maturity, but that the criteria for the “Bildungsroman” should be adjusted to include forms other than the single novels and novels focused on one protagonist that are more typical of the “male” “Bildungsroman”. It also suggests that the criteria for maturity, self-actualisation and social integration need qualification in the “female” version of this genre.
Let’s sing our heroes: A comparison of biographical series for children in Kenya and South Africa
Authors: Muriungi C.K.
Published: August 2012

In this article two series of biographies written for children, and dealing with prominent personalities in Kenya and South Africa, are compared. In the line of argumentation developed the aim is to examine the main features in these biographies, and to indicate the importance of biographies in the general field of children’s literature. By examining a sample text from each series the specific ways in which the authors mould these personalities into heroes of their countries are scrutinised. Furthermore the way in which gender is represented in the two series is also examined and it is argued that both men and women form part of any country’s gallery of heroes. Underlying the main argument of the article is the contention that biographies are important in perpetuating the stories of the two countries’ heroes: also in teaching the history of each country to the young. A general motif of hard work resonates in these works, and therefore it is asserted that individuals’ biographies can be used as anecdotes to communicate with and to inspire and encourage young readers. The authors of the biographies actually intervene by presenting children with role models. Furthermore these role models are not abstract fictional characters but real human beings who made great sacrifices for their countries – people with whom children are thus able to identify.
Post-apartheid representations of youth in the Zulu novel Kungasa ngifile
Authors: Zulu N.S.
Published: August 2012

In this article representation of black African youth in the Zulu novel “Kungasa ngifile” is examined. The view is presented that the novel, though seeming to be politically neutral, deals with images of the youth that have ideological concerns in terms of theme, plot action and character portrayal. Such ideological modes of representation seem to be in tune with the present call for moral rejuvenation and the empowerment of the youth who lost opportunities during the liberation struggle. In this respect, the novel backs positive post-apartheid cultural forms.
Vos, Faust, Voss: raakpunte tussen Vos deur Anna M. Louw en enkele ander tekste
Authors: John P.
Published: August 2012

Vos, Faust, Voss: Points of contact between Vos by Anna M. Louw and selected other texts This article explores points of contact between “Vos” by Anna M. Louw and a number of related texts, including the following: the book “Job” from the Christian Bible, “Faust” by Goethe, “Voss” by Patrick White and texts forming part of the Gnostic tradition. The analysis describes similarities and differences, arguing that the implication of the points of contact between the various texts is that Vos suggests that the heritage of the Christian Reformation is not adequate for an understanding of life in South Africa, and it has to be supplemented with perspectives from other traditions.
A study of identity in post-apartheid South African English literature: The Pickup by Nadine Gordimer
Authors: Cloete M.J.
Published: August 2012

In examining aspects of identity in “The Pickup” (2001), Nadine Gordimer’s latest novel, this article indicates new trends in postapartheid South African English literature as well. In the article it is indicated that identity has always been an important theme in Gordimer’s novels. Her earlier novels tend to focus on her characters’ struggle to attain political or racial rather than personal freedom, while her later novels increasingly tend to examine the construction of individual identities. “The Pickup” has continued this search for identity, but against a new and interesting perspective, a perspective that is in line with the political transformation of post-apartheid South Africa after 1994. Moreover, this theme is extremely relevant in the twenty-first century with its increased emphasis on place and globalisation. This article thus examines the theme of identity in “The Pickup”, first against a South African background and then against the backdrop of an unknown town somewhere in the desert – most probably in Northern Africa.
Protest against social inequalities in B.W. Vilakazi’s poem 'Ngoba ... sewuthi' ('Because ... you now say')
Authors: Zondi N. , Canonici N.
Published: August 2012

Long before the National Party institutionalised apartheid in 1948, individuals and organisations tried to highlight the injustices of the colonial capitalist system in South Africa, but, as Lodge (1983:6) puts it, “it all ended in speeches”. This article seeks to demonstrate how Benedict Wallet Vilakazi effectively broke the silence by bringing the plight of the black masses to the attention of the world. He strongly protested against the enslavement of black labourers, especially in the gold and diamond mines, that he depicts as responsible for the human, psychological and physical destruction of the black working classes. As a self-appointed spokesperson of the oppressed, he protested against the injustices through the medium of his poetry. One of his grave concerns was the fact that black workers had been reduced to a class with no name, no rights, practically with no life and no soul. The chosen poem “Ngoba … sewuthi” (Because … you now say) is thus representative of the poems in which B.W Vilakazi externalised his commitment to the well-being of the black workers, and his protest against the insensitivity of white employers.
'Naming of parts', or, how things shape up in transcultural literary history
Authors: De Kock L.
Published: August 2012

This article suggests that transcultural literary history, in itself an exercise of great complexity, is rendered even more challenging if one accepts that cognition is a critical prior step in the process, regardless of whether literary history is conceived in empirical or in poststructuralist terms. Further, it is argued that cognition depends on analogical processes – to such an extent that literary “history” can be understood as a self-revising cascade of “windows” which recreate the field cognitively over and over again. In this understanding, “literary history”, and transcultural literary history in particular, become metacognitive. Rather than a search for “true” structure, literary history is a search for imagined structure which is true to one’s mode of perception in the first instance, and to the data at hand in the second. These propositions are argued in relation to South African literary historiography in English.
Hands as markers of fragmentation
Authors: Barnard A. , Kruger J-L
Published: August 2012

Margaret Atwood is an internationally read, translated, and critiqued writer whose novels have established her as one of the most esteemed authors in English (McCombs & Palmer, 1991:1). Critical studies of her work deal mainly with notions of identity from psychoanalytical perspectives. This study has identified a gap in current critical studies on Atwood’s works, namely the challenging of textual unity which is paralleled in the challenging of the traditional (single) narrative voice. The challenging of textual unity and the single narrative voice brings about the fragmentation of both. This article will focus on the role that hands play as markers of fragmentation in “The Blind Assassin” (2000). In the novel, the writing hand destabilises the narrative voice, since it is not connected to the voice of a single author. If the author of the text – the final signified – is eliminated, the text becomes fragmentary and open, inviting the reader to contribute to the creation of meaning. Hands play a signficant role in foregrounding the narrator’s fragmented identity, and consequently, the fragmentation of the text. We will investigate this concept in the light of Roland Barthes’ notion of the scriptor, whose hand is metaphorically severed from his or her “voice”. Instead of the text being a unified entity, it becomes unstable and it displays the absence of hierarchical textual levels. Based mainly on Barthes’ writings, this article concludes that hands foreground the narrator’s fragmented identity, which is paralleled in the fragmented text.
The technique of flashback in selected Northern Sotho literary texts
Authors: Mojalefa M.J. , Phala R.S.
Published: August 2012

This article aims at investigating and explaining the application of the technique of flashback in selected Northern Sotho literary texts. Five kinds of flashback are distinguished, namely external retrospection, internal retrospection, mixed retrospection, flashback to complicate events and flashback of similar events. These kinds of flashback have certain and specific functions, such as reminding readers of past events, foregrounding themes of the text, and so on. This technique is evident in a text when ordinary, everyday events turn out to be the key to surprising secrets that are revealed later. Though flashback seems to be similar to foreshadowing (prolepsis) in that both techniques contain features of repetition and the narration of a specific experience, the techniques, however, differ in that flashback focuses on the elements of secrecy, suspense and surprise, and foreshadowing does not. This article also reveals that a relationship between flashback and the structure of detective stories can be indicated.
The role of political songs in the realisation of democracy in South Africa
Authors: Groenewald H.C.
Published: August 2012

The issue this article attempts to explore is whether a form of oral art – political songs – played a part in achieving democracy in South Africa, and, if so, how this aim was achieved. In this regard it should be kept in mind that political songs form part of the large, vibrant body of oral art in South Africa. An aspect of oral art that is particularly relevant to political songs is that it is often performed to be efficacious, that is, it is performed to achieve a desired result. Equally important is the attribute of performance. It is obvious that the political song derived much of its power from the dynamics of performance. Political songs evolved from church hymns with obscure references of suffering to power singing with an overt and belligerent political message. The conclusion arrived at is that political songs played a vital role in forging democracy from below.
Die spel van assosiasies in en om 'Die verlossing van die beeld' van Breyten Breytenbach
Authors: Du Toit P.A.
Published: August 2012

The play of association in and around 'The liberation of the image' by Breyten Breytenbach This analysis focuses on the conjunction of memory and imagination, which is an important impulse in, and key to, Breytenbach’s work. The play with language and with associations, the foregrounding, in the short story, “Die verlossing van die beeld” (Breytenbach, 1983) with its metafictional title and apparently divergent motifs (rain/water, watch, onion, the death and burial of a grandfather) acts, as it were, as an invitation to the reader to become a co-player. The reader ventures on a search for traces, intertextual links within the Breytenbach oeuvre and for already acknowledged influences such as Surrealism (which in turn casts some light on the strange title of the story) and the Eastern philosophies such as Zen and the even older Taoism. The analysis also takes into account the context in which “Mouroir” was written, namely Breytenbach’s term in prison (1975-1982). Seeing that the writer had to hand in his manuscripts to the jail authorities regularly, he might have decided, consciously or by intuition, to hide some thoughts and feelings behind a screen or a mask, in, for example in “Die verlossing van die beeld”, a lighter tone and irony.
Medea praat Afrikaans
Authors: Van Zyl Smit B.
Published: August 2012

Medea speaks Afrikaans Euripides’ “Medea” is one of the Greek dramas that have been and still are being translated, performed and adapted in many different languages and countries. Although no Afrikaans translation of this tragedy has been published, several Afrikaans translations and adaptations of it have been staged. This paper explores these plays and the circumstances of their production and focuses especially on Tom Lanoye’s “Mamma Medea” which has been translated into Afrikaans by Antjie Krog.
Johannes Kerkorrel en postapartheid- Afrikaneridentiteit
Authors: Viljoen M.
Published: August 2012

Johannes Kerkorrel and post-apartheid Afrikaner identity The music of Johannes Kerkorrel (Ralph Rabie, 1960-2002) gave expression to the sentiments of a young white urban generation that rebelled against the autocratic rule of the apartheid government. Kerkorrel’s songs, many of which were banned during the apartheid era, created an alternative Afrikaner voice through biting social criticism and political satire. His politicised narratives evoke collective memories and experiences that construct moral hierarchies by means of an exceptional intensity, simplicity and power. Kerkorrel’s life-story may be read as a continuous textual reconfiguration of identity throughout which an uninterrupted thread of self-remembrance is simultaneously woven. In a society in the process of constant transformation, a speculative theorising of Kerkorrel as a construct of local identity may serve as a starting point for understanding popular music representations of the postapartheid Afrikaner character.
A socially committed literary work: perspectives on Elliot Zondi’s Insumansumane
Authors: Mathonsi N.N.
Published: August 2012

In this article Elliot Zondi’s historical drama, “Insumansumane”, is discussed as a committed literary work. The main character, Bhambada, urges his contemporaries to challenge the ideological domination of the apartheid system and to fight for their freedom to the last man, if necessary. According to Elliot Zondi, the 1906 Bhambada Rebellion was caused by a lack of consultation and utter disregard for the feelings of the African majority regarding taxation. The rebellion was also caused by the forceful introduction of Western culture and social values. The play in itself is actually a metaphor for the Zulu people living in the 1980s under the iron rule of President P.W. Botha. In this play the Zulu are urged to live up to the freedom ideals for which their forefathers had been ready to fight and to die. The development of the plot in the play emphasises that the “winds of change” at that time were becoming stronger, causing the undercurrent that was to bring about liberation in 1992 and in 1994.
Die hiërargiese ontwikkeling en grammatiese kenmerke van die Noord- Sotho werkwoordstam -ba
Authors: Pretorius W.J.
Published: August 2012

The hierarchical development and grammatical features of the Northern Sotho verb stem -ba The objective of this article is to describe the synchronic grammatical features of the Northern Sotho verb stem -ba as well as to indicate the diachronic developmental process of this language form. A lack of sufficient knowledge in this regard exists due to the fact that very little information can be obtained from any publication or research project. The focus of this article is particularly on the structural and semantic characteristics of -ba when functioning as an auxiliary verb stem in word group context. The cognitive meaning as well as various delicate shades of meaning, which are generated as translation possibilities in different contexts, is investigated. Reference is also made to tense and aspect that are respectively determined by the auxiliary and complementary verbs per se. Categorial and hierarchical rank shifting is also illustrated by means of suitable examples. Data and examples are mainly obtained from the study of Pretorius (2004). These examples have been recorded after some sound ground-work has been undertaken. Various examples of auxiliary verb groups have not only been recorded from the literature, but also from daily conversations. It should, however, be made clear that no direct quotations from the literature have been made – only structures from the examples have been selected and processed before being submitted for verification. The data of selected examples have been submitted to three Northern Sotho first language speakers. These people are well equipped in both the practical as well as theoretical knowledge of Northern Sotho. The people concerned are Mr. S.M. Mabule (Vista), Mr. R.J. Mampuru (Vista), and Mr. S.J. Motshegoa (Institute for African Languages). These gentlemen are also fluent in Afrikaans which they all studied at tertiary level.