Complex sentence: Es'kia Mphahlele (17 December 1919--27 October 2008) was a South African writer, educationist, artist and activist celebrated as the Father of African Humanism and one of the founding figures of modern African literature.
Split into simpler sentences: Es'kia Mphahlele (17 December 1919--27 October 2008) was a South African writer, educationist, artist and activist. He was one of the founding figures of modern African literature.