Page 35 - (DK Eyewitness) Travel Guide - South Africa
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A POR TR AIT OF SOUTH AFRIC A 33
an insight into the life of South
Africa’s Jewish immigrants,
while the autobiographical To
My Children’s Children (2006) is
Sindiwe Magona’s account of a
youth spent in the former
homeland of Transkei, and of
the daily struggle in Cape
Jock of the Bushveld statue in the Kruger National Park Town’s townships.
life, joys and hardships of a rural The 1924 publication of The Contemporary
Afrikaner community. Flaming Terrapin established
Afrikaans became a hated Roy Campbell as a leading Literature
symbol of oppression during poet. Although the hardships Autobiographies and
the apartheid years yet today, of black South Africans had travelogues, popular genres
it is more widely spo ken than been highlighted in Herbert for modern local writers,
any other local tongue. Dhlomo’s short stories and offer insights into the lives
Peter Abrahams’ Mine Boy (1946), of South Africans. Nelson
it was the subject matter of Mandela’s Long Walk to
English Poetry and Prose race relations in Cry, the Freedom (1995) was a national
Olive Schreiner’s The Story of Beloved Country (1948) by Alan bestseller. Country of My Skull
an African Farm (1883), first Paton that attracted the (1998) is Antjie Krog’s nar rative
published under a male world’s attention. of her two years spent
pseudonym, presented the As one of several reporting on the Truth
rural Afrikaner to an interna superb female and Reconcil iation
tional audience for the first writers, Nadine Commission, while
time. The book was startling, Gordimer – A Sport Beckett’s Trek and
also, for its advanced views of Nature (1988) and Madibaland (1998) by
on feminism – sentiments that July’s People (1981) Denis Beckett, and
the author expanded on in among others – Sarah Penny’s The
Woman and Labour (1911). became the recipient Whiteness of Bones
Percy FitzPatrick’s Jock of the of a Nobel Prize for (1997) are entertaining
Bushveld (1907) became one Literature in 1991. Local edition of A Sport jaunts through South
of the bestknown of all The author of Nature Africa and its neigh
South African titles. A blend contributed greatly to bours. Zakes Mda’s
of romantic adventure and the standard of writing in awardwinning Ways of Dying
realism, it tells the story of a South Africa, and her struggle (2002) gives the reader a
transport rider and his dog against another of the apart glimpse of the professional
on the early gold fields. heid era’s crippling laws – mourner, while Ashraf Jamal’s
Later popular authors who censorship – paved the way Love Themes for the Wilderness
achieved international sales for many others. Rose Zwi’s (1997) takes a lifeaffirming trip
include Geoffrey Jenkins and Another Year in Africa (1980) is into contemporary urbanity.
Wilbur Smith, whose novels,
such as When the Lion Feeds Struggle Poetry
(1964), have made him one of
the world’s bestselling writers. A During the apartheid years, conflict and the
more thoughtprovoking book repression of Africans provided recurring
is Stuart Cloete’s The Abductors themes. Produced orally in various Bantu
(1966), once banned in South tongues and in written form in English,
Africa, and Sir Laur ens van der the new means of expression was
Post’s touching description of a termed “Struggle Poetry”. Oswald
dying culture in Testament to Mtshali’s Sounds of a Cowhide Drum
the Bushmen (1984). (1971) signalled the shift in black
poetry from lyrical themes to indirect
The works of André Brink and political messages in free verse.
J M Coetzee deal mainly with Other creators of this form of protest Mongane Wally Serote, poet
social and political mat ters and were Mzwakhe Mbuli, known as “the and politician
were often viewed by the people’s poet”, Mafika Gwala, James
apartheid regime as attacks on Matthews, Sipho Sepamla, Njabulo Ndebele and Mongane Wally
the establishment. Brink’s critical Serote. Their verse expressed disapproval of the sociopolitical
Looking on Darkness (1963) conditions in the country and was, at the same time, a conscious
became the first Afrikaans novel attempt to raise the level of awareness among their people.
to be banned in South Africa.
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