Love Letters and Amanuenses

Beginning the Cultural History of the Working Class Private Sphere in Southern Africa, 1900-1933

Bibliographic Data

ID4604456
AuthorsKeith Breckenridge (0000-0001-5023-6837, corresponding author)
Year2000
Volume26
Issue2
Pages337-348
Publication date2000-06-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessNo
TypeARTICLE
VenueJournal of Southern African Studies (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0305-7070 • E-ISSN: 1465-3893
PublisherInforma UK Limited (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1080/03057070050010156
OpenAlexW1995979239
LanguageEN
Citations received25
References cited17

This is a study of letter writing amongst migrant workers on the Witwatersrand before World War II. It moves from a consideration of the paradoxical character of literacy amongst migrant mineworkers to a discussion about the history of privacy in South Africa. The paper suggests that both the field of popular culture and the politics of democracy can be better understood by paying attention to the particular forms of letter correspondence that have developed in 20th century South Africa

Democracy · Literacy · Political science · Politics · Private sphere · Public sphere · Sociology · African history and culture studies · Gender Studies · Law · Multilingual Education and Policy · South African History and Culture

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