In pursuit of the subject
Towards a biography of Arthur Nortje
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 4735900 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Dirk Klopper (Stellenbosch University, corresponding author) |
| Year | 2004 |
| Volume | 30 |
| Issue | 4 |
| Pages | 869-887 |
| Publication date | 2004-12-01 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | No |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Journal of Southern African Studies (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0305-7070 • E-ISSN: 1465-3893 |
| Publisher | Informa UK Limited (PUBLISHER • GB) |
| DOI | 10.1080/0305707042000313068 |
| OpenAlex | W2164264033 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 4 |
| References cited | 1 |
This article presents the conceptual framework and methodological approach I have adopted in my research towards a biography of the South African poet Arthur Nortje (1942–1970). It begins by identifying the principles of biographical unity advocated by James Boswell, and adopted by subsequent biographers, and proceeds to question the validity of these principles in the light of contemporary reflections on the nature of the subject, language, and narrative. As an alternative to traditional principles of biographical unity, which have evolved in parallel with the principles governing realist fiction, the article proposes the notion of a ‘dialectic of difference’ in the life and work of Nortje, discussing how this dialectic not only differentiates Nortje as subject but is also the subject of his writings. Following consideration of the forms of evidence available to the biographer, the biographical material to hand on Nortje is described and its potential significance indicated in reconstructing the life‐story in the form of a postcolonial biography. The discussion pulls together the various lines of enquiry by reflecting on the implications of reconstructing the life as a discursive event before concluding with an invocation of the subject in process
Aesthetics · Art · Art history · Biography · Dialectic · Epistemology · Invocation · Life writing · Literature · Narrative · Sociology · Anthropology · Computer Science · Hermeneutics and Narrative Identity · History · Philosophy · Poetry Analysis and Criticism · South African History and Culture
| Unique citing works | 4 |
|---|---|
| Citations per year | 0.22 |
| Citation span | 2008 - 2023 (16) |
| Citation velocity | historical |
| Highly cited | No |
| Citation types | Neutral: 4 |