History, Narratives and Realities
Engagements with the Past and Present in Southern African Literature
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 6091845 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Mbongeni Zikhethele Malaba (1 University of KwaZulu-Natal South Africa Pietermaritzburg), Mbongeni Malaba (0000-0002-5084-2543, University of KwaZulu-Natal, corresponding author), Henning Melber (0000-0001-8439-8148, 2 University of Pretoria South Africa) |
| Year | 2020 |
| Volume | 50 |
| Issue | 2 |
| Pages | 229-236 |
| Publication date | 2020-02-13 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | No |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Matatu (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0932-9714 • E-ISSN: 1875-7421 |
| Publisher | Walter de Gruyter GmbH (PUBLISHER • DE) |
| DOI | 10.1163/18757421-05002010 |
| OpenAlex | W3009855841 |
| Language | EN |
| References cited | 4 |
The brutal violence of colonisation and subsequent white settler minority regimes have left a lasting legacy on the structures of societies as well as the mindsets and mental dispositions of the people in Southern Africa.Notably so, Apartheid as a special kind of colonial white minority rule left traces and consequences lasting far beyond the declaration of Independence in Zimbabwe (1980), in Namibia (1990), and the establishment of a democratic political system in South Africa (1994). 1 Public discourses as well as cultural narratives and the arts are still much affected by the history in the present, reminding of one of William Faulkner's best-known lines from the theatre play "Requiem for a Nun," that "the past is never dead, it is not even past."This issue of MATATU focuses to a large extent on coming to terms with colonial expropriation and subsequent identity politics, not least as reproduced in heroic narratives and patriotic history created for a special brand of nation building in the post-colonial societies of Southern Africa under liberation movements as governments.The following critical explorations revisit the impact of colonial violence as well as the counter violence by anti-colonial movements and the subsequent processes of establishing new forms of rule.Post-colonial realities have often not overcome the colonial legacy but reproduced features and aspects of the systems against which the liberation struggle was waged.This merits the question and nurtures doubts whether the ideals proclaimed and underpinning these struggles 1 See i.a
African studies · Art · Literature · Narrative · Sociology · African studies and sociopolitical issues · Anthropology · Gender Studies · History · Postcolonial and Cultural Literary Studies · South African History and Culture
| Citation velocity | historical |
|---|---|
| Highly cited | No |