South Africa: Cultural and Gender Identities under the Influence of Apartheid

1. South Africa: Cultural and GenderIdentities under the Influence of Apartheid Njabulo Ndebele, Nadine Gordimer and Antjie Krog 

2. South Africa: Map

3. Various Identities • A Women Waiting for her Husband-to-be. Police gangsters The White Masters Vukani’s father Vukani’s mother, Dr. Zwane and his wife The farm hands Vukani His sister

4. Njabulo Ndebele • Ndebele's writings -- constitutes “a return to more traditional concerns with narrative complexity and literary quality." • Fools: The township life seen through the eyes of a young and sensitive protagonist. (e.g. “The Prophetess”; “The Violin” )

5. Ndebele on Children • "South African literature has generally handled the images of childhood as social criticism: • an infant abandoned by its mother. • Friends going against each other. • the entrance of the young in national politics education affected; (I.e. Soweto uprising) • Reconstruction should begin with the recovery of childhood and innocence. (source: http://www.uni-ulm.de/~rturrell/antho4html/Ndebele.html )

6. "The Music of the Violin" • How are the two women (Vukani’s mother and Beatrice) different from the two men (Vukani’s father and Dr. Zwane in the opening scene? What are they each concerned with? • How are Vukani and Toboho treated differently? How does Vukani respond to having visitors at home? Why is he so afraid? • How is “education” presented in this story? • In the two central scenes of conflicts, how are the issues of gender and race mixed together?

7. Allusions • Footprints Bush School • Designed for primary school children under 12 • Teaches about nature in a fun way(source)

8. Gender Relations • The men are condescending to the women and their “Housewives’ League.” (97; 98) • “Peace, women of Africa”; their laughter; • Vukani’s father– African nationalism. (96-97)

9. Education • Vukani’s homework (104) • Mabaso –the teacher at a bush school; • Ms. Yende 100 red dress = violin; • Maseko – dog: chained dog, hungry dog; wandering dog; p. 101; • Vukani’s mother turns her son into Mozart; Mrs. Zwane  her daughter into ballerina

10. Vukani in between the gangs and the “educated” • wanted to escape 97; wish to talk to Toboho; • His anxiety and latent need for rebellion (book turned into flame 99 & Doksi p. 100); source—school teachers, parents • Another source of his anxiety – the school kids • his violin stolen p. 101 –“inspector’s son” • “music man” pp. 104 – Bhuka and the copper bangles

11. Nadine Gordimer (1923-) • Born in South Africa in 1923, the daughter of immigrants: her father was a Lithuanian Jew, and her mother was born in England. • A chronicler of the history of Apartheid. • Raised in a segregated town, Spring, outside Johannesburg • The Sharpeville massacre of 1960; • Her comments on P.W. Botha’s facing a black judge. • Nobel Prize winner, 1991. • (image source)

12. "Six Feet of the Country" Allusions • “baas” leader  boss • "Piccanins" -- a somewhat condescending slang for small black children. • Zoot suits were wide-lapelled, high-waisted outfits worn by "hip" urban blacks in the forties.

13. Allusions (2) Rhodesia • 1890 to 1893 -- the area of Southern Rhodesia was conquered & settled by the British South Africa Company. • 1923. -- Southern R under Crown rule • 1953 to 1964 -- Northern Rhodesia and Nyasaland formed part of the Central • African Federation • In 1965 its government was unilaterally declared its independence as Rhodesia. • 1980 -- Rhodesia was renamed Zimbabwe.

14. Rhodesia and Southern Africa Zimbabwe

15. "Six Feet of the Country" • Why does the narrator say that they are not real farmers? Why do they buy a farm? How are the couple related to each other? • How do they relate to the “farm boys”? (e.g. p. 97, their report of the death, the illegal immigrants and the death) Are they helpful to Petrus in the matter of the family death. • How are the blacks presented in the story? (e.g. the way Petrus speaks, donkey carts p. 102, views of money and family death.) How are the blacks’ and the white master’s views of money different from each other? • Why do the wife and Petrus look alike to the narrator at the end? • What does the title mean?

16. Husband and Wife • “tension” in the city: 97; • tension between the couple: • incapacity on the husband’s part (97), feel like a fool 97; incommunicative 99 • wife– seen as plain 99 and messy 101; • Lerice, fits better into the farm life. • The husband’s views: “have it both ways” 96-97.

17. The White Masters and the “Farm Boys” • Lerice: patronizing 97; • The husband: Relationship “feudal”– wrong, obsolete, but “comfortable.”“easy-going gossipers” 102 • Report of Death: • troubled; startled a bit; Lerice– wanted more communication; • Husband – handles his responsibility but more is thrust on him. (a waste to get the body back p. 101) • The funeral • The baas changed? --in his attitude towards the authorities,

18. The Black Servants and immigrants • mutual support – not reporting on each other; relatives going to them to seek a better job; contributing money for the funeral; • Petrus seems to trust his “baas.” • At the end, he cannot even get six feet of the country to bury his “brother.”

19. Antjie Krog • "Lovesong After the Music of K. E. Ntsane" The Country of my Skull – a poetry collection; script writer of Long Night’s Journey into the Day.

20. Allusions • K. E. Ntsane, one of the great Sotho poets. Sotho: one of the languages spoken by Africans.