Academic literature on the topic 'Afrikaans Poets'

Space as theme and metaphor in the poetry of selected female poets in Afrikaans: 1994-2005This article illustrates that the representation of physical and abstract space is exceptionally prominent in the work of female poets in Afrikaans who published poetry between 1994 and 2005. The possibility that a “female consciousness” influences the use of spatial metaphors is put forward (but not proved).Following the theoretical insights of Pierre Bourdieu, the relationship between society and art is explored, and consequently the importance of the postcolonial context of Afrikaans poetry published between 1994 and 2005 forms part of the analyses of the thematic and metaphorical aspects of the selected poems. Examples of the salient aspects of representations of space,both as theme and as metaphor, in the work of female Afrikaans poets are discussed in more detail before some preliminary conclusions are put forward.

It has already been shown that female poets play an important role in the Afrikaans literary system, after the domination by a male tradition had relegated the female system to a marginal position. Female poets came to the fore since the 1970s and took up a stronger and more central position within the system. This article strives to investigate the further consolidation of this female Afrikaans tradition, especially with reference to the volume Passies en passasies (“Passions and Passages”, 2007) by Marlise Joubert. In particular, this article wants to investigate whether specific aspects of Joubert’s work, apart from the exploitation of female topics, are responsible for the appeal by critics for a stronger position for Joubert within the literary system. The following hypothesis forms the basis for the investigation: Joubert employs an authenticfemale language in her poetry, and this leads to the consolidation of the Afrikaans female tradition.

The article maps the process by means of which the versification of the Hebrew Psalms in Afrikaans, with its goal of acceptance by the relevant clerical bodies and their ecclesiastical community as a whole, ran its course. The process is illustrated by the history of the two versifications officially commissioned and approved by the mainstream Afrikaans churches, namely those of Totius (professor J D du Toit) and professor T T Cloete, more than half a century separated in time and trend (1937 and 2001 respectively). In view of the fact that both versifiers, as well as professor Lina Spies and dr. Antjie Krog who additionally contributed versifications of a few Psalms, are high profile poets, the evaluation of their work does not only take into account the factor of veracity (compliance with the Hebrew original), but also that of linguistic and stylistic excellence, the Psalms being regarded as poetry.

In this contribution, the dignity of speakers of Cape Afrikaans (Kaaps) is discussed withreference to the need for bi-dialectic tuition at school and Afrikaans poetry writtenin the Cape eye dialect. It is argued here that, besides Standard Afrikaans, a greaterawareness of language varieties must be cultivated in education and the media sothat learners develop the ability to control a variety of language registers. Further themanifestation of Kaaps, as eye dialect, is discussed at the hand of poetry examples.Here it is found that poets often stereotypically affirm topics in their poetry writtenin dialect format. The hope is expressed that the dignity of Kaaps Afrikaans in poetrycan be attained with multiple rhetorical strategies. The soppangheid, dignity, of Kaapsis not only a linguistic issue, but can also serve as a confirmation of the dignity of allAfrikaans speakers.

Abstract In writing my article on the poetry of Olga Kirsch I proceed from each poet’s consciousness of the relationship of tension between his humanity and the art he practises. In the case of Olga Kirsch this inner discord was rendered in her humanity. As second recognised Afrikaans woman poet, after Elisabeth Eybers, she was Jewish by birth and English-speaking, although by her own claim Afrikaans, through her environment and school, was stronger than the English of her parental home. In Olga Kirsch’s debut volume Die soeklig (1944) she professes the youthful heart’s restless longing for romantic love in poems still far too trapped in clichéd language. I linger extensively at these so that the great breakthrough of her talent in her second volume, Mure van die hart (1948), can be clearly evident. In strong, stripped-down poems she expresses the Zionistic longing of the Jew in the diaspora for the lost homeland, intensified by the Jewish suffering in the Second World War, with specific reference to the Holocaust in “Die wandelende Jood” and “Koms van die Messias.” After Kirsch’s emigration to Israel in 1948 a silence of twenty-four years followed which was unexpectedly interrupted with the 1972 publication of a thin volume, Negentien gedigte, which impressed especially with “Vyf sonette aan my vader,” which I discuss in detail. In 1975 she visited her native land again and the direct contact with Afrikaans and with the country acted as stimulus for her volume Geil gebied of 1976. The “geil gebied” (fertile area) is a metaphor for the rich subsoil of the poem and for the poem itself. In my discussion of Negentien gedigte and Geil gebied I concentrate on her inner dividedness as being inherently part of her human nature, enhanced by the knowledge that she remained irrevocably attached to her native land and to her Jewish homeland. I point out that the only way she can be healed of this dividedness is by writing her another self in her poems in which she arrives home in both countries, the omnipresence of God and the presence of the beloved husband. Lastly I indicate Olga Kirsch’s enduring place in the Afrikaans tradition of poetry through her procreative influence on other poets or by the way they relate to her poetry.

In this, the second and final article on the study of Afrikaans poetry dealing with aspects of the South African war since the Sixties, an assessment is made of the moral stance adopted by poets vis-a-vis the conflict, while the main characteristics of the war poetry of this period are contrasted with those of the period preceding it.

In this article an attempt is made to establish a framework within which one can define or describe Symbolism as a literary phenomenon. As is the case with most literary movements one cannot reach a final definition or conclusion on Symbolism because it has many manifestations in different countries with different literary artists - so many men, so many minds. It is, however, possible to identify some common trends in the works of many symbolist poets and prose-writers. These trends are outlined in this article. The following also serves as an introduction to a special issue of Literator on Symbolism and its occurrence in the literary works of D.J. Opperman, Totius, N.P. van Wyk Louw and other Afrikaans literary artists. This special issue forms part of a comprehensive investigation into the incidence of Symbolism in the Afrikaans literary tradition undertaken by the Departement Afrikaans-Nederlands of the PU for CHE under the supervision of prof. D.H. Steenberg and with financial assistance of the Human Sciences Research Council.

A survey of the Afrikaans literary scene of 1983 might one day prove to be a survey of this literary system on the eve of a “new dispensation”. From the ranks of the Afrikaans literary establishment there was a resounding “Yes” to the 1983 referendum which effectively compartmented ‘culture’ to ‘own affairs'. In this time of political change and adjustment the role of the Afrikaans intellectual and writer within the South African community has once again become an urgent point of debate. From literary texts themselves, from established journals and ‘little magazines' there are clear indications that a reflection on ideology keeps recurring. There are also voices on the periphery of the literary system which demand attention - young black poets and dramatists have for some years been involved in enacting and reciting their Afrikaans works on the Cape Flats and in townships on the Rand. Looking back at the Afrikaans literary scene of 1983, and its relationship with the socio-political context, one is left with two main impressions. On the one hand the literary establishment has confirmed its faith in reform under the leadership of the National Party. On the other hand there are developments in extra-parliamentary politics and within the literary system itself which threatens the equilibrium. Which of these trends will be the decisive factor with regard to the literary dispensation must be awaited.

This article reviews five recent (2008–2009) Afrikaans poetry collections by Antjie Krog, Johann de Lange, Joan Hambidge, Danie Marais and Loftus Marais respectively. Through an integrative discussion the reviewer establishes a number of key tendencies such as these poets’ ongoing concern with the nature of poetry or the act of writing, their exploration of intertextual meaning, their parodying or debunking of poetic conventions or their poetical appropriation of the ordinary.

As one of the most influential Afrikaans poets of the Dertiger movement, N.P. van Wyk Louw’s work was influenced significantly by modernism and the ideas associated with modernity. His highly canonised poems about animals and human-animal hybrids, Raka (1941), and Die swart luiperd (“The black leopard”) published in 1942 in Gestaltes en diere (Figurations and Animals), present compelling perspectives on the position of nonhuman animals in Afrikaans modernist poetry. In Raka Louw follows the resolute but futile attempts of the culturally refined leader Koki to protect his people against the contaminating effects of the insidious ape-man, Raka. Koki becomes the bearer of Louw’s modernist ideals for the maintenance of higher values. Yet, in his representation of Raka, he preserves something of a counter-image to Koki. As a hybrid creature Raka retains the potential to disrupt teleologies and to insert radical otherness in considerations of cultural excellence. Unlike Koki, the speaker in “Die swart luiperd” plunges into the destabilising depths opened by the gaze of the animal. The encounter with the black leopard in the jungle produces a form of insanity comparable to the experience of Kurtz in Joseph Conrad’s Heart of Darkness. In “Die swart luiperd” Louw dares to break down the boundaries patrolled by Koki in Raka in an apparent rapprochement to the animal as a source of creative revitalisation and extensionof consciousness.

Thesis (PhD)-- Stellenbosch University, 2005.
ENGLISH ABSTRACT: A study of poetry by six contemporary women in the Afrikaans and Dutch-speaking worlds points toward a multi-focal approach. While texts by poets of a marked diversity are presented as aesthetic objects, the scope of my research has been determined by considerations of gender, language and culture. The central line of investigation concerns the interplay between the poem as an artefact and the changing socio-cultural contexts by which the respective poets have been informed. My dissertation was inspired by Pierre Bourdieu's argument in favour of a fusion between the close reading practices of the New Critics (and in this case, their Dutch counterparts, the Merlinists) and the contextual approach advocated by literature sociologists. Concomitantly the art philosophical standpoint of Marcia Eaton and the views on the écriture féminine or "women's style of writing" held by Helene Cixous are applied to poetry. By incorporating insights from adjacent disciplines and thereby decentering the relative autonomy of the poetic text, I hope to demonstrate how the study of literature could acquire new relevance, either by expanding its own parameters, or by enriching the field of cultural and gender studies. In conclusion I regard the poetry written by contemporary women as a polyphonic discourse voicing women's newly-found position as subjects and challenging notions such as a monolithic "female identity" and the marginalization of "women's poetry". From this perspective, the aesthetic value of the poetic genre is paralleled by its function as a source of knowledge and a cultural agency.
AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: 'n Ondersoek na die poësie van ses eietydse vroue in die Afrikaanse en Nederlandse taalgebiede veronderstel reeds 'n multifokale invalshoek. Nie alleen word tekste van uiteenlopende digters as estetiese objekte aan die orde gestel nie, maar staan oorwegings soos geslag, taal en kultuur sentraal by die afbakening van die ondersoeksterrein. Daarby vorm die wisselwerking tussen die gedig as artefak en die veranderende sosio-kulturele konteks die riglyn van die betoog. Pierre Bourdieu se aandrang op 'n fusie tussen die stipleesmetode van die New Critics (in Nederland nagevolg deur die Merlinisten) en die kontekstuele benadering van literatuur wat deur literatuursosioloë voorgestaan word, het as aanset tot hierdie studie gedien. Terselfdertyd word die kunsfilosofiese standpunte van Marcia Eaton en die siening van Héléne Cixous omtrent die écriture féminine ("vroulike skryfwyse") op die poësie betrek. Deur insigte uit naasliggende dissiplines te betrek en die outonomie van die poësieteks te relativeer, wil die ondersoek aantoon dat literatuurstudie 'n nuwe relevansie verkry wanneer die parameters van die vakgebied versit, of kultuur- en genderstudies daardeur verryk word. Uiteindelik beskou ek die digkuns van eietydse vroue as In polifoniese diskoers waarin vroue op uiteenlopende wyses stem gee aan hul nuutverworwe subjekposisie, en wat daarmee die nosie van In monolitiese "vroulike identiteit" en dié van "damespoësie" as afsonderlike en gemarginaliseerde kategorie dekonstrueer. Naas die estetiese waarde daarvan, verkry die poësie uit hierdie perspektief ook In nuts- of instrumentele waarde as 'n alternatiewe bron van kennis en In kultuurskeppende agens.

Thesis (DLitt (Afrikaans and Dutch))--University of Stellenbosch, 2005.
ENGLISH ABSTRACT: The construction of the female subject in the poetry of Afrikaans women poets since 1970 is examined with reference to the oeuvres of Sheila Cussons, Ina Rousseau, Wilma Stockenström and Antjie Krog. The work of three French feminists, namely Julia Kristeva, Hélène Cixous and Luce Irigaray, is selected as the theoretical framework, because of, amongst other reasons, their attention to the structuring role which language plays in the construction of subjectivity. In terms of defining the scope more precisely, there is a specific focus on the role of the mother-daughter relationship, as reflected in the work of these three women. This focus examines not only biological mother-daughter relationships, but also the stance which women adopt regarding the “place of the mother”, as well as the way in which the relationship with the mother’s body emerges in the writing of women. The question is posed whether there is indeed a clearly identifiable feminine subject in the oevres of the four Afrikaans women discussed and, if so, whether this feminine subject is potentially capable of destabilising or even subverting the prevailing patriarchal order.

M.A.
In Afrikaans poetry, Nature is depicted in terms of the relationship existing among and / or inanimate organisms, i. e. an ecological mode. Man's influence on the environment, features strongly in the poetry of the eighties. The anthology, Groen (J. L. Marais), can be seen as a focal point of this involvement. Chapter one provides an overview of the ecological code in Afrikaans poetry, spanning the time from the First Afrikaans Language Movement up till the seventies. With regard to this period, the different approaches of the poets to Nature are being studied. During this era a decidedly dynamic approach to the subject existed. Nature was initially seen as the idyllic, soothing and was also used as a metaphor for beauty and purity. With time, Nature took on another dimension and came to represent destructive forces. In chapter two, the anthology Groen by J. L. Marais, under discussion in this work, concluding the eighties, Man is called to task, i. e. to protect and nurture the balance in the ecology. Man is made aware of both the threat to and the conservation of nature. These binary forces are discussed with reference to two semantic devices, cohesion and coherence. As binding factors they provide a semantic light on the above themes. Verweerde aardbol by J. L. Marais, is approached along the same lines in chapter three. The specific themes used in this anthology, serve as a classification aid. The poet's concern about the transience of nature comes to the fore, and Marais himself states that the time has come for writers to be called up in service to the environment without being apologetic about it (Marais 1993: 32). A clear paradigm shift is visible from the infant years of Afrikaans poetry to the poetry of the eighties. The "green"-awareness which inflamed / inspired the community, plays an important role in the eighties and is reflected in Afrikaans poetry. The dynamic power of the ecological code as theme, still has many untapped areas which can be explored in further studies.

M.A.
Although critics have acknowledged the work of Wilma Stockenstrom and have responded favourably, and although she has received four awards and prizes for her poetry up to the publication of Monsterverse, no all-embracing study of her poetry has been undertaken. Many of the reviews and critical analyses have failed to give proper recognition to her first two volumes of poetry. Consequently the process of development in her work has been largely overlooked, and Monsterverse, although acclaimed, has been assessed as "problematic" and totally "foreign". This study therefore attempts to determine the tendencies which figure in Wilma Stockenstrom's poetry, and examines in particular the iconicity of thematics and prosody as it has developed throughout successive volumes. Most of the themes developed in the later volumes are introduced in her debut work, Vir die Bysiende Leser. Some of the themes explored in this volume, however, lose their significance in later volumes. Although the prosody is still somewhat uncertain in some of the poems, a few poems already suggest her unique and individualistic application of this aspect of style. In this early work it is already apparent that her real power lies in the writing of free verse. She exploits this verse form with rich variety throughout her four volumes. Vir die Bysiende Leser clearly functions as a unit. The intratextuality of the poems is a striking structural aspect of. this work. Unity is also emphasized in the following three volumes, but progressively more attention is given to intertextuality. Stockenstrom's work clearly links up with the intertextual tradition which N. P. van Wyk Louw's Tristia and D.J. Opperman's Komas uit n Bamboesstok have established in Afrikaans literature.

Seen in the context of the hopes the ICIC and then UNESCO invested in translation as a way of securing world peace, this chapter traces the career of the leading Afrikaans writer Antjie Krog from her debut as a young avant- garde poet writing exclusively in Afrikaans to her later work as a prose writer who chose creative non-fiction and English as additional literary media. The chapter shows how Krog, like Joyce before her, betrayed the ‘genius’ of her ‘mother tongue’ from within but not the language itself, and how she then developed, again like Joyce, a conception of translation as a radical process of mutual transformation between languages and cultures. After considering some of her early work, the chapter focuses on Lady Anne (1989), A Change of Tongue (2003), and There was this Goat (2009), a collaborative project Krog co-authored with Nosisi Mpolweni and Kopano Ratele.