The Right to Speak: The Cultural Archive and the Public Sphere in South Africa
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Margriet van der Waal
Abstract
For decades, the political and cultural right to speak had been curtailed for millions of South Africans. Thirty years ago the first democratic elections that were held in the country radically changed this restriction. In 1994 all South African citizens older than 18 years were given a political voice in a new, democratic system. But whom of these citizens have been able to voice themselves outside of the voting booth? Whose voices are audible in the media, in novels, films and music? What has happened to the stories of those who suffered under apartheid and experienced colonial-era atrocities? And who is telling these stories? In my contribution, I will show how particular voices find expression across a range of artforms. These voices are an important aspect of the South African public sphere where a polyphonic debate emerges about the meaning of ‘the social’: the manner in which people relate to one another and where, by means of the imagination, current relationships are scrutinized, old relations are reconsidered, and the possibility of new relationships examined.
Abstract
For decades, the political and cultural right to speak had been curtailed for millions of South Africans. Thirty years ago the first democratic elections that were held in the country radically changed this restriction. In 1994 all South African citizens older than 18 years were given a political voice in a new, democratic system. But whom of these citizens have been able to voice themselves outside of the voting booth? Whose voices are audible in the media, in novels, films and music? What has happened to the stories of those who suffered under apartheid and experienced colonial-era atrocities? And who is telling these stories? In my contribution, I will show how particular voices find expression across a range of artforms. These voices are an important aspect of the South African public sphere where a polyphonic debate emerges about the meaning of ‘the social’: the manner in which people relate to one another and where, by means of the imagination, current relationships are scrutinized, old relations are reconsidered, and the possibility of new relationships examined.
Chapters in this book
- Frontmatter I
- Contents V
- By Way of Introduction – Reflections on Narrative and Values, and the Value of Narratives 1
- The Ethical Potential and Risks of Narratives: Six Evaluative Continuums (and Sofi Oksanen’s Open Letter to Melania Trump) 23
- Narrative, Values, and the Place of the Human: Coordinating Anthropocentrism and Biocentrism 43
- The Circulating Professor: Narrative Configuration in Nabokov’s Pnin 61
- Multi-authored Yet Authorless Film Photonovels, an Ethical Paradox? 75
- Schrödinger’s Duck-Rabbit: Ambiguity and Meta-Framing across Media 93
- “Find me a motive!” Accusatory Rhetoric, Narrative and Values in Emile Zola’s ‘J’accuse’ 117
- The Right to Speak: The Cultural Archive and the Public Sphere in South Africa 133
- Dangerous Narratives: How Fake News and Narrative Journalism Shed Light on Journalism’s Epistemological Foundations and Self-understanding in the Twenty-first Century 155
- Beating Illness Into Shape: Applied Narratology and the Dangers of Storytelling 181
- Contributors 205
- Index 209
Chapters in this book
- Frontmatter I
- Contents V
- By Way of Introduction – Reflections on Narrative and Values, and the Value of Narratives 1
- The Ethical Potential and Risks of Narratives: Six Evaluative Continuums (and Sofi Oksanen’s Open Letter to Melania Trump) 23
- Narrative, Values, and the Place of the Human: Coordinating Anthropocentrism and Biocentrism 43
- The Circulating Professor: Narrative Configuration in Nabokov’s Pnin 61
- Multi-authored Yet Authorless Film Photonovels, an Ethical Paradox? 75
- Schrödinger’s Duck-Rabbit: Ambiguity and Meta-Framing across Media 93
- “Find me a motive!” Accusatory Rhetoric, Narrative and Values in Emile Zola’s ‘J’accuse’ 117
- The Right to Speak: The Cultural Archive and the Public Sphere in South Africa 133
- Dangerous Narratives: How Fake News and Narrative Journalism Shed Light on Journalism’s Epistemological Foundations and Self-understanding in the Twenty-first Century 155
- Beating Illness Into Shape: Applied Narratology and the Dangers of Storytelling 181
- Contributors 205
- Index 209
