Abstract
B.W. Vilakazi is rightly famous for his Zulu poems that integrate the Zulu creative genius with established European poetic trends. He was also the creator of the Zulu romantic novel, having written the first three examples of the genre dealing with both personal and national romantic ideals. These are, however, seldom analysed. This article reflects on the emerging literatures in African languages, their aims, contents and forms. After a general introduction on Vilakazi’s life and innovative approach to creative writing within the context of the African mini-renaissance period of the 1930s, there is a brief exposition of Vilakazi’s vision of an African literature, rooted in the need for self-identification, and recognition of perceived historical greatness. Then each novel is contextualised and analysed, through a description of the characters that exert the greatest influence on the events, since plot and character are also the highest achievement of the folktale, when told by expert performers. An attempt is also made to identify Afro-centric narrative elements and to justify perceived shortcomings in plot construction.
Highlights
The Mariannhill archives possess the manuscripts of the famous twelve dramatic sketches, created and performed by the students in 1921-1922, representing stories taken from the Bible, British history, and notably African history and folklore. These are often considered the first examples of Zulu creative writing
The first Zulu novelist of note, created the genre by adapting foreign forms and Zulu literary traditions, and clearly expressed the conflicts identified by Scheub
Vilakazi and the birth of the Zulu novel elopes to Natal with Nomcebo
Summary
The 1909 Union of South Africa was a pact of the white races on the skin of the black populations to defraud them of their lands, traditional institutions, religion and culture, and make them unable to resist enslavement. Both the Louis Botha and the Hertzog governments institutionalised many discriminatory practices rooted in the colonial practice of the previous century, which deprived the Africans of basic human rights. The essential medium of cultural expression were the African languages, which H.I.E. Dhlomo (quoted in Gerard, 1971:228) described as having “greatly developed powers of speech” in their oral milieu.
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