Between Satire and Suture: Some Aspects of White Writing in Post-Apartheid South Africa

Abstract

Since 1994, whites in South Africa have been trying to accommodate themselves to their newly acquired status as minoritarian. In the process, the initial attitude of political correctness vis-à-vis the black majority has given way to a more critical stance, which is evidenced by the spate of satirical writings that have emerged in South Africa in recent years. However, exposing the iniquities of the new order is one thing, but it would appear that in some instances, given satire's penchant for invective from a moral high ground, the critique of the way things are is not only motivated by the genuine concern for the well-being of the country but has become infused with a sense of racial superiority. This is counteracted in some instances, however, by the attempt on the part of the authors to somehow find their place in the new order, the psychoanalytical aspects of which can be best explained by drawing on the Lacanian concept of suture. Journal for the Study of Religion Vol. 19 (2) 2006: pp. 99-113