Broken strings: interdisciplinarity and /Xam oral literature

Abstract

Long of interest to archaeologists and anthropologists, the Lloyd-Bleek archive of /Xam narratives and accounts has recently engaged literary scholars and poets. Yet this engagement has produced few dedicated studies, and little critical analysis of conventional anthropological readings. Consideration of the well-known ‘Song of the Broken String’ suggests that the material demands further attention to methods and neglected interpretive problems, in both anthropological and literary accounts. Such a focus on reading(s) and methods highlights common ground for debate amongst researchers who, despite diverse disciplinary interests, face the same hermeneutical task.