The New Politics of Afrikaans

Abstract

The “new politics of Afrikaans” is primarily concerned with defending Afrikaans language and culture in the new South Africa. In contrast to Afrikaner nationalism, it seeks to ensure a vital and viable future for Afrikaans, which does not depend on white racial domination or Afrikaner political power. At the same time, it seeks to prevent Afrikaners from disowning their language or cultural identity, or abandoning the sphere of the political in the new South Africa. It seeks instead to defend cultural diversity and local forms of community against the homogenizing pressures of capitalist globalization. This article examines the evolution of moral, political and philosophical ideas and arguments in this process, and in particular their ambiguous relationship to capitalism in the new South Africa. It examines the logic of reconciliation under Mandela and Mbeki; the ways in which Afrikaner critics of apartheid conceived of the role of Afrikaners; how postmodernism has reconfigured the philosophy of history on which they relied; and the arguments of Breyten Breytenbach—perhaps the most celebrated figure in the new politics of Afrikaans. In conclusion, it puts forward a brief account of the class dynamics which are deciding the future of language and culture in the new South Africa.