(2). It can dip in and out of the past, dawdle through the present, perhaps even stick its nose into the future. USabata ngumnyulwa kaYehova, uThixo. The first poem I wrote, at age six, was about a fish. These poems are a powerful reminder of both the horror and the hope of apartheid South Africa. You have mentioned to me personally that you grew up bilingually in Afrikaans and English. Kumkani ebunganga bumi ngaKapa, Iimantyi noMongameli ngabancedisi bokumkani! The second is the date of Constantine: The first poem of yours that I read was return, which is among the poems published in this issue. Racial segregation and white supremacy had become central aspects of South African policy long before apartheid began. Theoretically, you can create endlessly long compound words by just adding more modifiers, so in still-scape, instead of just writing the wintery mild windy blue air, I used a compound word to form a more quiet, uninterrupted horizon line for the poem. Continue with Recommended Cookies. Do you go gentle into that good night, as Dylan Thomas says, or do you not? Prose, poetry, and dramas written by South African authors after the repeal of the nation's apartheid lawsrules governing the separation of black Peacefulness is one of the virtues If people could be resurrected, I would resurrect him and embrace him. Nanzo ke izijwili zikrakra phambi kwakho. Ukaiser Matanzima ngumntu wakhokanye, What are your writing strategies, and have these strategies changed over the years? Archie Mafeje, However, they are both similar as they both dont implement much rhythm and rhyme. South Africa's literary community, including such authors as Nadine Gordimer, J. M. Coetzee, Athol Fugard, and Alan Paton, had been instrumental in bringing world attention to the legacy of colonialism and the unjust apartheid laws in their native country. The quote I press my nose to the clear panes which supports the idea of the inequality between blacks and whites. Fulfilling his role as an imbongi, as a spokesman of the nation, Mbutuma denounces the illegitimacy of the regime, with its government-sanctioned violence and corruption. Nkos ezinkulu kabaThembu zimbini kuuphela, It has a mixed ancestry: mainly Dutch but also English, German, French, Malay-Portuguese creole, Khoisan, and other African languages. Mostly comprising Coloured teachers, it focused on anti-racism and anti-imperialism issues. And this harrowing poem, written by Dennis Brutus, is a stark reminder of what makes Human Rights Day such an important day of reflection. Under pressure from the international community, the National Party government of Pieter Botha sought to institute some reforms, including abolition of the pass laws and the ban on interracial sex and marriage. Uwawole ngani na mfo ndini la magwangqa? Now he is a famous poet and playwright. WebPoem for South African Women. In 1976, when thousands of Black children in Soweto, a Black township outside Johannesburg, demonstrated against the Afrikaans language requirement for Black African students, the police opened fire with tear gas and bullets. It is like a young child running ahead to investigate the world but then coming back to briefly clasp its parents hand once again. A Thembu, a Coloured, and a White are one and the samething. The governments of the world are on yourside. Updated: April 20, 2023 | Original: October 7, 2010. In addition, Worcester State University (US) brought out a selected poetry collection in 2004 to honour his 80th birthday. Hayi yimfundo ukufundiswa kundilahlekisile; To you, great king, whose power is felt as far afield as CapeTown And in the mine dumps of Johannesburg. Watervlerk received the foremost South African literary prizes, the Eugne Marais Prize and the Ingrid Jonker Award, and was followed by three more poetry collections, a book of short stories, and a novel, all written in Afrikaans. Sadly, just as I was getting ready to publish the poems, my mother passed away. This was the first book of yours that I read, and I was drawn to its originality and great emotional depths. Kungoku nyasiralisela umfo kaMhlobo, One does have a choice. Filed Under: Protest & Satirical Poems Tagged With: Anti-Apartheid, Melikhaya Mbutuma, South Africa, Xhosa, This site opens a window on something that will be new to most people, namely, the vast amount of superb poetry hidden away in the 3000 different languages spoken in Africa More. In 1971 he emigrated to the US, becoming a professor in the English Department at Northwestern University. The title helps me to understand the poem because it is the main message that is going through the poem. Every year on 21 March, South Africa celebrates Human Rights Day. And there is Chief Zwelihle, who is senior to Matanzima. Meaning he was descended from a junior wife. Coelacanths and other ancient animals appear in intriguing ways in other poems too. If I look at the first poems in Afrikaans from the late nineteenth century before it became an official language, I have to make the same effort in reading these poems as I would, say, for English literary works from the seventeenth century. Constantine: You have mentioned to me personally that you grew up bilingually in Afrikaans and English. Worthwhile decisions come from the people, Yini na ukubulala isilambi seBhulu? Matanzima and the others have been learning from these intellectual giants. If there are three dates, the first date is the date of the original Courtesy: Sue Williamson and Goodman Gallery, Cape Town, Johannesburg, and London.