Opinion
LitNet contributors voice their opinions about current affairs.
Video: Thinking ahead: critical questions on language in higher education
2015-06-04Mbulungeni Madiba of UCT in conversation with Gerda Odendaal and Marius Swart, Department of Afrikaans and Dutch, Stellenbosch University. The discussion centred on a chapter in Neville Alexander's book Thoughts on the New South Africa, problematising the issue of language in the modern South African university.
Tessa Dowling on the Funza Lushaka bursaries
2015-05-26"So Chumani Maxwele is correct: we South Africans who are not first-language speakers of African languages need to lose our arrogance, our feelings of superiority and our fear of making fools of ourselves, and learn what it is like to flounder in a language that is not our own, but still make sense."
The Franschhoek Literary Festival 2015 and the elephant in the room
2015-05-22"And for all that the Franschhoek Literary Festival is irredeemably disengaged from the lived reality of much of South Africa ..."
Instagram or intervention? #xenomedia
2015-04-22What is the role of the media in the time of xenophobia?
André Brink: Impressions / Afterthoughts
2015-02-10After André Brink had received an honorary doctorate and delivered a speech at UCL he made one final public appearance. On Thursday, 5 February he was interviewed by Ludo Teeuwen at Bozar in Belgium. This interview (including photos) was the last time he appeared in front of an audience in his life.
Photos of André Brink's last public performance
2015-02-10After André Brink had received an honorary doctorate and delivered a speech at UCL he made one final public appearance. On Thursday, 5 February he was interviewed by Ludo Teeuwen at Bozar in Belgium. This interview was the last time he appeared in front of an audience in his life. Here are photos of this final interview.
In Memoriam: André Brink
2015-02-09 "Meeting him gave me a dear friend. Losing him is painful. Something I share with so many. Raising a glass to you now in London, dear André, friend for 41 years."
From Jy-is-’n-drol to Je-suis-Charlie
2015-01-11 "Censorship now happens in many subtle ways. The bigger concern is self-censorship where the fear of violent retaliation, no matter how small, mutes the voice and cripples the word."
"What Good is a Song?"
2014-12-15 "If a song has no meaning | if it cannot send you higher | it is not good enough to sing." Phil Ndlela writes a tribute to Marvin Gaye, USA for Africa Project, Peter Tosh and Hugh Masekela.
Breyten Breytenbach receives honorary doctorate from Ghent University
2014-12-10 "On 3 December 2014, Ghent University (UGent) presented an institutional honorary doctorate to the South African poet, painter, novelist, playwright, essayist and freedom activist Breyten Breytenbach."
To whom does a music genre belong?
2014-11-19 "Is it politically accurate to speak of 'white' or 'black' music? Why do we commonly designate hip hop to gangsters, reggae to Rastafarians, gospel to converted Christians, and bubblegum pop to teenage girls?"
Interview: Arthur Attwell explains the impact of the South African Department of Basic Education’s proposed new policy
2014-10-07 Arthur Attwell explains the impact of the South African Department of Basic Education’s proposed new policy: "Different learners need different kinds of textbooks, chosen school by school for their specific needs."
A tribute to the late Mbulelo Vizikhungo Mzamane (1948–2014)
2014-10-02 "On Saturday, February 15 the sun set on one of South Africa’s pre-eminent black scholars and writers, Mbulelo Vizikhungo Mzamane."
Cross-border languages
2014-09-25 "Africa was, and still is, a continent characterised by its rich linguistic heritage, but also the prominent role that the languages of the former colonial powers, namely English, French and Portuguese, still play."
I am a white South African … apparently
2014-09-05 "My name is Annzra Denita Naidoo. Although my ID defines my race as Indian, I have discovered that I am actually a white South African."
A Reading of Claudius’s "State of the Nation Address" in Hamlet
2014-09-02 Shakespeare Against Apartheid: "Those of us who seek an equitable, just and democratic South Africa ... need to recognise that there is no neutral territory for Shakespeare studies in present-day South Africa."
Students hold the future of Africa in their hands
2014-08-29 "South Africa has a democratic system, a vibrant civil society and an independent judiciary. You have a remarkable story to tell. Especially for those countries on the continent who are not yet at peace with themselves."
Skate in the Cape
2014-08-13 "With the opening of a new skate park in Gardens, Cape Town, and the rise in skate competitions, what lies ahead for this increasingly diverse sport?"
You’d (still) be lonely without your iPhone
2014-05-28 With viral videos telling you the root of your loneliness lies in your phone, it is time to consider what would really happen if phones were gone, using the logic of the video Look Up.