History, memory and reconciliation : Njabulo Ndebele’s The cry of Winnie Mandela and Pumla Gobodo- Madikizela’s A human being died that night
Date
2006-08
Authors
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
AOSIS Publishing
Abstract
This article deals with two texts written during the process of
transition in South Africa, using them to explore the cultural and ethical complexity of that process. Both Njabulo Ndebele’s “The cry of Winnie Mandela” and Pumla Gobodo-Madikizela’s “A human being died that night” deal with controversial public figures, Winnie Mandela and Eugene de Kock respectively, whose role in South African history has made them part of the national iconography. Ndebele and Gobodo-Madikizela employ narrative techniques that expose and exploit faultlines in the popular representations of these figures. The two texts offer radical ways of understanding the communal and individual suffering caused by apartheid, challenging readers to respond to the past in ways that will promote healing rather than perpetuate a spirit of revenge. The part played by official histories is implicitly questioned and the role of individual stories is shown to be crucial. Forgiveness and reconciliation are seen as dependent on an awareness of the complex circumstances and the humanity of those who are labelled as offenders. This requirement applies especially to the case of “A human being died that night”, a text that insists that the overt acknowledgement of the humanity of people like Eugene de Kock is an important way of healing South African society.
Description
CITATION: Goodman, R. 2006. History, memory and reconciliation : Njabulo Ndebele’s The cry of Winnie Mandela and Pumla Gobodo- Madikizela’s A human being died that night. Literator, 1-20, doi: 10.4102/lit.v27i2.190.
The original publication is available at http://literator.org.za
The original publication is available at http://literator.org.za
Keywords
Ndebele, Njabulo S. (Njabulo Simakahle). The cry of Winnie Mandela -- Criticism and interpretation, Gobodo-Madikizela, Pumla. A human being died that night -- Criticism and interpretation, De Kock, Eugene, Mandela, Winnie, Reconciliation -- Political aspects -- South Africa
Citation
Goodman, R. 2006. History, memory and reconciliation : Njabulo Ndebele’s The cry of Winnie Mandela and Pumla Gobodo- Madikizela’s A human being died that night. Literator, 1-20, doi: 10.4102/lit.v27i2.190