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Attitudes towards polygamy in select African fiction
(University of Zululand, 2013) Ndabayakhe, Vuyiswa; Addison, C.
Polygamy is widely practised in African communities. The African social-realist novel, especially when it is woman-authored, shows female characters as having to play docile, subservient roles and accept demeaning positions in polygamous marriages. Although it has been claimed that traditional African marriage creates a satisfactory situation for women, mainly by means of the security it offers and the bonds that it forges between co-wives, the narrators of African realist novels almost always expose only evils associated with polygamy. In most of the texts, co-wives experience conflict with one another, not bonds. Men are portrayed as egocentric beings that greedily satisfy their sexual impulses at the expense of women. Encouraged by their families, they inflict irreparable emotional damage not only on their accumulated wives but often also on their offspring. While blinded by their desires, these men engender many unplanned children for whom they usually take little fatherly responsibility. Consequently, children too are objects of pity in many of the books. This dissertation, by means of close analysis of select African narratives, reveals that, despite all the struggles for liberation and democracy, values highly regarded in modern societies, polygamy is a prevailing sign of male dominance in African communities today. The dissertation shows that even such male-authored novels as Chinua Achebe’s Things Fall Apart and Onuora Nzekwu’s High Life For Lizards fail to recommend a polygamous life to women, while Mariama Bâ ’s So Long a Letter and Scarlet Song, Buchi Emecheta’s The Joys of Motherhood and Kehinde, Es’kia Mphahlele’s Chirundu, Lazarus Miti’s The Prodigal Husband, Ama Ata Aidoo’s Changes, Sue Nyathi’s The Polygamist,SembeneOusmane’s Xala, Lola Shoneyin’s The Secret Lives of Baba Segi’s Wives, Rebecca HourwichReyher’s Zulu Woman, Miriam KWere’s The Eighth Wife, T.M. Aluko’s One Man One Wife and Aminata Sow Fall’s The Beggars’Strike all use polygamy to highlight the incongruence between the ideals of democracy and the facts of life as experienced by African women. These texts reflect real social problems. They cast light on the inequalities that prevail in polygamous relationships and imply that the principle of equality cannot be achieved as long as polygamy exists.
Central women characters and their influence in Shakespeare, with particular reference to the Merchant of Venice, Macbeth, Julius Caesar and Antony and Cleopatra
(University of Zululand, 2009) Mngomezulu, Thulisile Fortunate; Meihuizen, N.C.T.
Shakespeare portrayed women in his plays as people who should be valued. This is an opinion I held in the past, and one I still hold after intense reading of his works and that of authors such as Marlowe, Webster, Thomas Kyd and others. Shakespeare created his female characters out of a mixture of good and evil. When they interact with others, either the best or the worst in them is brought out: extreme evil in some cases and perfect goodness in others. I hope the reader will enjoy this study as much as I did, and that it will enhance their reading of Shakespeare‟s works and cultivate their interest in him. This study is intended to motivate other people to change their view that Shakespeare‟s works are inaccessible. Those who hold this view will come to know that anyone anywhere can read, understand and appreciate the works of this the greatest writer of all times. In his study Shakespeare’s World, Johanyak says, “I wrote [it] to help students appreciate the depth and breadth of Shakespeare‟s global awareness. Shakespeare was not only a London playwright, but a man of the world who dramatized his perceptions to create a lasting legacy of his times” (2004: ix).
The centrifugal discourse of myth : women and the 'saving illusion' in selected works of Joseph Conrad
(1997) Soane, Berverley-Anne.; Hooper, M.
The primary aim of this thesis is to demonstrate that the women characters in Joseph Conrad's works function in the narratives to present a 'saving illusion' which is in contrast to masculine existential despair. The women characters are characterised by 'being' not 'becoming'. They are also frequently associated with that which is stable because it is fixed, and with notions of courage, faith and fidelity. These notions constitute the 'saving illusion' for male characters who are threatened with moral collapse when illusions fail. The representation of the women characters as 'saving illusion' arises from a mythology of 'woman' which inheres in masculine imagination. In the terms of myth theory, Conrad's women characters can be said to offer the male characters the life-affirming possibilities that traditional myth does. The representation of the women characters as myth functions as a competing discourse with that of authoritative masculine discourse. The women characters' discourse is thus centrifugal in that it resists the centripetal, unitary discourse of male characters, and demonstrates that narratives are essentially heteroglossic rather than monoglossic. Women's discourse can either comply with or resist the way they are defined by male characters. Depicted as silent, passive and iconic, the women characters are also frequently attributed with unwavering commitment and fidelity. However their discourse seeks to resist such constructions. Mythologising women renders them 'other', and the underlying suspicion and awe that leads to their mythologising renders them objects in the relationships of knowledge and power. Women characters have their existence in patriarchal structures which bear a resemblance to colonial structures. Mythologised women are similar to colonised 'other' in that both serve to demarcate the space of the coloniser. Like the colonised subject, women are frequently associated with 'chthonian' forces of nature which the coloniser regards as threatening, uncontrollable and in need of taming. As mythologised, colonised 'objects', the women characters are in a state of ontological arrest; hence they do not participate in an exchange of knowledge because they are symbolised by it. A study of the women characters in the novels will reveal that they play significant roles in the mythologies of male characters, providing a 'sustaining illusion' which counters masculine disillusionment.
Challenges Posed by the Use of English as the Language of Learning and Teaching in KwaZulu Natal (KZN) high schools.
(Univeristy of Zululand, 2021) Cele-Sangweni, Esther Emily
This study set out to investigate factors behind the poor academic performance of Grade 12 learners in the township schools of KwaZulu-Natal. The research was conducted in 12 public high schools of the Department of Basic Education in the districts of Umlazi and Pinetown. The enquiry was prompted by the observation that learners from township schools often struggle to do well in both the Matric examinations and at first year university studies, yet official reports of learner performance give the impression that Grade 12 learners’ academic performance is improving. The study posited that the relatively poor academic performance is a result of a myriad of factors that make learning a struggle for South African township learners. It postulated that these factors included the use of English as a medium of learning and teaching among second language speakers of the language, learners’ social and economic circumstances, their learning and home environments, and their psychological attitudes or conditions. However, the main focus of the study was the use of English as a medium of learning and teaching. Therefore, the theoretical foundation of the study was the question of language competence and language use, especially in South African education. The study adopted Noam Chomsky’s theory of Transformational Generative Grammar as well as later modifications of the theory as its framework.The core of the study was linguistic and communicative competence. It emphasised that for township high school learners to perform well academically they need to master the language of learning and teaching in the following crucial areas: vocabulary and grammatical rules that allow for understanding and creative production of the language; the four language skills – reading, writing, speaking and listening; all forms of the communicative systems that work in language; and cognitive academic language proficiency (CALP) which will enable them to understand and use the formal language register of classroom discourse and textbooks, as well as to think analytically and critically to solve problems, to use their imagination and engage in inductive and deductive reasoning. Using a Mixed Methods approach, the study found that, although on paper, all South African children have access to education, for learners in the townships, learning is an on-going struggle. The poor and unstable living, social and school conditions in which they live and learn do not allow them to acquire the linguistic competences required of them to learn and be taught in English, especially since they are taught English First Additional Language which is regarded as inferior to English Home Language taught in former Model C schools. These conditions do not promote excellent academic development and achievement, neither are they conducive to cognitive development and learning. In spite of this, the majority of learners, educators and parents preferred that English, which is perceived as a high status language with power, ‘linguistic capital’ and functional value, be used as the medium of learning and teaching. The study asserts that as long as English remains the medium of instruction, without additional English language support, the majority of learners from township and rural schools who write the Grade 12 examinations will not be competent enough in English to be successfully able to learn and be examined in it. Therefore, the study suggests that, for these learners to do well in the Matric examination and first year university, special interventions should be introduced. The study proposes that these could include identifying and gaining a deeper understanding of the hurdles that confront township learners; introducing creative teaching and learning approaches as well as language choices and uses that could solve some of the linguistic and learning problems. The study proposes an intervention education model whose aim would be to develop learners holistically and prepare them to perform well in the Grade 12 examination and first year university studies.
Challenges teachers face when teaching grade 4 English first additional language (FAL) reading in rural schools of the Dzindi circuit in the Vhembe district
(University of Zululand, 2021) Mulaudzi, Israel Creleanor
English is the medium of instruction for most of the learners in primary schools in Vhembe District. Therefore, the ability to read is an indispensable foundation for all learning. Failure by learners to understand either concepts in lessons or questions in assessments, because of English poor reading skills, impacts on learner performance in other subjects. However, teaching reading is a major challenge in South African rural public schools today. A considerable number of schools in the Vhembe District have teachers experiencing such challenges. While the Department of Basic Education (DBE) is attempting to intervene in these schools to address this problem, the interventions and turnaround strategies have not been sustainable. In schools where interventions and turnaround strategies are provided, such interventions have been short-lived and were not sustainable. The aim of the study was to investigate challenges teachers face when teaching Grade 4 English First Additional Language reading (FAL) in rural schools of Dzindi Circuit in Vhembe District toestablish strategies to overcome those challenges. This study used a quantitative research design in which questionnaires and observation were used for data collection as a result quantitative approach was used. The sampling method used was probability where simple random sampling procedure was followed to select a sample of 20 respondents who completed questionnaires for quantitative method and 5 teachers were observed. Quantitative data was collected using questionnaires and structured observation schedules in this study. The DBE should take advantage of the high qualifications and vast experience held by most teachers in rural schools and empower such teachers through workshops on reading English FAL. It is recommended that teachers in rural schools must not be complacent about teacher-learner ratios that have become much lower, compared to the past, but should aim at the recommended ratio, that promotes individual attention to learners. Teachers in rural schools, most of whom are natives, are aware of words in their home language, that have the potential of interfering with words to be read by learners in English FAL. Special classes meant to focus on such words are crucial for learners to be alerted of such interference. Quantitative data were analysed using IBM Statistical Package for Social Sciences Version 25 (IBM SPSS statistics). Theoretical framework used theories of reading which are: the bottom-up approach to reading called phonics, the cognitive view (top-down processing), constructivism and the metacognitive view.
Character and identity in selected works by Bessie Head
(1998) Thusi, Nokuthula Monica; Hooper, M.J.
A central concern in the works of Bessie Head has been the relations between writer and character. One of her novels has indeed been described as an 'autobiography' rather than a novel. Although theoretical interest in the subject of character has 'old fashioned' overtones the existence of character is a textual fact which depends on the constructive role of writers and readers. The connections between Head's characters and aspects of her own biography are obvious. Recurrent themes and situations in her fiction and her other writings can be read as narrative explorations of the nature of the self. It is in the process of discovering the self and carving out an identity that Head creates characters as a means of exploring her own nature and potential. My study focuses on identifying and acknowledging her perceptions on ideal identity and attempts to demonstrate the need for readers of her work to recognise the complementarity of social and subjective existence; to relate Head's subjective trauma to the external reality in which she was located. Head's characters are frequently shown working out ways of setting up balanced human relationships which are characterised by egality, power-sharing, mutual support and human respect. A definite link exists between the inner and outer domains, and so the state of wholeness or completeness is also recognised and monitored in my analysis of character relationships. The interrelatedness of the private and public marks the route her textual quest takes. The implications of complementarity can be measured in the successes and failures of relationships which are examined in my case studies. The novels When Rain Clouds Gather, Maru and A Question of Power reveal the writer's self-examination of an inner world troubled by alienation and mental disturbances. Gradually, though, she comes to terms with these problems and becomes more socially conscious and integrated. Thus social interest characterises her later work: The Collector of Treasures and Serowe: Village of the Rain Wind. The journey of self¬discovery reaches its fulfilment in the historical saga A Bewitched Crossroad, which serves to acknowledge Head's official settlement in Botswana, and her concomitant commitment to historical and cultural preservation. Emerging from her explorations of character is the fact that though the writer is responsible for the existence of characters, she cannot manipulate them all the time but frequently allows them sufficient detachment to decide their own fates. Thus she is able to both project her aspirations and to find solutions to her own problems through her characters' development. Such a relationship between writer and character exemplifies the notion of complementarity by which, in Head's notion of things, an ideal society must exist. y/f
Communicative competence in English among rural African high school learners in the Eshowe Circuit
(2008) Ntombela, Berrington Xolani Siphosakhe; Mpepo, M.V.
This study investigates communicative competence in English among rural African high school learners in the Eshowe circuit. Poor student performance especially in higher institutions has generally been linked to incompetence in English Second Language, which motivated an investigation into communicative competence among high school learners from a rural background. The study was conducted in five high schools in the Eshowe circuit The design of the study necessitated the adoption of qualitative approach in order to probe the multifaceted phenomenon of communicative approach in its natural setting (the classroom situation). The theoretical underpinnings on which this study relied on were extracted from the field of discourse analysis and text linguistics. Also, due to the nature of the study i.e. being concerned with communicative competence and Communicative Language Teaching (CLT), much of the literature reviewed surveyed the concept of communicative competence from scholars and researchers such as Chomsky (1969); Hymes (1982); Widdowson (1985), and Saville-Troike (1997). Moreover, the linguistic context on which the study was based necessitated that we explore the definitions of bilingualism and multilingualism. Classroom discourse was used in analysing the lessons in a Second Language classroom setting. Lessons seemed to display a unique classroom interaction pattern, typical of teacher-pupil interaction in a Second Language classroom. In addition, the study looked at the extent to which the lessons complied with the expectations of the Communicative Language Teaching (CLT) with particular attention to \earner roles and teacher roles in CLT. Moreover, the analysis of lessons is subjected to seven standards of textuality discussed by Beaugrande and Dressier (1981), which helped determine the textuality of lesson texts, as these standards are activated during communicative events. The study further considered possible remedy to the errors found in English lesson transcripts. Though the National Curriculum Statement offered viable solutions to learners' errors, a challenge lied with errors committed by teachers, who according to the study, fell below the assumed competence and fell short of being subject specialists. Nevertheless, teachers' utterances were characterised by occurrences of code-switching, which according to the study played a positive role in regulating classroom behaviour. From the analysis of lessons it emerged that in most lessons, though a communicative approach was followed, there was little or no linguistic input from the teachers, which raised doubts about the implementation of the communicative approach to language teaching. Indeed, data indicated shortfalls in the implementation of CLT as expected in NCS. The problem of communicative incompetence loomed heavily not only over the learners, but also over the teachers as well, which is a cause for concern in the teaching of English as a Second Language.
A comparative study of variation in stress and intonation patterns in the spoken English of some selected Yoruba and Zulu university undergraduate students
(University of Zululand, 2016) Ayoola, Oluwafunmiso Moses; Mpepo, M.V
English is a world language. The serious concern for the study and the adaptation of English to the world in general and Nigerian and South African milieu in particular started over a century ago. The study of English has been given new dimension through debates held at conferences and workshops over the issue of standard or correctness which seemingly emerged in different countries of the world. The growing divergence and convergence of English language in the world today paved way for variations in use particularly at the level of spoken words. The present work is one of the new crops of studies that attempts to identify and characterise the varieties of spoken English of our time. The study deals with a comparative study of variation in stress and intonation patterns in the spoken Yoruba and Zulu English. It seeks to identify the nature of Yoruba and Zulu spoken English and to account for the varieties that exist within the continuum. The study also aims to generate a pedagogical approach for the presentation of the appropriate spoken English inputs which is necessary for characterizing Yoruba and Zulu spoken English. The essence is to see the growing divergence and convergence of spoken English in these two speech communities. The subjects of the study were 120 Yoruba and Zulu speakers of English. The speakers were selected using a stratified random sampling technique. The main criteria for stratification were level education in English language and the linguistic group of the speakers. Two British (male and female) were used as the control. The elicitation instruments used for the collection of data were face to face interviews and materials for reading. The materials were divided into three parts: the word list, the sentence and a continuous reading passage. The three reading materials contained the target phonological variables which the researcher was interested in. The subjects were made to read each of the materials one after another and were recorded using PRAAT, a program for doing phonetic analyses and sound manipulations by Boersma and Weenink (2010). The study employed the framework of Metrical Phonology in the representation of stress. This was based on the view of rhythm proposed by Liberman (1975) and later developed into a theory by Liberman and Prince (1977). In this theory, the syllables are represented as having strong (S) and weak (W) stresses. The assignment of strong and weak nodes is determined by two rules: a Lexical Category Prominence Rule (LCPR), which operates on simple and compound words and Nuclear Stress Rule (NSR), which covers phrases and sentences. The analysis of intonation was based on Pierrehumbert’s (1980) model of intonation which supports the independence of stress pitch. In this system, intonation contours are seen as pitch accent and are described in terms of two levels: High and Low tones. The rank of difference was calculated using Wilcoxon (1985) Statistical Test. The study revealed that the spoken Yoruba and Zulu English featured more prominent syllables than spoken British English. The difference occurred mostly at the level of syllable and utterance duration. With regard to intonation, the study showed that the spoken Yoruba English is different from Zulu counterparts and those of the British. While the British used more directional tones, the Yoruba and Zulu used unidirectional tones. The study also showed that isiZulu speakers exhibited instances of vowel lengthening system while the Yoruba speakers demonstrated the tendency to use reduced vowel system. The varieties of spoken Yoruba English are different from those of isiZulu spoken English and in some measure significantly different from the British who served as the control group (see analyses on chapters five and six). The claim that high tones are associated with lexical words and low tones with structural words as posited by Well (1982), and Gut and Milde (2000) was not conclusively accepted by the data in this study. This study contends that the observed stress and intonation patterns in the spoken of some selected Yoruba and Zulu speakers could be considered as are part of ‘Standard educated Yoruba and Zulu spoken English’. The acoustic analyses of stress and intonation clearly showed that in isiZulu spoken English, syllable duration particularly the unstressed syllables are relatively longer than in the Yoruba and those in the native variety of spoken English being represented by the control group.
Contesting identities: a study of the nexus between double-consciousness and belonging in Angie Thomas’ The Hate U Give (2017); Samira Ahmed’s Love, Hate & Other Filters (2018) and Gloria Chao’s American Panda (2018)
(University of Zululand, 2022) Mbiba, Lizwe; Mafu, L.
This study’s purpose is to interrogate the connection that exists between double-consciousness, belonging and identity among minority ethnic groups in the modern American society. The study also analyses how those Americans who are not predominantly white Americans and have ethnic origins in some parts of the world like Asian and African continents, seem to live less fulfilling lives and resultantly writhe with prejudices and segregation in their quest to achieve the full potential of their lives. The end result of this process is an existential crisis that is directly linked to their contradictory identities. It is in the study that the researcher also asks how societal as well as familial expectations and stereotypes impact on the identity of their members leading to dualism of character (double-consciousness). The focus of this research is thus to analyse the link between the individual, family, societal values and how this complement and influence each other in the formation of identity and belongingness to that particular society.
An exploration of characteristic elements intrinsic to the matrix of John Steinbeck's fiction and their effect on the critical reception of his work, with particular reference to a God unknown
(1998) Wilkinson, Ronald.; Meihuizen, N.C.T.; Crumley, J.A..
At the centre of this dissertation is the paradox to be found in the fact that although John Steinbeck was the recipient of some of the highest accolades ever to be bestowed upon a writer during this century, his work - and even his person - have, over the years, been subjected to severe attacks from sometimes impercipient critics. !n the thirties, he was branded as a California regionalist of some distinction, but the general consensus among the critics seemed to be that he was unlikely to achieve greatness due to major artistic flaws that were perceived to be present in his work. These flaws included his purported indecency, vulgarity, sexual licence and demagoguery. Reverse reasoning, by which his 'weaker, later works' (especially post World War 11) are compared unfavourably with 'the better earlier ones' of the thirties, is also dealt with. Other aspects that receive attention are his world-view (which is often misunderstood and compared unfavourably with that of other authors) and the fact that his deceptively lucid works are easy to read and therefore often underrated by critics as well as careless readers. Although criticism which centres upon ethical, sociological and political issues instead of artistic merit, is briefly dealt with, emphasis is placed on three elements that are intrinsic to Steinbeck's fiction and their role in the acceptance of his work. These elements, namely allegory/myth, non-teleological thinking and his approach to religion, are dealt with in general terms but also with particular reference to his novel To a God Unknown. To a God Unknown was specifically chosen as a focus for this study because it is believed that it reveals many of the 'flaws' that Steinbeck has been criticised for. It is also considered to be of seminal importance in his canon and therefore a harbinger of later works. As such it reveals a great deal about the author's outlook on life, early influences on his work, theoretical and practical approaches to his writing, and the various techniques employed to achieve his goals. The novel is also a typical example of one of Steinbeck's works of fiction that enjoys a wide and continued readership in spite of the adverse criticism that attended its appearance. This anomaly is central to the study. Virtually all of the works in Steinbeck's canon as well as the reviews and criticisms of internationally recognised Steinbeck scholars and critics collectively served as a 'pool of reference' in the compilation of this dissertation. Other sources included works on American and world literature and history; philosophy; psychology; biography; mythology; theology, and other aspects that have a bearing upon the subject matter. Extensive use was made of the excellent facilities and services provided by the university library as well as by various institutions and individuals on the Internet. The conclusion is reached that it is essential to take cognisance of the Oriental aspect of the Transcendentalist influence on Steinbeck's world-view in order to understand the confluence of apparently irreconcilable philosophical and mythological anomalies in Steinbeck's fiction.
Factors to be considered in designing a comprehensive syllabus for English Second Language learners (ESL), with reference to learners in KwaZulu-Natal, North coast
(2006) Gazu, Khulekani Amegius; Moyo, C.T.
The post 1994 era in South Africa has been characterized by rampant change. During this age of transition, almost every aspect of social life has seen new institutions and structures being put in place to redress the injustices and imbalances of the apartheid system. Education has not been an exception. The English Second Language (ESL) syllabus was changed in 1996 and replaced by the 'Interim Core Syllabus'. Since 1996, this interim syllabus has been in effect until 2006 in Grades 11 and 12. Practically, the Education Department of South Africa has relied on the ESL syllabus which was meant to be a temporary measure for eleven years. In the classes lower than Grades 11 and 12, Curriculum 2005 was put in place and was subsequently replaced by the Revised National Curriculum Statement. Again, the Revised National Curriculum Statement was replaced by the National Curriculum Statement. In short, until 2006 high schools, that is, Further Education and Training band, have relied on the interim syllabus and Grade 12 will continue doing so up to 2007. Prompted by the fact that the ESL syllabus had been interim for quite some time and the learners' performance was not satisfactory, the researcher engaged in this study. In 1999 and 2000, learners' performance in ESL in the Empangeni Region was not of the required standard. Eshowe district, which is the focus of this study, was no exception. Learners' poor performance in ESL during these years meant that the aims and objectives of the ESL Interim Core Syllabus for Standard 8,9 and 10 that was used by schools were not entirely realized. This research aimed at finding factors that were responsible for learners' not performing up to the required standard during the years referred to above and possibly in subsequent years. The point of departure for this study was syllabus design - specifically the Interim Core Syllabus of 1996. Admittedly, there may have been other factors that are social, political, affective, etc in nature. However, this study was concerned with factors more directly linked to the education system since syllabi used in schools to facilitate learner assessment are an education factor.
The Features of Single-fathers in Father-daughter Relationships in Shakespear's King Lear, The Merchant of Venice and The Tempest
(University of Zululand, 2021) Kanyile, Smanga Welford Nhlakanipho
The scholarship by most of the feminist Shakespearean critics, especially during the post-modern era, has promoted the idea of Shakespeare’s male single parents as ‘tyrannous’, ‘cruel’, ‘violent’ and ‘murderous.’ Some of these critics are Shin (2010), Callaghan (2000, 2002 and 2016), and Leventen (1991). Not only do some of the critics find ‘all’ Shakespeare’s single fathers ‘tyrannous,’ ‘cruel,’ ‘violent’ and ‘murderous’, some even claim that by such characterization of single fathers, Shakespeare was deliberately promoting these unethical behaviours of his era. This research seeks to test these views against alternative readings of Shakespeare’s single fathers, the alternative view, that not ‘all…single fathers’ are ‘tyrannous,’ ‘cruel,’ ‘violent’ and ‘murderous’ in their relationships with their children, particularly their female children. Through a close reading of father-daughter relationships in Shakespeare’s King Lear, The Merchant of Venice and The Tempest,’ this paper will investigate the existence of good male single parents: those who demonstrate positive qualities in playing their paternal roles in the lives of their daughters, in particular.
Language in education : a sociolinguistic aspect in Black African high schools in Eshowe District
(2002) Ntombela, Berrington Xolani Siphosakhe; Mpepo, M.V
Before the emergence of democracy in South Africa, the apartheid regime had brought linguistic imbalance. In 1994 the new government of South Africa set out to address the imbalances created by the apartheid government. Prior to 1994, English and Afrikaans were the only official languages in South Africa. In order to address this situation the new government elevated nine of the South African languages to the same status with English and Afrikaans. The government then introduced the new languages in education policy, which aims at promoting multilingualism in education. Therefore the main focus of this research is on the implementation of the new language in education policy taking into consideration the sociolinguistic situation of the country. The empirical study was conducted in 1999 and 2000. Questionnaires were distributed to respondents. Non-scheduled interview and observation data was collected from five black African high schools in Eshowe district. In addition data was collected from one Superintendent of Education Management in Eshowe district. The main findings indicated that Afrikaans had been phased out in most schools that were studied. Hence, English and Isizulu were the remaining languages that were taught and learned. Moreover, the sociolinguistic situation indicated that IsiZulu was the predominant languages spoken largely in schools and in communities where schools are situated. Having considered the main findings it was evident that there is still a tremendous challenge on the actual implementation of the new language in education policy, which emphasises promotion of multilingualism. However, the sociolinguistic situation suggested that bilingualism involving IsiZulu would be more appropriate. The research looked at the theoretical understanding of the concepts of bilingualism and multilingualism. The concepts are defined in the research to bring more understanding on individual multilingualism and societal multilingualism or bilingualism. This research further concentrates on literature review which discusses the new language in education policy, kinds of bilingualism or multilingualism, the current debate on the language in education policy and the language policy implementation plans. Furthermore, it was important in the literature review to look at the theories of second language acquisition. The theories that were reviewed and evaluated are; Krashen's monitor model, interlanguage theory, linguistic universals, acculturation / pidginisation theory and cognitive theory. After reviewing these theories language teaching theories or approaches are also discussed. The language teaching theories that were reviewed and evaluated are; the structural approach, the functional approach and the interactional approach. In addition, the research discussed the research methodology after which the data that was collected was presented. The findings were then interpreted followed by the conclusion and recommendations.
Migrant masculinities and spatial transformation in recent South African and Zimbabwean fiction
(University of Zululand, 2023) Phakathi, Blessing; Akpome, Aghogho & Ndabayakhe, Vuyiswa
This study foregrounds the links between migrant masculinities and spatial transformation in recent South African and Zimbabwean fiction written by women authors. Using various postcolonial theories dealing with masculinity, I argue that the authors of the selected novels suggest that changes in the performance of masculinity by their main male characters are linked with movement between different socio-cultural spaces. This means that the male character’s sense of self and his performance of masculinity are influenced by the status of his migrancy. The novels reveal that various degrees of migrancy influence the performance of masculinities both in private and public spaces. Migrancy between two cities in the same country, between rural and urban spaces in the same country, between one urban space in one country to another country, are determinants of the resultant masculinities constructed and performed in the respective spaces. Using Nkealah’s (2014) idea of absented presences, I also demonstrate the ways in which the chosen texts foreground the performance of masculinities by women in households headed by single women where there are no men. The major significance of the study is its uses of literary and cultural analysis to shed light on the endemic crisis of problematic masculinities currently facing communities across South Africa and Zimbabwe.
Motivation and attitudes towards English as a second language (ESL) among learners in rural KwaZulu-Natal High Schools
(2008) Kanjira, Timothy Jameson; Mpepo, M.V.
Judging from what several of teachers have generally said about the poor performance and low levels of English proficiency, (how poorly they spoke, read and wrote), there seems to be a lack of interest or motivation among rural high school learners to acquire English proficiently. Thus, motivation being what initiates, sustains and directs thinking and behavior, as Louw and Edwards (1997:425) put it, and that motivational processes make us seek and find the things we need for our survival and development (approach motives) - one of the three variables on which good language learning depends, in Pride’s (1979) words, lack of it (motivation) is considered a worrying enough a situation, which warranted scrutiny and careful study. Many factors could account for such a decline or loss of interest in learning English, which is a need for survival in a cosmopolitan country like South Africa and in the world today. Only some kind of misunderstanding of freedom and language rights or misinformation and ignorance or even some form of a misguided ethnic endeavour suicidal in nature on the part of learners, could create or inform such an unfortunate situation of lack of motivation to learning English, when competition for jobs is so high. This research has investigated factors, which might account for what seems to be clearly a decline in interest or motivation among the rural KZN high school learners to acquire English proficiently. In order to meet the aims and objectives of the study, four different groups of people key to the study (people directly involved in the learning and teaching taking place in high schools situated in the rural communities of KwaZulu- Natal) had to be questioned about the matter: 1) learners from several rural high schools 2) high school educators - English subject specialists from a wide selection of rural high schools, as well as few primary school educators 3) parents of children learning in different rural high schools. 4) Some officials, too, from the KZN department of education were interviewed, from whom official information and statistics were obtained.
Percieved linguistic and communicative competence of bi/multilingual autistic children in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa
(University of Zululand, 2021) Kehinde, Olumuyiwa Adekunle
Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) is a severe brain-related neurodevelopmental disorder compared to many other childhood disorders. ASD is a lifelong global phenomenon and it is characterised by significant impairments in social, and communication skills with some repetitive or stereotypical behaviours. This study investigated the linguistic and communicative ability of children with ASD. The study specifically focused on the nature of socio-communication traits of children with autism in KwaZulu-Natal and sought to identify ways to enhance their linguistic and communicative skills. The main research questions of the study include: (i) What are caregivers’ perspectives about the prevalence of autism in KwaZulu-Natal and among different cultures? (ii) What communication methods are being employed to interact with autistic children? What is the disposition of parents, educators, speech therapists, and clinicians in KwaZulu-Natal Province towards the development and deployment of bi/multilingualism by autistic children? (iv) What are the neurocognitive and psycholinguistics bases for understanding autism, and for enhancing linguistic and communicative competence among autistic children in KwaZulu-Natal and its implications on their academic performance? The study leaned on Theory of Mind (ToM) (including its embedded or expanded form—Explicit and spontaneous implicit ToM in ASD), Disruptive Connectivity Hypothesis (DCH), some psycholinguistic theories (Imitation, Nativism or Behaviourism Theory, Nativist or Innateness Theory, Mentalist/ Cognitive Theory/ Social-Cognitive Theory, Social-Pragmatic Theory) and some relevant neurolinguistics framework to explicate relevant concepts and the research problems interrogated by the study. An embedded mixed method design was adopted by this study, and doing so entailed research design from both quantitative and qualitative paradigms. Data were collected through two sets of questionnaires (one for the parents, and another for the educators), as well through interviews. A face-to-face method was employed to administer the survey instrument. The survey targeted parents and educators in KwaZulu-Natal with a belief that the educators have been rendering service to children with ASD for some years and therefore have knowledge about ASD and social communication skills of these children. The interviews involved few educators, the speech and language therapists, and clinicians/ paediatricians, and the interviews were conducted in 4 research sites. This helped to dig deeper and explore the subtle difference in meaning, or opinion that the questionnaire might inadequately capture, and to also aid triangulation. The selection of sample size of the study was obtained through purposive and convenient sampling. Combining these sampling methods were necessitated by the impact of COVID-19,which made recruitment of research participants and gaining access to a larger number of them more difficult. A total of 60participantsparticipated in the study (36 parents and 16 educators responded to the survey; while 8 of the educators, 4 speech and language therapists, and 4clinicians/ paediatricians)were interviewed. The respondents who participated in the survey comprised of the parents and the educators; while the interviewees comprised of speech and language therapists, clinicians/ paediatricians, and the educators. Overall, the study findings indicated that the majority of children with ASD in this study could be categorized as those with low language abilities, and there was absence of pragmatic, vocabulary, word use and sentence structure, grammar, writing, articulation skills, and discourse and conversational principles among them. Only a few of them displayed little skills in these aspects of language and communication. The study also revealed that there was absence, or deficit or delay in language acquisition, production and development of these children; and the majority of them were nonverbal. As in the above-mentioned areas of language and communication, it was found that the production and comprehension of expressive and receptive languages in either L1, L2 or L3 word use and sentence structure also had neurolinguistic and psycholinguistic underlying. The study also found that the majority of the parents, educators, and speech and language therapists used words combined with demonstrations, signs, body language, gestures, and pictures as the main methods of communicating with them. Also, it was discovered that many children with ASD were brought to school very late (up to 15 years) and also failed to receive a replica of educational services including training on behavioral and social communication at home. The study found that the majority of the parents had limited knowledge or awareness about ASD, and other caregivers or professionals like educators, speech and language therapists, and clinicians/paediatricians had little knowledge about the disorder. As shown by the study, ASD diagnosis was carried out mainly at a General Hospital, and it was found that ASD was not prevalent in one culture than the other. The study also found that virtually all participants believed that raising, training and educating these children with two or more languages would lead to confusion, and be detrimental to their cognitive ability and overall wellbeing. The study further found that an understanding that ASD has some relevant bases enshrined in neurolinguistics and psycholinguistics as well as brain functionality, may help in seeking combined or comprehensive support or services for enhancing both linguistic and communicative skills of affected children. As revealed by the study, the strategies employed by the educators, speech, and language therapists to teach and train children with ASD were sign language (including demonstration of tasks), pictures, songs and visuals. Fewer speech and language therapists employed modern audio-visuals like iPad and laptop. Likewise, only fewer educators consistently capitalized on each child’s unique strength during teaching and learning process. Routine and repetition of lessons were part of the teaching strategies that some educators employed. It was found that the majority of educators as well as speech and language therapists were not using comprehensive and unique pedagogical approaches such as all components of Structured Teaching strategies developed by TEACCH (Training and Education of Autistic and related Communication-handicapped Children), AAT (which requires visualization of everything), and ABA specifically for enhancing linguistic and communicative skills. It is recommended that high level of awareness on ASD should be made a priority by the KwaZulu-Natal Department of Health, and KwaZulu-Natal Department of Education, mass media, and professionals in any field that relates to ASD. The above-mentioned government agencies should create avenues for having more psychologists and other specialist son neurodevelopmental disorders for easy detection and diagnosis of ASD using DSM-V criteria. Parents and caregivers should seek support after their children have been diagnosed with ASD. Having the right people, information, knowledge and action in place may help these children to have chances of increasing their linguistic and communicative competence.The study further recommends that professionals that work closely with parents and children with ASD should render support in whatever capacity they can; and parents should stick to those professionals that are giving them adequate attention, which may positively enhance behaviour and social communication of their children with ASD. Earlyjoint attention should be established between parents and their children with ASD for better introduction and exchange of varied verbal and nonverbal communication cues. Importantly, parents, educators, speech and language and other professionals should understand what works well for enhancing each child’s language and communication. The use of augmentative and alternative communication (AAC, a form of assistive technology) is also suggested as it has proven to enhance social interaction and communication, executive function, and cognitive capability regardless of each child’s ability in verbal and nonverbal communication. It is also suggested that a combined use of words, sign language, songs, demonstrations, and other nonverbal cues should be attempted in some cases where assistive technology is not available. The study recommends further studies on understanding other frontiers that focus on ASD within the contexts of neurolinguistics, psycholinguistic and sociolinguistic knowledge of educators, and speech and language therapists towards enhancing linguistic and communicative skills of individuals with ASD in South Africa and beyond.
The postdramatic theatre of Athol Fugard and Maishe Maponya: commitment, collaboration, and experiment in apartheid South Africa
(University of Zululand, 2017) Shamsuddeen, Bello; Gqibithole, Khaya Michael; Baum, Rob
Athol Fugard and Maishe Maponya both used the postdramatic theatre, which was largely anti-elitist, anti-text, experimental and collaborative, at certain point in their literary careers. They rebelled against established conventions, and, in their own ways, produced a type of theatre that suited their context and literary and ideological leanings. The rebellion and transformation of the theatre was not peculiar to them, but was a universal phenomenon at the time this thesis examines. As such, it manifested in works of artists who appropriated the new dramatic techniques to represent their different contexts and emerging socio-political trends. The thesis examines the collaborative process of Fugard, Kani, and Ntshona in view of the critical debates about identity, politics, role play, and Fugard’s claim to primary authorship of Sizwe Bansi is Dead and The Island. Collaboration is not a fixed term or practice. It depends largely on the play, play-making situation, and intention. It also changes even with the same artists involved in the collaboration. The devising process that led to The Coat, for example, differed from that of Sizwe Bansi is Dead and The Island. Even the collaborative process of Sizwe Bansi is Dead and The Island differs despite that the plays were produced around the same time. Fugard’s collaboration with the Circle Players (late 1950s) also differs from his collaboration with the Serpent Players (1960s) and that with Kani and Ntshona (early 1970s). Collaboration meant different things at different times for Fugard. He seems to have ridden on the coattails of black actors, although he successfully toured the plays around the world. Maponya’s idea of collaboration differs from that of Fugard. Although Maponya did not officially collaborate with actors, he used them as conduits into their lived experiences (The Hungry Earth) and professions (Umongikazi). This play-making technique is in many ways collaborative and similar to Fugard’s collaborative pattern during his work with the Circle Players in the production of No-Good Friday and Nongogo. Maponya lifts up the black artist but suffers the consequences. Fugard and Maponya used the actors in different capacities and utilised fairly similar, but different, collaborative techniques. They both utilised experimental, improvisational, and workshop-based methods differently, and at different times. The white South African playwright Fugard prepared the ground for radical experimentation with form and content in South Africa. Fugard enjoys a place of honour in the South African (and more generally African) canon. His reputation as a great writer, creative collaborator and director, and as a person who was able to create a unique theatre that blended African and Western forms of performance, has been acknowledged globally. His work with black actors, notably John Kani and Winston Ntshona, enabled this feat. He adopted a multidimensional approach to art, retained his literary leaning and identity, collaborated, and assisted in training and directing of black actors, and so contributed in his own equally potent way to the struggle against apartheid through the theatre. He promoted a belief in “the personal is political” through plays to be examined herein. The Coat (1966), Sizwe Bansi is Dead (1972) and The Island (1973) are selected because they are Fugard’s most political plays and because they were devised in collaboration with actors. The Hungry Earth (1979), Gangsters (1984) and Jika (1986) also pass the litmus test because they are Maponya’s most radical indictment of the apartheid regime and because they were also devised through experiments with actors who provided material and acting. In contrast to most writing on Fugard and Maponya, which are anchored to either a literary interpretation of the plays or performance discourse, this study offers a literary and performative analysis of the selected plays, demonstrating that this must be done together. This thesis also offers a comparative analysis of the selected plays. Maponya is a black artist and bitter playwright of the Struggle. His works are multifaceted, open to differing interpretations and are fairly universal and timeless because of their concern with general themes such as capitalism, subversion and containment; so also for their relation with more universal works, and their demonstration that the local and immediate experiences can have global legs. His concern with Black Consciousness and resistance however confined his status to a black ideologue. Maponya’s dramas nonetheless resist the accustomed standard of categorisation as plays by a black South African dramatist. The sharp cataloguing between white and black and major and minor playwright begins to fall apart when comparing Fugard and Maponya in terms of theatre practice and experiences. The reception of Maponya’s plays – both at home and abroad – reveals that he was an equally theatrically-aware and successful artist of the struggle, although he cannot be evenly matched with Fugard in terms of literary craft and outreach. This reductionism has also affected Fugard, who many regard as a liberal white writer. His colour was a handicap and a saving grace since it allowed him to work with black actors despite the laws banning interracial relations. The discourse of commitment in the plays to be examined – as well as in the dramatists’ practice of theatre – is centred on the relation between intention, context and text. The study examines the artists’ contribution(s) to the struggle; and how effective that contribution is, considering the complicated context and events they wrote about. To my knowledge, no other work, specifically, examines these two quite different playwrights, particularly in the context of their writing methods, their political reception in South Africa and abroad, and their ideas about play-making. New Historicism is chosen for the analysis of the selected plays because they are produced in history and for the theory’s concern with historical situation; because it is more of a practice than a set of doctrines or theory (Greenblatt 1990); and because it is concerned with intention and choice of genre (Bressler 2000). The theory, or rather practice, is also chosen because it promotes the study of both major and minor authors, thereby blurring the distinction between them (Gallagher and Greenblatt 2000); and because it accords more place for collaborative works (Greenblatt 1989) – which is one of the main concerns of this study.
Protest in the poetry of Dennis Brutus and Ogaga Ifowodo
(2022) Ogbinaka, Mark Ovuokerie
This study examines how the poetry of Dennis Brutus of South Africa and Ogaga Ifowodo from the Niger Delta region of Nigeria has embodied protest literature by fostering the political and social struggles of their times. The study discovers parallels in the work of these two poets, despite the distance between them in region and period. It offers fresh insights into the notion of protest literature in different societies. This is achieved through a postcolonial and analytical evaluation of selected works by both poets. Brutus began to protest against apartheid in the late 1950s and continued until the mid-1990s, while Ifowodo started his protest against the military interface in politics in the late 1980s and continues today. The research examines the works of these poets not only critically, but also in the light of the different socio-political and historical conditions which engendered them. A deepened knowledge of postcolonial poetry in the related literature showsthat protest is the meeting point between these two important postcolonial regions (South Africa and Nigeria). The study reads the key prison poetry of the two poets in dialogue as several aspects of their struggle with solitude and other types of suffering offer insights into each other that have not been observed before. Furthermore, their versification and responses to the people’s plight through poetry demonstrate many parallel themes concerning the oppression, deprivation and unjust arrest and detention that people experienced in the apartheid era as well as in recent times in the Niger Delta region of Nigeria. This work, apart from undertaking a comprehensive study of the poetry of Brutus and Ifowodo from an analytical point of view, has also been instrumental in contributing robustly to the ongoing discourse on postcolonial literature in Africa.
Re-inscribing the author : an approach to the pragmatics of reading and interpretation in Sol Plaatje's Native Life in South Africa and Luke's Book of Acts
(1999) Mkhatshwa, Elijah Johan; Garuba, H.O.
The objective of this study is to affirm the presence of the intentional consciousness / stance in texts which purport to depict reality or real events. Intentionality, in the context of this thesis, is not conceived as a pre-existing thought or idea, which precedes the text, but as something, which inheres in the text and is produced in it. The Cartesian split between consciousness and being which the former conception enacts is here elided and authorial intention is read and produced in the process of writing itself. This distinction is significant because the main argument of this thesis is that authorial intention in texts that purport to depict real events and intervene in a particular socio-historical process for mobilizational purposes, leads to the production of a certain kind of text which deploys specific narrative strategies that consolidate its reading and rendering of events and re-inforce narrative closures. These intentionally motivated closures are embedded in narrative strategies, which are seen as both necessary and imperative for the consolidation and legitimation of the message and to foreclose other readings. Authorially motivated closures are predominant in classic realist texts in which as Roger Webster (1990:70) argues "there is a clear hierarchy of discourses controlled by a privileged central voice or narrator". This narrative voice or, to quote MacCabe, this "authorial and authoritarian 'metalanguage' judges and controls all other discourses in the text". And in classic realist texts in which the author does not seek to mask his presence by using other narrators and overtly seeks to move his audience in a specified direction, these closures become even more evident within the texture of the text. Texts of this nature are seen as means of achieving particular ends rather than as autonomous, independent units existing in a self-referential world of significance. Much of contemporary critical theory has unfortunately tried to efface the author from the text and/ or tried to marginalize the role of the author in the text. This thesis, however, seeks to re-inscribe the agency of the author in his / her intentional stance with regard to the text, more specifically in texts which depict real events and seek to impact upon the real world and the target audience. This thesis shows how this agency is enacted within the world of the text. Very briefly, this agency, I argue, is reproduced in narrative strategies which revolve around the twin poles of authority and legitimation; and these strategies operate at two levels within the text and these are the levels of the real events depicted in the narrative and then the prevailing discursive paradigms of the times. A narrative dialectic is thus erected between these two levels in the texts and this is mediated at every point by the active presence of the authorial engagement. The first chapter, which is largely introductory, serves as the theoretical clearing ground for the thesis. In it, I argue the case for intentionality by reviewing various critical positions in contemporary theory in relation to the author and the interpretation of texts. Thereafter I move on to spell out the ways in which authorial intention is embedded in realist narratives of the kind I have described. In my argument, I draw upon the critical practices and theoretical positions of postcolonial, feminist and Third World writers and critics whose work constitute an alternative tradition in which is inscribed specifically overt socio-political agencies. In the chapters that follow, I adopt the strategy of sketching out the historical and discursive context of the text. Thus chapter two focuses on the historical and discursive context of Luke's Book of Acts while chapter three focuses on the analysis of Acts. In the same manner, chapter four focuses on the historical and discursive context of Sol Plaatje's Native Life in South Africa while chapter five focuses on the analysis of the text (Native Life in South Africa). A brief conclusion sums up the argument of the thesis.
The reading of poetry : appreciation and evaluation
(2001) Meihuizen, Dorothea; Meihuizen, N.C.T.; Addison, C.A.
The impulse that prompted me to the writing of this thesis is a profound uneasiness about the way in which the Humanities are being undervalued in the eyes of the world today, and nowhere more so, it increasingly seems, than at educational institutions, especially South African universities. As mechanisation and commodification become more and more the order of the day, and as technology replaces human interchange, the passions and sympathies of man, so powerfully expressed in English literature, steadily become of secondary importance. My focus here, then, is on the vital importance of English literature in the affairs of human beings and their daily interactions with the world around them. My attention will be directed mainly towards poetry, for I believe that even amongst those who do read good books, a large proportion eschew poetry and, in a sense, fear it. My experience in teaching at secondary and tertiary levels of education has shown me that this is because students have not been given, or adequately instructed in the use of, the tools with which to understand or to appreciate poetry in more than a very superficial way, and that this lack leads to their not devoting much time or attention to it. Also, because they fail to understand more than simply the contents of a poem (and sometimes not even this), and because they are aware that there is a deeper significance to a good poem than what they perceive, students and other readers feel inadequate, and shy away from poetry altogether. Of course, I do not include amongst these readers those who daily concern themselves with Iitera-ture and who have made it one of the mainsprings of their lives. I am aware, too, that every generalisation has its exceptions and that there are people who at an instinctive, as well as a cognitive level, fully comprehend what the poet is saying.

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