We're not tense, just terribly alert...

My grandfather said years ago: “If you visit SA for the 1st time, you write novels. After 15 years you’re bound to scratch together an essay and after a lifetime here, you’re hesitant to even venture a sentence or two, because the truth is so elusive and what really does reflect the situation in this society.”

Well, perhaps the goal to fixate the truth about SA in a encyclopedic definition is not attainable. Perhaps its worthwhile however rather paint perspectives reflecting aspects of the diverse and intricate picture of this country and its diverse people, some of which are quite complicated and profound. There are quite a lot trying quite different approaches. Besides the travelling episodes of Dana Snyman (On the back roads: 2008 or Hiervandan: 2011), Sihle Khumalo (Heart of Africa: 2009), Louis Bothma (Anderkant Cuito: 2011) or the compilation edited by Heidi Holland and Adam Robers (From Jo’burg to Jozi: 2010), there are attempts at social satire by Simon Kilpatrick (The racist guide to the people of SA: 2010) or Ndumiso Ngcobo (Some of my best friends are white: 2008), historical biographies like that of Theresa Papenfuss (Pik Botha en sy tyd: 2010), which compliment older, well known and still relevant books like those by Athol Fugard (Tsotsi: 1980), Dalene Matthee (Fiela se kind: 1985) and Allan Paton (Cry the beloved country: 1948 and Ah, but your land is beautiful: 1996).

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Recently crime stories have also emerged as a genre to depict another aspect of our society composed of various communities, landscapes and settings. Read here an introduction to this style by Prof. Dr. Julika Griem. It seems quite outdated to still refer to Afrikaaners as “boers” or to depict the various authors as “black” or “white” – even if these stereotypes do suggest  clear references. In my view that is quite superficial and is rather misleading.

Read what Griem has to say in her essay in the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung (FAZ) via Krimis aus Südafrika: Im Dunkel erkennt man keine Hautfarben – Themen – FAZ.