Masters Degrees (Languages, Linguistics and Academic Literacy)

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Ecotourism development with special reference to Etsheni living heritage site.
(2010) Nzama, Mlungisi Wiseman.; Zungu, Phyllis Jane Nonhlanhla.
This dissertation looks at how ecotourism can help develop the Etsheni Living Heritage site. There are many ways that can be used to develop a place but this work specifically uses ecotourism as a vehicle for developing this area. Because of the natural resources that are found at Etsheni this research also looks at how these resources can be preserved and sustained in a positive way. The community itself is confronted with many challenges with regard to the development of their place. This study focuses on the theory that can be used in order to ensure that the local community benefits from their living heritage site.
The postmodernist text in contemporary South Africa : a defence of J. M. Coetzee
(1988) Urbasch, Michael C. N.; Strauss, P. E.
One of the most pressing debates in South Africa concerns the need of writers to address the complex sociopolitical demands of the present day situation. In this paper I examine J M Coetzee's use of Postmodernism forms as an attempt to develop a language and structure of consciousness which offers a telling critique of authority and power in South Africa. My purpose is not primarily to offer an aesthetic appreciation of Coetzee's works, but rather to assess the efficacy of the Postmodernist approach in a world of material forces. The central problem which I explore is whether Coetzee's experimental fiction speaks to a world of "total politics". In the Introduction I consider the way that Coetzee himself establishes the terms for a debate of his texts, a debate which juxtaposes his rejection of realism, mimesis and the dictates of history, (a strategy necessitated by his Postmodernist and Poststructuralist understandings) with his call for a language adequate and sufficient to Africa. Section I explores the claims of those critics who view Postmodernism as a Eurocentric and highly recondite form of elitist exclusion which retards the development of a vital post-colonial expression while extending the ideology of capitalism. Thus Postmodernism is seen to lack a cogency adequate to address a South Africa dominated by a politics of oppression. Section II discusses the implications of Postmodernism as an interventionist strategy which deconstructs hegemonic notions of reality, replacing them with a radicalised doubt and scepticism. This doubt is seen as having an informative role to play in the constitution of a consciousness both subjective and political which is capable of providing a counter to the politics of hegemony, and the'monism of a one dimensional state, either of the left or right. In Conclusion I contend that J M Coetzee's texts pose a linguistic and fictional significance within the context of South African polity and literature.
The representation of women in Lauretta Ngcobo's And they didn't die
(2008) Shah, Mayadevi.
Lauretta Ngcobo’s And They Didn’t Die depicts the lives of rural African women who lived under apartheid rule in KwaZulu-Natal in South Africa in the 1950s and 1960s. The dissertation examines Ngcobo’s representation of African women’s participation and their agency in the resistance struggles against colonialism, settler colonialism (apartheid), racial supremacy, African patriarchy, and literary and the dominant language systems. The primary method of analysis involves an examination of the novel which is located in the political context of the resistance struggles, the social context of patriarchy and the theoretical context of postcolonial African feminist criticism. By drawing on a range of feminist theories, the dissertation examines the specificity of African women’s lives in terms of race, class and gender roles. The dissertation will also examine the different strategies that women have used to survive and to resist race, class and gender oppressions. Ngcobo’s novel provides an apposite framework to explore women’s experiences of subordination and how they challenged and even overcame the political and social forces that worked against them. Women’s agency in the liberation struggle has been largely ignored and undocumented in literary and even in many feminist projects, which leaves an under-researched gap in African literary studies. The dissertation examines Ngcobo’s work as a literary activist articulating the challenges of representation and voice. Representation is understood to mean speaking or acting for oneself and/or others, while voice is the capacity to speak. It is the key issue reflecting empowerment and agency. These concepts form the basis for analysis and the construction of arguments. It is used to examine the challenges faced by women who have been marginalized in literary discourse, as women and writers.
A genealogical history of English studies in South Africa : with special reference to the responses by South African academic literary criticism to the emergence of an indigenous South African literature.
(1989) Doherty, Christopher Malcolm William.; Vaughan, Michael.
This thesis examines certain social and institutional forces that have shaped the outlooks and procedures of English departments in South Africa. The approach taken is based on the researches of Michel Foucault, notably his genealogical approach to history, and his view of the university as an institution within a broader "disciplinary society" that controls discourse in the interests of existi~g power relations in that society and not out of a concern with disinterested truth. It is argued that English departments are contingent, historically constituted products whose genealogies continue to have serious consequences for struggles around contemporary issues, notably the reception of indigenous South African writing. The first chapter examines the beginnings of the institutionalised study of English literature in England. This inquiry reveals that English literature became the subject of academic.study as a result of conflict between opposing interests in the university and the social world of nineteenth century J England. It also points to the existence of a "discursive space", an inherently unstable area, which the emergent subject of English was forced to occupy as a result of the ezisting arrang~ment of disciplines in the university. Chapter Two analyses the decisive contribution made by I. A Richards a9d the importance of practical criticism for the humanist enterprise of English studies. F. R. Leavis's adaptation of practical criticism is also examined with a view to understanding its consequences for English studies in South Africa. Chapter Three examines the early history of English studies in South Africa and assesses the impact of metropolitan developments on the manner in which the discipline was constituted in this country. Chapter Four focuses on the effect of metropolitan developments on the conceptualisation and study of a South African literature. Chapter Five examines descriptions of sub traditions of South African literature that were offered during the 1960s and '70s and concludes by offering an analysis of the radical critique of English studies that appeared at the end of the decade. The thesis concludes that the radical critique was largely unsuccessful for a number of reasons, one being the lack of a genealogical analysis. It is suggested that the manner in which English studies was historically constituted, and its mode of institutional existence, pose a perhaps intrinsic obstacle to the study and teaching of indigenous writing.
L'utilisation du film dans l'enseignement du français langue étrangère au niveau débutant à l'Université du KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg : une étude de cas.
(2009) Dye, Marie Françoise Ghyslaine.; Balladon, Francesca Emma.
No abstract available.
L'analyse du thème la colonisation dans les œuvres littéraires Ngemena de Paul Lomami Tchibamba et La Malédiction de Pius Ngandu Nkashama.
(2009) Mukenge, Arthur Ngoie.; De Meyer, Bernard Albert Marcel Sylvain.
Critical analysis of the theme “Colonisation” in the literary works of Africa: case of Ngemena by Lomami Tchibamba and La Malédiction by Ngandu Nkashama is the title of this thesis. I intend to do a critical analysis of the “colonialism” in African literature with specific reference to Congo. Some African writers, such as Mongo Beti in Pauvre Christ de Bomba, Benjamin Matip in Afrique! Nous t’ignorons, Ferdinand Oyono in Une Vie de boy and so forth made interesting criticisms of colonisation in the continent. But for their part, in spite of the similarity with the other novels, Ngemena and La Malédiction are directly focused on central Africa especially on the country of Congo. The authors mentioned above describe in their novels the effects of colonisation on religious, political and social aspects; meanwhile, in Ngemena, Lomami Tchibamba speaks about the critical periods of his country, Congo: the occupation as well as its effects. This book covers almost the period from 1908 to 1960, which was a very troubled time. But in La Malédiction, Ngandu Nkashama speaks about the deep exploitation of indigenous population in the hard labour in mines. Normally, the two novels Ngemena and La Malédiction complete each other by their relation of facts. Nevertheless, we can say that colonization and negritude are themes well exploited by researchers and authors alike in the second part of the 20th century. In fact, many authors wrote about colonization and their criticisms were rich as well as strong. But sometimes, some of them expressed their opinion in an emotional way so that the content became far from the truth. It is why, Wilberforce Umezinwa in La religion dans la littérature africaine says, in order to render the history most interesting, the narrators are prone to exaggeration: The prose and poetry do not speak generally kindly about the relationship between Africans and Europeans; but these works are filled with a bad mood against Europe, the continent of the missionaries, slave drivers, and colonialists. The relationship Between Europe and Africa is a song of Blues, a song on human distresses (Umezinwa, 1975: 13) (Own translation). Then, the African writer has an essential role in the society: to tell the history with neither bad mood nor exaggeration but with humour, as indicated by Lilyan Kesteloot. In Négritude et situation coloniale, she underlines that African authors write very emotionally when they explain the notion of Colonisation and Négritude. Sartre quoted by the same Lilyan Kesteloot mentioned that this fact is “racism anti-racism” (Kesteloot, 1968: 35, 43). Especially in Ngemena, from time to time, the author goes over the top and makes an exaggeration. In its introduction, Ngemena takes the form of an admonitory part and is written with burning eloquence. It is likely that Lomami Tchibamba had serious hopes of persuading the readers, the Congolese people, of the multiple and hard realities during the colonization period, then implicitly he pushes people to a form of vengeance. But instead of this, the main goal remains: Lomami Tshibamba always keeps his principal theme and responds to many preoccupations such as : -Who is the colonizer? -Why did he come to the country? -How did he convince the indigenous people so that he got in? -What were the circumstances of his entering? By its part in La Malédiction, Ngandu Nkashama tells the atrocity committed by the colonisation in the remote province of Kasai (Bakwanga), particularly, in the diamond mines. The novels such as Citadelle d’espoir by Ngandu Nkashama, Bel Immonde by Valentin Yves Mudimbe, Cité 15 by Charles Djungu Simba, and some articles like “L’affaire Lumumba ou la palabre sur l’indépendance au Congo” of Jean Omasombo Tshonda in Congo Meuse are steeped in the colonial and postcolonial history of Congo and this study, of course, will emphasize many aspects of the colonisation: political, sociological, religious and psychological. To analyse the correlation between the two periods of crucial time in Congo will be the most interesting aspect of this work. Therefore, the novels: Le Vieux nègre et la médaille and Une Vie de Boy of Ferdinand Oyono, La Vie et demie of Sony Labou Tansi, La Ville cruelle of Mongo Beti will be helpful to this framework in illuminating the way of social and religious aspects. Thus, an analysis and interpretation of theses novels constitute a support of large dimension to my study. Furthermore, Ngemena is a book published in 1981 and La Malédiction in 1981 (the same year); the stories seem ancient but keep their originality because of the exploited theme. It is a true historical legacy. In this way, Ngemena and La Malédiction could be considered as “vademecum” and must be read by whoever wants to know and understand the entire topic of colonization in Congo. Their contents confer to them the value of “true teaching books” of the ancient colonial structures. In short, their stories enlighten the long past colonial history; they have a profound didactic value.
The translatability of English academic discourse into isiZulu with reference to the discourse of mathematics.
(2009) Ntshangase-Mtolo, Phakamile.; Wildsmith-Cromarty, Rosemary.
This research investigates the translatability of English Academic Discourse into isiZulu with specific reference to the discourse of Mathematics. The focus is on the translation processes and strategies used in the translations to maintain the core meaning of concepts. The reason for the research is that African-language speaking learners experience problems in understanding and using crucial academic concepts in English and the language that contextualizes them. The research thus analyses translated texts from the mathematics and mathematical literacy learning areas selected from a Multilingual Teachers’ Resource Book written for learners at the GET Level (Grade 7-9) in order to explore the process of translation by examining the isiZulu translated texts (target texts) of English source texts, and their subsequent back-translations. The main focus is on the quality of the translation and the strategies translators use in order to retain the core meaning of the original text, especially when languages are non-cognate. The study found that although formal equivalence between non-cognate languages is difficult to achieve, functional or near-equivalence is not always appropriate either, especially in specialized discourses of a scientific or technical nature. The solution lies in building up the technical discourse in the African Languages. This research also explores possible limitations in the translator-training offered for bilingual translators of English and isiZulu and leads to recommendations as to what the translator-training should focus on in the long term. Findings from this research should contribute to the language policy debate on isiZulu as a viable medium of instruction as well as to the process of terminology development.
Meaning in "neaming" : the processing of word puns involving morphological and syntactic transposition using the "reverse principle".
(2007) Kamanga, Chimwemwe Mayinde Mystic.; Tappe, Heike Magdalena Elfriede.
The word pun is one of the figures of speech that people employ in everyday communication and especially in literary works in order to advance intricate aspects of meaning that may not be easy to express using 'plain' language. The word pun generally provides a speaker with an opportunity to mean more while saying less instead of saying more while meaning less. Considering the facts that people primarily communicate in order to exchange meaning, and that meaning can be very elusive and controversial, there are two questions about the use of the word pun. Can people understand the meaning in word puns? And, if they can, how do they do so? These questions are especially relevant in the case of literary works because the author is far removed from the audience. As such, there is no room for the negotiation of meaning. The current study probes these two questions by considering two types of word pun, Chiasmus and Metathesis, which are composed through the transposition of the morphological and or syntactic order of expressions. At a theoretical level, the study explores and explains the common underlying processes that guide the comprehension of the word puns. Further than that, it demonstrates through a case study that people are able to understand the word puns by using what the study proposes to be the reverse principle. Ultimately, the study illustrates how people derive meaning of utterances through interplay of the different subsystems of the language system. The word puns in this study present a good context in which to explore interfaces between semantics and other language fields by linking insights drawn from different fields of linguistic enquiry to the concept of meaning and demonstrating how aspects of all these come together in explaining the processing of word puns that involve morphological and syntactic transposition. Additionally, the study demonstrates that people understand the world by relating concepts to one another because of the underlying relationships existing between concepts and by virtue of the relationships that hold between and among words or word parts.
Assessing politeness, language and gender in hlonipha.
(2007) Luthuli, Thobekile Patience.; Rudwick, Stephanie Inge.
The aim of this study is to investigate the politeness phenomena (particularly isiHlonipho) within the isiZulu speaking community in KwaZulu Natal. The study focuses on the understanding of isiHlonipho within the isiZulu speaking community and whether males and females from the urban and rural areas share a similar or different understanding of isiHlonipho. Furthermore the thesis investigates which of the existing Western/non-Western models of politeness are relevant for describing the politeness phenomena in the target community. In order to achieve triangulation, qualitative and quantitative methods of data collection were used. These comprised of interviews with cultural/religious leaders, discourse completion tasks, and interviews with males and females from urban and rural areas in Mdumezulu and Umlazi Township. My findings reveal that the understanding of politeness phenomena within the target community is more in keeping with that in other non-Western cultures than in Western cultures. Females from the rural area are found to utilize isiHlonipho more than those females from the urban area. On the basis of this limited sample, it is argued that females from the urban area may be beginning to reject traditional Zulu femininity in favour of more westernized identities.
Teaching academic writing in a South African context : an evaluation of the drafting-responding process used to develop the academic writing of students in a first year media course at the University of KwaZulu-Natal.
(2006) Crouch, Alison.; Clarence-Fincham, Jennifer Anne.
The provision of written lecturer feedback at the draft stage of a draft-response-redraft process is an extensively used tool in the process genre approach to teaching academic writing. It is also regarded as an important vehicle for mediating access to the academic discourse community for students. This study has as its foundation the view that knowledge and learning is socially constructed and therefore, it is believed that the process of learning academic writing is closely related to a process of acculturation into the world of academic discourse (Quinn, 2000). There is a need to be aware that while students need these skills to succeed in the academic context, we need to be critical of the process of apprenticeship that takes place. Research has shown that although the process genre approach is widely used, the effectiveness of the intervention and the precise impact of this on the students and their essay writing skills have yet to be fully explored. This study uses a case study methodology, including an analysis of usable feedback points (Hyland, 1998) to evaluate the effectiveness of the draft-response-redraft process in facilitating the acquisition of academic writing skills and mediating access to the academic discourse community. The effectiveness of written lecturer feedback on student essays at the draft stage for twelve students doing a first year level tertiary Media Course (with the teaching of academic writing skills as a stated outcome) is explored. A survey of the responses of ninety students doing the course and a focus group discussion with nine students provide a context for a more detailed case study of the essays and responses of twelve students. These students were selected in order to obtain a range of age, gender, mother tongue, schooling background and marking lecturer in the data. The findings show that written feedback is perceived by the students to be valuable and most feel positive about participating in a draft-feedback-response process. However, the relationship between feedback points and improvement is not clear. Individual student factors and the dynamic interaction that takes place make every case unique. The evidence in this study supports the theory that re-writing facilitates improvement (Fathman and Whalley, 1990; Polio et al 1998 and Robb et al 1998) and shows that even brief or sketchy feedback does stimulate revision and can result in writing improvement, although whether this process assists in the long-term development of academic writing skills is the subject for another study. This study supports research which indicates that the dynamic interaction between lecturer and student in the draft-response-redraft process can facilitate the acquisition of academic literacy and mediate access to the academic discourse community. The data did, however, highlight aspects of the process that need to be implemented in order for the positive potential of the learning experience to be fully realised.
An investigation of the impact of working in an international school context on the identities of English-speaking teachers at the International English School in Italy.
(2006) Fotheringham, Rosemary Grace.; Clarence-Fincham, Jennifer Anne.
Many educational researchers (e.g. Jansen 2001) argue that not enough is known about how teachers view their careers and identities as teachers and how they adapt to new educational policies and teaching situations. Researchers (e.g. Woods and Jeffrey 2002) have argued that a consideration of identity issues is of crucial importance when investigating the experiences of teachers in any institutional setting. The purpose of this research study is to investigate the impact of working in an international school context on the identities of English-speaking teachers at the International English School (IES) in Italy. The research aims to identify the issues of identity experienced in the new institutional context, to examine the identity work and strategies engaged in by the teachers and to analyse what kind of reconstruction of their identities has taken place. Three main theoretical perspectives have informed the research. Firstly, poststructuralist theories critique an essentialist view of identity as universal or stable and argue that it is socially constructed and open to continual change. This view of identity works with an understanding that the research participants construct identity rather than report on a pre-existing identity. Secondly, critical theory emphasises the political nature of identity and that it is always linked to power relations in particular sites of practice. Thirdly, theories and research on 'teacher identity' and 'teacher strategy' from the field of education have been drawn on. Three studies from the sociology of education provide a fine-grained analysis of how teacher strategies operate in particular sites of practice and show how strategies are always linked to issues of identity. Insights from the literature on international education suggest that cross-cultural issues are key for teachers relocating to an international school context. Qualitative research methods were chosen. The case study was the main method used: the International English School (IES) formed the case with seven English-speaking teachers at the school as the research participants. Mapping, interviewing and field observation were used to collect the data. The research participants constructed maps of themselves at IES as well as of their career history, and in-depth interviews were conducted. Finally, an on-site field visit took place at the school and included lesson observation of each research participant. The data was analysed thematically using grounded theory. The findings show that the research participants' experiences at IES affected their identities in profound ways and that they experienced a fragmentation of identity. In order to respond to the issues of identity they experienced, the teachers engaged in identity work and particular strategies which allowed them to reinforce or reconstruct their identity as teachers. Each teacher experienced a reconstruction of his or her teacher identity differently. However, the majority of the teachers maintained their vision of education and the teacher identity they wished to subscribe to, although these would have to be realised outside the school. None of the teachers was prepared to invest their long-term commitment or careers in the school. The reconstruction ignored both the international and intercultural factors. None of the teachers defined themselves as international teachers with an international career path and the majority of teachers did not become significantly more interculturally literate through their experiences at IES.
The usage of Arabic in the Durban metropolitan municipality area : finding possible ways and means of enhancing its usage and status.
(2007) Bunting, Zaheera Elizabeth.; Jadwat, Ayoob Yacoob.
This dissertation is an investigation of the status and the extent to which the Arabic language is put to use in the Durban Metropolitan Area in the KwaZulu-Natal Province of South Africa. A quantitative socio-linguistic overview of the Arabic language at the grassroots level is the main aim of this study. The study examines the Arabic language by placing it against a wide frame of reference and compels the researcher to place it in a broader comparative perspective with other dominant languages in Durban. As we have reached a decade of explicit vocabulary development in linguistics, it seems appropriate to reflect on the power of language to express modern discourse in demonstrating the parameters in which the Arabic language is maintained in Durban. When South Africa became a fully independent democratic state in 1994, all languages were liberated. The challenge for Arabic language practice and policy makes for a wider frame of reference for the promotion of the Arabic language in emancipation. The phenomenon that is relevant to the study is researched for the particular situation under investigation. Within this framework the data collection techniques, namely, interviewing, observation and questionnaires were used to gather information. While the secondary data was taken from research done by Arabic scholars and Arabic language promoters, the primary data was gathered from residents of Durban. The primary data was then analyzed and the extent to which the Arabic language is put to use is presented.
Code-mixing in simultaneous language acquisition.
(2006) Hara, Agness Bernadette Chimangeni.; Wildsmith-Cromarty, Rosemary.
This thesis is based on the recorded speech and field notes of the author's three-year-old child who was acquiring three languages simultaneously (Chichewa, Chitumbuka and English). Chichewa is his mother's first language, Chitumbuka is his father's first language and English is both the language of the preschool that he was attending and the official language in Malawi. This study was unusual in that it involved African languages that are under-researched in the field of language acquisition and dealt with two cognate languages (Chichewa and Chitumbuka) and a non-cognate language, English. The fact that Chichewa and Chitumbuka strongly resemble each other may have made movement between the two easier for the child. The analysis of the child's recorded speech shows that he mixed more at the lexical level (64.2%) and less at the phonological level (6.3%). The findings demonstrate that what the child had learnt at school in English fulfilled a booster function when either Chichewa or Chitumbuka was used. The results also reveal that the child's language mixing was influenced by the topic of discussion, the context and the interlocutor's mixed input. The interlocutor's discourse strategies also had an impact on the child's use of mixing. The results therefore provide support for the bilingual bootstrapping hypothesis, the modeling hypothesis and the discourse hypothesis. The results also demonstrate that Chichewa was generally the matrix or host language when mixing occurred. At school, however, where only English was permitted, the question of a matrix language did not occur. Furthermore, the combination of lexical and grammatical morphemes demonstrates that Chichewa was dominant in the child's speech, in terms of the dominant-language hypothesis proposed by Petersen (1988). This study challenges the Free Morpheme Constraint and the Equivalence Constraint in that they do not appear to be universally applicable. Instead, the Matrix Language Frame Model is supported as it applies to code-mixing involving English and Bantu languages. This model was relevant, as the speech analyzed in this study involved code-mixing between English and the two Bantu languages, Chichewa and Chitumbuka. However, it was difficult to apply the Matrix Language Frame Model to some of the child's mixed utterances because the MLU was low. It is hoped therefore that researchers will create further models that will allow for an analysis of the mixed morphemes in single word utterances, especially for the Nguni African languages, which are agglutinative by nature.
English language teachers' practices in the development of grade nine learners' oral proficiency : a case study of students in Asmara, Eritrea.
(2004) Russom, Dawit Maekele.; Cromarty, Rosemary.
The main focus of this study is on the causes of the problems in English language proficiency of Grade Nine high-school learners in Asmara, Eritrea, with reference to their oral skills, particularly for academic purposes. This study examines the way Grade Nine English teachers in Eritrea do or do not promote the development of Grade Nine learners' oral proficiency. The researcher's focus is on how the teachers structure their teaching approach to English and the way students learn the language in the classroom. The researcher looked at the practices of English language teachers by conducting observations in English classes in two high schools in Eritrea for about a month. The researcher obtained rich data via different methods of data collection with respect to the learners' oral development. The criteria that the researcher adopted for observation were those of the Communicative Orientation of Language Teaching Observation Scheme (COLT) (Allan, Frohlich, and Spada: 1983). In addition to the classroom observation, the researcher also conducted interviews with the teachers. Questionnaires were distributed to learners, after which focus-group discussions with selected students were conducted. The findings of this study are summarized as follows. Firstly, English teachers have teaching techniques which are ineffective in achieving the intended objective. They use the structural approach to language teaching, which is out-dated. Secondly, grammar is the main focus of lessons. Most of the students commented that more oral (speaking) classes should be included in the learning of language to achieve oral/aural proficiency. Teachers must therefore foster a supportive classroom environment and stress the importance of oral classes in language learning.
'n Vergelykende studie van die groetroetines tussen Afrikaans- en Isizulumoedertaal-sprekendes.
(2004) Ndlangamandla, Mkhanyiseni Hezekia.; Van der Berg, Dietloff Zigfried.; Koopman, Adrian.
No abstract available.
Marlene van Niekerk se Agaat (2004) as 'n postkoloniale plaasroman = Marlene van Niekerk's Agaat (2004) as a postcolonial farm novel.
(2006) Prinsloo, Loraine.; Visagie, Andries G.
This study examines Agaat (2004), the second novel in the oeuvre of Marlene van Niekerk, as both a postcolonial text and a farm novel. Firstly a theoretical perspective is given on postcolonialism, with specific reference to typical phenomena in Afrikaans postcolonial literature. Subsequently, a short historical overview is given of the Afrikaans farm novel by distinguishing between "normative" farm novels and "contesting" farm novels. Typical characteristics of the Afrikaans farm novel are also discussed. By discussing three key aspects of Marlene van Niekerk's Agaat, I demonstrate why Agaat can be seen as a postcolonial text and how this novel differs from earlier Afrikaans farm novels. The first aspect is the representation of coloured people within the household, specifically focussing on Agaat Lourier's powerful role as worker for the De Wet family on Grootmoedersdrift, as well as the hierarchical shift of Agaat's position on the farm from worker to owner of the farm after Milla de Wet's death. In Agaat (2004) the coloured worker is given a voice, something that did not readily occur in earlier farm novels in the first half of the twentieth century (Coetzee, 2000: 2). An important question that receives attention in this study, is how the identity of Agaat is formed by Milla who trains Agaat to behave in a certain way. Does Agaat lose her identity when she is colonised by Milla mimicking Milla's behaviour, and does she then become a product of Milla becoming "almost the same, but not quite" (Bhabha, 1994: 86)? The second key aspect deals with the role and representation of women characters in Agaat (2004). Here attention is paid to Agaat and Milla who jointly rule the farm and its inhabitants resulting in a constant power struggle between these two women. In Agaat (2004) patriarchal authority is undermined and the relationship between Milla and Agaat, as Neil Cochrane (2005: 216) points out, can be seen as a replica of the relationship between the coloniser (Milla) and the colonised (Agaat). The third key aspect focuses on land and landownership, by referring to relevant literature such as Ampie Coetzee's 'n Hele os vir 'n ou broodmes. Grond en die plaasnarratief sedert 1595 (2000). The issue of land ownership is foregrounded in Agaat (2004), as in lM Coetzee's Disgrace (1999), when Agaat becomes the owner of the farm after Jakkie (Milla's son) returns to Canada where he works as an ethnomusicologist. With my focus on the three aspects mentioned above I assess Marlene van Niekerk's contribution to the development of the Afrikaans farm novel within a postcolonial context.
Addressing the "standard English' debate in South Africa : the case of South African Indian English.
(2007) Wiebesiek, Lisa.; Rudwick, Stephanie Inge.; Zeller, Jochen Klaus.
This dissertation is an investigation into the 'Standard English' debate in South Africa using South African Indian English (SAlE) as a case study. I examine the 'Standard English' debate from both a sociolinguistic and a syntactic point of view. Since English underwent a process of standardization in the eighteenth century, the concept of 'Standard English' has influenced peoples' attitudes towards different varieties of English and the speakers of those varieties. 'Standard English' has, since this time, been used as a yardstick against which other varieties of English have been judged. In South Africa, where during the apartheid era, language as well as skin colour and ethnicity were used as a basis for discrimination, the 'Standard English' debate and the standard language ideology need to be explored in order to draw attention to areas of potential discrimination. Through an extended review of the literature on the 'Standard English' Debate and a particular focus on South African Indian English, as well as interviews with South African Indian participants, I investigate how the 'Standard English' debate is, more often than not, a debate about ideology, power and inequality, rather than simply about 'good' or 'correct' language usage. I argue that language attitudes are, in many cases, attitudes towards speakers, making them a potential vehicle for discrimination and prejudice. I examine the social history of the South African Indian community and SAIE and argue that the unique history of the South African Indian community has affected the development of SAlE and attitudes towards its speakers, and the attitudes of speakers of SAlE toward their own variety. Furthermore, I explore how this history has affected the syntactic structure of SAlE and provide, through a syntactic analysis of South African Indian English wh-questions, evidence for the fact that these constructions are formed on the basis of a systematic and rule-governed grammar that is different to that of 'Standard English', but is not, as a result of this difference, incorrect.
Language(s) of instruction in township schools in the KwaMakutha area.
(2006) Nzuza, Thembile Paschalia.; Geyser, Annelie.
A quantitative study on the merits of using the learner's mother-tongue (instead of English) as a medium of instruction. This investigation attempts to find out how many schools and parents in KwaMakhutha implement (or know about) the Language in Education Policy in 1997 (LiEP).
"Rap for abokhokho nelokishi nabantu bonke" : language choice in hop hop music from KwaZulu-Natal : a sociolinguistic approach.
(2007) Gross, Anna J.; Tappe, Heike Magdalena Elfriede.; Rudwick, Stephanie Inge.
The main focus of hip hop music is on the beats and the lyrics. Hip hop lyrics. performed as 'rap' (fast poetic rhymes) address topics such as self-portrayal, roots, life, location, time and space. From its beginnings, hip hop music in KwaZulu-Natal has been bilingual with artists performing in isiZulu and English. In addition, expressions from isiTsotsi or other forms of youth language are used in performances as well as on records and mixtapes. Therefore, hip hop music from KwaZulu-Natal offers excellent material for the analysis of the relation between language choice and construction of identity amongst urban youth. This treatise investigates this matter, taking the question of ethnicity in post-apartheid South Africa into account. Five artists who rap and perform predominantly in isiZulu provide their lyrics for the sociolinguistic analysis which takes a close look at the content and translatability of each text. Certain topics addressed in hip hop lyrics in isiZulu are languagespecific and seem to be (almost) untranslatable. These topics may be related to cultural concepts and 'common knowledge' which are based in Zulu traditions. Moreover, the analysis of the lyrics shows that isiZulu-speaking hip hop artists from KwaZulu-Natal who rap in their mother tongue merge common hip hop themes with traditional concepts of Zulu culture.
Sociolinguistic dynamics and challenges facing African learners in multiracial schools in terms of their linguistic and cultural identities.
(2005) Dlamini, Iris Hlengiwe.; De Kadt, Elizabeth.
This dissertation explores the sociolinguistic dynamics and challenges facing African learners in some multiracial schools in KwaZulu-Natal in terms of their linguistic and cultural identities. It seeks to investigate the impact of schooling in multiracial schools on the identities of young Zulu speakers living in Sundumbili Township in Northern KwaZulu-Natal. Three formerly HOD schools in Stanger were identified as research sites, and 100 Grade 11 learners selected as respondents. Data was collected by a multi-method approach, through a written questionnaire, and through interviews with a sub-group of the respondents. Data analysis involved both qualitative and quantitative processes. The findings indicate that the learners investigated have responded to the challenges posed by their schooling in a multiracial environment by developing into bilingual speakers who are aware of the need to select their language according to the communicative needs of their context. They seem well able to shift from school to the township and vice versa. However it is clear that some are no longer fully proficient in isiZulu. At the same time, these learners still identify themselves as amaZulu, primarily on the basis of participating in Zulu cultural activities. The role of language in constituting Zulu identity appears to be receding: many respondents feel that speaking isiZulu is no longer essential to being amaZulu. These attitudes raise some concerns about the long-term maintenance of isiZulu. The thesis concludes with some recommendations aimed at enhancing the continued use of isiZulu. The Department of Education must ensure that all schools promote an additive form of bilingualism which will enable a child to develop in his/her mother tongue while getting exposure to an additional language. Furthermore economic value must be given to these African languages to enable learners to find meaning in studying and using them. Multiracial schools should celebrate diversity in both linguistic and cultural terms, and parents should come to accept the important roles that they need to play in this regard.

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