Abstract
This dissertation addresses issues of culture, identity and style in Herman Charles Bosman’s bilingual writing, produced during the latter part of his life, in order to reassess his place in
South African literature. Although questions pertaining to these issues are constantly debated by Bosman scholars, the focus has in the past mainly fallen on his English literary corpus.
The bilingual dimension of his work has not received much academic attention. In fact,
literary historiographers in South Africa appear to have been largely oblivious of Bosman’s contribution to this area. This situation may partly be ascribed to the ‘disappearance’ of his Afrikaans stories from the time of their publication, in popular periodicals of that time, until
recently. Up until 2001 these stories, sixteen in total, have never been collected in book form.
Stephen Gray and Craig MacKenzie decided to assign this project, as part of their
Anniversary Edition, to Leon de Kock. This collection, aptly titled Verborge Skatte, contains all the Afrikaans stories which have been traced to their original publications as well as polemical and critical pieces written in or about Afrikaans by Bosman.
From a literary-historical point of view, it would be untenable to call for a revaluation of Bosman’s place in South African literature on the basis of the mere existence of his Afrikaans writing – particularly given its rather slim substance. However, regarding Bosman’s Afrikaans stories, Leon de Kock draws the important conclusion that Bosman was
ahead of his time by virtue of his metafictional skill, self-reflexive irony and political independence. De Kock goes on to highlight interesting aspects that emerge when Bosman’s Afrikaans short stories are compared to their English equivalents as well as the way in which Bosman makes certain cultural emphasis shifts when translating. The implications for South
African literature of De Kock’s assertions are evident. They mean that, in addition to the general confusion about Bosman’s identity and place in South African literature, it would appear that he has not been recognised as an important Afrikaans short story writer, nor as an accomplished bilingual writer. De Kock ends his introduction with a call to researchers:
“Much work lies ahead for the writers of dissertations, who will be able to lay out the evidence at greater leisure” (2001: 210).
This study, then, represents the laying out of evidence that De Kock calls for. It does so through a detailed analysis of critical aspects of this ‘new’ dimension of Bosman’s oeuvre. To begin with, Bosman’s life is probed for possible motivations for his turning to bilingual writing. Key aspects of his English writing and how they are transposed into Afrikaans are then analysed and finally, his language proficiency is put to the test. In the end it is concluded that Bosman was indeed one of the most progressive writers of his time – in
English as well as in Afrikaans – and that a revaluation based on a balanced and inclusive view of the unique impact of Bosman’s diverse corpus has been long overdue. It follows, therefore, that South African literature has been the poorer for the conspicuous absence of his Afrikaans short stories, in particular, and that, on the strength of his extraordinary contribution to both English and Afrikaans literatures, certain adjustments should be made to situate Bosman as a key figure in the South African literary canon.