Abstract
M.A. (Afrikaans)
It has already become a generally accepted platitude to assert
that the political novel under the influence of French philosophers
Jean Paul Sartre and Albert Camus has as its aim to
explicitly manipulate the concrete reader towards a "desired"
attitude. "Desired" then in the sense that the reader will be
persuaded by means of literary strategies to accept that particular
ideological viewpoint which is communicated by the text.
Research done into the aspects of historicity of Houd-den-Bek by
Andre P. Brink and as it is utilized by him in the manuscript and
other investigations have revealed drastic deviations from the
historical facts concerning the slave rebellion during 1825 in
the Koue Bokkeveld. The novel employs this chain of events as
the narrative. Deviations from the factual can be related to
the abstract author's will to evoke from the reader a sympathetic
or antipathetic response towards figures or groups. The investigation
undertaken by H.P. van Coller (1988) also mainly
covered the story aspects of the text. The discursive structure
of the whole work (which has not yet been fully researched), especially
in relation to the manipulating role of the abstract
author as the supreme text internal force, is investigated as a
segment of this research project.
The nature of the literary communication, namely manipulation as
text strategy, which is typical of the engaged text, has been
criptically traced. In this investigation the emphasis has fallen
on certain manipulation strategies which is typical of the
engaged text and then particularly on the compositional level,
the word level and the conceptual level. Both intrinsic and
extrinsic characteristics have been noted in order to establish
in what way the organizing force has manifested itself in this
text. It has been established that a pragmatic maneuvering is
present in the manipulative proceeds of this particular novel
which is directed in a clearly persuasive way.
i, Finally it has been established from the reaction of literary
scholars, critics and readers that a communication process did
take place, that the reader was confronted with a "new" ideology.
The reception investigations of critics have been employed
in order to establish if the persuasive proceeds, which have been
built into the structure of the text, do fulfil their referential
function with the intended reader/critic as reproductive reader.
Was this then so effective that the reality in Houd-den-Bek could
become an emotional guilt ridden stimulus not only to the intended
reader, but also to the critic. In other words: has the abstract
author managed to manipulate the critic and in so doing,
has he managed to influence his objective jUdgement as well.
The conclusion that has been arrived at amongst other things, is
that the too obvious manipulation present in the novel adversely
affects it. Manipulative techniques that have been used excessively
become "automatic" as a result of being over-emphasized
and they therefore lose their effect. The reality model in the
text has only been able to persuade the reader/critic in a limited
way to become critically aware