Diamonds Are Forever: (Re)Building the Archive of a Prototypical Mining Town by Joha van Dyk Thesis presented in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Masters of English Studies in the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences at Stellenbosch University Dr. Daniel Roux March 2021 1 Stellenbosch University https://scholar.sun.ac.za Declaration By submitting this thesis electronically, I declare that the entirety of the work contained therein is my own, original work, that I am the sole author thereof (save to the extent explicitly otherwise stated), that reproduction and publication thereof by Stellenbosch University will not infringe any third party rights and that I have not previously in its entirety or in part submitted it for obtaining any qualification. March 2021 Copyright © 2021 Stellenbosch University All rights reserved 2 Stellenbosch University https://scholar.sun.ac.za Abstract: The town or “village” of Kleinzee is known as a prototypical town, constructed for the use of De Beers Consolidated Mines’ mining needs. A prolific diamond mining company town in its prime, it was considered a little utopia by its inhabitants. However, since De Beers’ withdrawal from Kleinzee in the early 2000s, residents have had to move away for work opportunities, the town has been neglected and is now a shadow of its original pristine state. Little to no research exists on Kleinzee and its history. Thus, the eventual downfall of the town, following the withdrawal of De Beers’ mining efforts, and its ongoing survival as a tourist-centred town has yet to be addressed. Additionally, there are a few general historical accounts that mention Kleinzee, but nothing detailing the texture and intricacies of day-to-day life within the town. This thesis addresses the complex social and historical realities that gave rise to Kleinzee and resulted in its ultimate demise by means of a short story cycle which spans the pre-history of the town to the present day, utilising different perspectives to capture something of the social diversity and specificity of this curious coastal town. 3 Stellenbosch University https://scholar.sun.ac.za Opsomming: Die “dorpie” Kleinzee is ’n prototipiese dorp wat gebou is vir die gebruik van De Beers Consolidated Mines se mynbehoeftes. Gedurende die vooruitstrewende jare van die die myn, was die dorp produktief en is dit deur inwoners as ’n tipe utopie beskou. Nadat De Beers in die vroeë 2000’s hul mynbedrywighede begin onttrek het aan die omgewing, het inwoners verhuis op soek na nuwe werksgeleenthede. Die dorp het begin verwaarloos raak en is tans net `n vervalle skaduwee van die oorspronklike glorieryke toestand. Daar is min navorsing tans beskikbaar oor Kleinzee en sy geskiedenis. Die impak van die ontrekking van De Beers aan die dorp en die voortbestaan daarvan, wat hoofsaaklik spruit uit toerisme geleenthede, bied die potensiaal vir verdere navorsing. Veral, aangesien daar slegs ’n paar historiese verslae is wat Kleinzee noem, maar geen literatuur wat die ingewikkelhede van die dag tot dag bestaan in die dorp ondersoek nie. Hierdie proefskrif behandel die ingewikkelde sosiale en historiese werklikhede wat aanleiding gegee het tot die ontstaan van Kleinzee en uiteindelik die verval daarvan, deur middel van ’n kortverhaalsiklus. Dit strek van die voorgeskiedenis van die dorp tot die huidige fase tans en poog om deur verskillende perspektiewe iets van die sosiale diversiteit en spesifisiteit van die dorp vas te vang. 4 Stellenbosch University https://scholar.sun.ac.za Acknowledgements: During the process of researching and writing my thesis, I have received a great deal of support and assistance. Firstly, I want to thank my supervisor, Dr. Daniel Roux. Without his guidance and expertise this project would not be what it is today. Your honest feedback and motivation concerning my thesis topic allowed me to pursue a project which I am truly passionate about. I would like to thank my family for their infinite patience, the hours they spent listening to me relay stories from Jack Carstens’ memoir and the memories of Namaqualand they shared with me. Thank you for raising me in such a culturally, environmentally rich space – a place which undoubtedly can be traced in everything I have written, a place where stories and storytellers are born. 5 Stellenbosch University https://scholar.sun.ac.za “In contemplation of ruins, one contemplates one’s future, the fragility of the present, and the futility of the past.” – Alexander Creswell 6 Stellenbosch University https://scholar.sun.ac.za Contents Introduction ................................................................................................................................................... 8 Context .......................................................................................................................................................... 9 Fortuneteller ................................................................................................................................................ 15 Strandloper .................................................................................................................................................. 27 War .............................................................................................................................................................. 30 Gun Club ..................................................................................................................................................... 40 !ouboe ......................................................................................................................................................... 51 Noot vir Noot .............................................................................................................................................. 59 The Veld Girl .............................................................................................................................................. 75 The Gatekeeper ........................................................................................................................................... 85 Fired ............................................................................................................................................................ 98 The Cat Lady............................................................................................................................................. 115 The Boy on the Wall ................................................................................................................................. 124 Smuggler ................................................................................................................................................... 138 Lover ......................................................................................................................................................... 150 A Memory ................................................................................................................................................. 163 A Quiet Place ............................................................................................................................................ 175 Epilogue: A Pioneer .................................................................................................................................. 188 7 Stellenbosch University https://scholar.sun.ac.za Introduction Witnessing the slow decomposition of your place of belonging evokes not only a nostalgic melancholy, but also curiosity about how it is possible for such a thriving town to unravel the way it did. As a young child, I was witness to the slow decline of Kleinzee’s infrastructure as a mining town and, today, when I walk the streets of the town, I am at odds with my position within its remnants. Though there is an influx of tourists during the December and Easter Holiday seasons, I am unable to separate Kleinzee in its present state from the hauntological quality of its ruins: the “failure of the future” is never clearer than when one drives past old De Beers offices with their furniture and moth-eaten drapes still haunting the windows (Fisher 16). Realizing that there is barely any information available on this prototypical town and how it came to (not) be, I became determined to generate information, to capture everything that I could remember in order for Kleinzee to be a place once again – not a place forgotten or abandoned. I therefore explore my personal archive of memories of the place in which I spent my formative years, and attempt to create a stable portrait – as much as possible – of what Kleinzee once was. This is in some respects an auto-ethnographical research project, which is realized in a short story cycle that aims to confront the elements and technicalities of a prototypical town, analyze the ghosts of expectations that still haunt the town, and consider the environmental violence which is continuously committed by large corporations. 8 Stellenbosch University https://scholar.sun.ac.za Context The town or “village” of Kleinzee is known as a prototypical town, constructed for the use of De Beers Consolidated Mines’ mining needs. On the Internet, it is defined by its location and its relation to other places, creating the illusion of insignificance when, in reality, it was essential to the success of the mining company’s flourishing business. As a “company town”, its residents were all employees of De Beers,