DIPLOMARBEIT / DIPLOMA THESIS Titel der Diplomarbeit / Title of the Diploma Thesis “‘How Can I Act Against My Own People?‘. Liberalism, Trauma, and Identity in South African Novels by Nadine Gordimer and André Brink“ verfasst von / submitted by Anna Lichtenegger angestrebter akademischer Grad / in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Magistra der Philosophie (Mag.phil.) Wien, 2017 / Vienna, 2017 Studienkennzahl lt. Studienblatt / A 190 299 344 degree programme code as it appears on the student record sheet: Studienrichtung lt. Studienblatt / Lehramtsstudium degree programme as it appears on UF Psychologie und Philosophie the student record sheet: UF Englisch Betreut von / Supervisor: Univ.-Prof. Dr. Ewald Mengel Table of Contents Acknowledgements .................................................................................................................... 1 1. Introduction ............................................................................................................................ 2 2. Historical Context: South African Apartheid ......................................................................... 3 3. Liberalism ............................................................................................................................. 24 3.1 Anti-Apartheid Movements ............................................................................................ 27 3.2 White Liberalism and Dissidence .................................................................................. 30 4. Identity in South Africa ........................................................................................................ 40 4.1. Individual and Collective Identity ................................................................................. 40 4.2. National Identity ............................................................................................................ 46 5. Identity and Trauma ............................................................................................................. 47 6. Liberalism & Identity in South African Novels ................................................................... 54 6.1 The Authors .................................................................................................................... 54 6.2 A Dry White Season by André Brink ............................................................................. 57 6.2.1 Plot & Context ......................................................................................................... 57 6.2.2 The Portrayal of Liberalism .................................................................................... 59 6.2.3 Inter-racial Relationships ........................................................................................ 64 6.2.4 Liberalism & Identity .............................................................................................. 66 6.2.5 Possibilities, Consequences and Limits of White Liberalism ................................. 67 6.3 An Act of Terror by André Brink ................................................................................... 75 6.3.1 Plot & Context ......................................................................................................... 75 6.3.2 The Portrayal of Liberalism .................................................................................... 76 6.3.3 Inter-racial Relationships ........................................................................................ 84 6.3.4 Liberalism & Identity .............................................................................................. 86 6.3.5 Possibilities, Consequences and Limits of White Liberalism ................................. 90 6.4 The Late Bourgeoise World by Nadine Gordimer ......................................................... 95 6.4.1 Plot & Context ......................................................................................................... 95 6.4.2 The Portrayal of Liberalism .................................................................................... 96 6.4.3 Inter-racial Relationships ...................................................................................... 102 6.4.4 Liberalism & Identity ............................................................................................ 104 6.4.5 Possibilities, Consequences and Limits of White Liberalism ............................... 106 6.5 Burger’s Daughter by Nadine Gordimer ...................................................................... 111 6.5.1 Plot & Context ....................................................................................................... 111 6.5.2 The Portrayal of Liberalism .................................................................................. 113 6.5.3 Inter-racial Relationships ...................................................................................... 118 6.5.4 Liberalism & Identity ............................................................................................ 120 6.5.5 Possibilities, Consequences and Limits of White Liberalism ............................... 125 7. Conclusion .......................................................................................................................... 131 References .............................................................................................................................. 134 List of Figures & Tables ......................................................................................................... 138 Index ....................................................................................................................................... 139 Declaration of Authorship ...................................................................................................... 141 Abstract .................................................................................................................................. 142 Acknowledgements This thesis only exists in its current form due to the support of several people. First and foremost, I offer my sincerest gratitude to my supervisor, Univ.-Prof. Dr. Ewald Mengel, whose support and guidance from the initial to the final level enabled me to develop not only a first interest in South African literature but also a deeper understanding of the subject. I would also like to thank my family for supporting and encouraging me throughout all my years at school and university. Finally, I owe my deepest gratitude to my partner, Dominik Hölbling. You were always there cheering me up and stood by me through the good times and bad. This thesis would not exist without you. Thank you. 1 1. Introduction From 1948 to 1994 South Africa was a split nation. Demanding the separate development of the four racial groups, white, black, coloured, and Indian, and discriminating all non-whites, Apartheid and the crimes committed in the name of its racist ideology left the country deeply traumatized and in crisis (South African History Online; Eagle & Kaminer). While a strong resistance movement developed already in the early years of apartheid, white dissidents were rare and often isolated. As the majority of the hegemonic white group supported South Africa’s racist National Party (NP) government (Zalusky 83), several white dissidents felt excluded from their social group(s) due to their liberal attitude. The term ‘liberalism’ itself denotes the fight for the global values of freedom of choice, human dignity, and equality of the law (MacDonald 25); liberals thus strived for the right of all individuals to realise their liberty, aims, and preference without limiting the liberty of their fellow human beings. Apartheid, however, contradicts this principle, as it forces the scarification of “the good of some to the greater good of others” (Hudson 95). Despite white liberals’ high aspirations, their ideology was at times considered problematic by both whites and non-whites due to various reasons (cf. Woods 184- 185, MacDonald 24-25, Lazerson 4). Their resulting outsider position in society (Louw- Potgieter 32-33) raises several interesting questions with regard to their feeling of belonging, identity (or identities), as well as to the psychological and sociological effects of their activities. Here, literature provides one of the few possibilities to gain access to the world of white liberals (F. Welsh 472-473), who frequently risked their life supporting the freedom struggle of others. Therefore, the aim of this diploma thesis is to answer the following research questions by analysing four selected novels by André Brink and Nadine Gordimer: • How are the experiences of white liberals presented in the novels? • What possibilities and consequences of political opposition by Afrikaners are represented? • Where are the limits of the character’s liberalism? • How is the identity of the liberals, as well as their close relations affected by their liberalism? • What image of inter-racial relationships is provided? • In how far is liberalism presented as traumatizing (for liberals and/or close friends, family, etc.)? In order to provide answers to these questions, first, the historical context of South African apartheid will be reviewed. Afterwards, an overview of South African anti-apartheid movements shall be given, with particular focus on the aims, movements, and limits of white liberalism. The next section explores identity and identity formation in the context of South 2 Africa