Can Themba : The Making and Breaking of the Intellectual Tsotsi, a Biography

Siphiwo Mahala

ISBN 10: 1776147316 / ISBN 13: 9781776147311

Verlag: Wits University Press Mär 2022, 2022

Beschreibung

Neuware - Mahala's biography gives insight into the life and writing of Can Themba (1924-1967), an iconic figure of the South African literary world and Drum journalist who died in exileThis rich and absorbing biography of Can Themba, iconic Drum-era journalist and writer, is the definitive history of a larger-than-life man who died too young. Siphiwo Mahala's intensive and often fresh research features unprecedented archival access and interviews with Themba's surviving colleagues and family.Mahala's biography takes a critical historical approach to Themba's life and writing, giving a picture of the whole man, from his early beginnings in Marabastad to his sombre end in exile in Swaziland. The better-known elements of his life - his political views, passion for teaching and mentoring, family life and his drinking - are woven together with an examination of his literary influences and the impact of his own writing (especially his famous short story 'The Suit') on modern African writers in turn. Mahala, a master storyteller, deftly follows the threads of Themba's dynamic life, showcasing his intellectual acumen, scholarly aptitude and wit, along with his flaws, contradictions and heartbreaks, against a backdrop of the sparkle and pathos of Sophiatown of the 1950s.Can Themba's successes and failures as well as his triumphs and tribulations reverberate on the pages of this long-awaited biography. The result is an authoritative and entertaining account of an often misunderstood figure in South Africa's literary canon.

Bestandsnummer des Verkäufers 9781776147311

Bibliografische Details

• Titel: Can Themba : The Making and Breaking of the Intellectual Tsotsi, a Biography
• Verlag: Wits University Press Mär 2022
• Erscheinungsjahr: 2022
• Sprache: Englisch
• ISBN-10: 1776147316
• ISBN-13: 9781776147311
• Einband: Taschenbuch
• Zustand: Neu
• Abmessungen: 234B x 156 H x 17 T Millimeter Breite: 234 mm, Höhe: 156 mm, Tiefe: 17 mm
• Gewicht: 449 Gramm

Über diesen Titel

Inhaltsangabe

Mahala's biography gives insight into the life and writing of Can Themba (1924–1967), an iconic figure of the South African literary world and Drum journalist who died in exile
This rich and absorbing biography of Can Themba, iconic Drum-era journalist and writer, is the definitive history of a larger-than-life man who died too young. Siphiwo Mahala's intensive and often fresh research features unprecedented archival access and interviews with Themba's surviving colleagues and family.
Mahala's biography takes a critical historical approach to Themba's life and writing, giving a picture of the whole man, from his early beginnings in Marabastad to his sombre end in exile in Swaziland. The better-known elements of his life – his political views, passion for teaching and mentoring, family life and his drinking – are woven together with an examination of his literary influences and the impact of his own writing (especially his famous short story 'The Suit') on modern African writers in turn. Mahala, a master storyteller, deftly follows the threads of Themba's dynamic life, showcasing his intellectual acumen, scholarly aptitude and wit, along with his flaws, contradictions and heartbreaks, against a backdrop of the sparkle and pathos of Sophiatown of the 1950s.
Can Themba's successes and failures as well as his triumphs and tribulations reverberate on the pages of this long-awaited biography. The result is an authoritative and entertaining account of an often misunderstood figure in South Africa's literary canon.

Über die Autorin bzw. den Autor

Siphiwo Mahala is an award-winning short story writer, novelist, playwright and literary critic. He is a senior lecturer in the Department of English at the University of Johannesburg and a research fellow at the Johannesburg Institute for Advanced Study. He is the editor of Imbiza Journal for African Writing.