Research Articles (Modern European Languages)

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Memorial museums and burial sites : Rwanda’s unfinished memory work
(Sage, 2024) De Beer, Anna-Marie; Wolfe, Stephanie; Ndizeye, Omar; annamarie.debeer@up.ac.za
Memorialisation of those who died during the 1994 genocide against the Tutsi has been an ongoing concern for both the Rwandan and non-Rwandan communities. The majority of the existing memorials were initially constructed by survivors supported by the local community, administration and other partners in response to the urgent need to bury the bodies of genocide victims. These sites have transformed over the years as memorial policies have codified and evolved. Memorial museums reflect the growing tendency of viewing trauma sites as artistic, interactive spaces that engage with those who visit them. This article examines the aesthetics of memory in three memorial museums situated in Rwanda’s western province: Bisesero, Gatwaro and Ngoma. It reflects on the work of the Rwandan architect Vedaste Ngarambe and his contribution as a local voice by considering how the architect’s aesthetic design choices reflect not only stories of the massacres that unfolded at the three sites but also the mourning culture of the community in which they are located.
Ambivalenzen namibischer Zugehörigkeit in Musikvideos von EES
(Southern African Association of German Studies, 2023) Muhr, Stephan
Eric Sell, with his stage name and eponymous brand ‚EES,‘ is a German-Namibian musician and producer who creates various artistic styles and products in different media and languages. This article analyses selected music videos he posted on YouTube to understand how he situates himself as a Namibian in them, which cannot be taken for granted in a multicultural postcolonial society like Namibia. Many of his songs are written in Namibian German and are directed at a specific audience; conversely, in many of his musical productions he also collaborates with non-German Namibian musicians. This analysis shows that, on the one hand, EES often refers to an antagonistic ‚They‘-group to generate his self-reference; on the other hand, it reveals that despite his German-Namibian idiosyncrasies, his affiliation with Namibia is patriotically charged. Yet it remains ambivalent whether his displays of Namibian affiliation are conclusive in themselves.
Hundemetaphern und posthumanistische subjekte in Marion Poschmanns Hundenovelle und Patrice Nganangs Hundezeiten
(Southern African Association of German Studies, 2023-12) Tezokeng, Klaus; Njanjo, Burrhus
Dogs and animals at large have always triggered scientific debates, especially regarding their capabilities and how they frame humans’ self-perception and cultural representations. These nonhuman others also play a significant role in literary imagination, as fictions such as Herr und Hund by Thomas Mann, Mboudjak. Les aventures du chien philosophe by Patrice Nganang, Jock of the Bushveld by Sir James Percy Fitzpatrick, Disgrace by John Maxwell Coetzee, Triomf by Marlene van Niekerk demonstrate, to mention but a few. This article is aimed at scrutinizing human-animal interactions in Hundenovelle by Marion Poschmann and Hundezeiten (French original: Temps de Chien) by Patrice Nganang. The paper explores the aesthetic reconfiguration of dichotomous power dynamics as addressed in the selected fictions. It brings in a gender perspective and further extends a reflection previously started by Alexandra Böhm (2020) to Nganang’s Hundezeiten and investigates both texts from a comparative vantage point. Furthermore, the study suggests an alternative conception of subjectivity which goes far beyond the human and encompasses the nonhuman as propounded by Rosi Braidotti. (2013:2)
Womanisme dans Crepuscule du tourment : melancolie de Leonora Miano
(Tydskrif vir Letterkunde Assosiasie, 2022-10-26) Tonleu, Madeleine; De Beer, Anna-Marie; Snyman, Elisabeth; mailto:annamarie.debeer@up.
In this article we examine the notion of womanism as portrayed in the 2016 novel Crépuscule du tourment: Mélancolie (Twilight of Torment: Melancholy) by the Franco-Cameroonian author Léonora Miano. We explore how four female characters are subjected to discrimination on various levels: racial, sexist, and even linked to social divisions. We furthermore trace the religious, historical, cultural and sexual aspects of the identity crisis that each character undergoes. The tales by these four voices depicting their suffering and different defence strategies finally point to the womanism of the author herself which this article aims to discuss drawing on a range of definitions provided by scholars such as bell hooks, Molara Ogundipe-Leslie and Alice Walker. Our reading of the novel focusses on the mechanisms of resistance (exploration of homosexual relations, recourse to afrocentricity) deployed by these female characters in an environment where neither Western feminism nor activism seem to respond to the complexity of their alienation. Miano’s heroines attempt to reconstruct their identities in terms of culture, territory, the other and the “self”. Their revolt and courage to speak out constitute acts of self-determination. This emancipatory quest leads to a form of hybridity that embraces both modernity and traditional values, with its myths and customs, and which results in a reconstructed and plural identity. It also constitutes an approach by an African author that embraces both a return to the self and an openness to the outside world.
Erzahlte umweltwahrnehmung in Dirk Flecks Roman Go! Die Ökodiktatur
(Association for German Studies in Southern Africa, 2022-12) Muhr, Stephan
With respect to the fire on Kilimanjaro in 2020, the following article indicates that German media reporting on this incident was not only greatly influenced and affected by colonial imaginaries, but also propagated stereotypical images of Africa to the extent that „[an]other Anthropocene“ (Yusoff et al. 2020) emerged, which however, did not find validation in the reports. The article is structured as follows: firstly, the position of Kilimanjaro in the German imagination will be described. Secondly, a critical, comparative textual analysis on selected online media reports from different German newspapers will be made. Finally, the analysis will show that the online media reporting resulted in the alienation of the local actors by conforming to existing frames of portraying and interpreting African issues. The results and perspectives will be summarised in the conclusion.
„Brand an Gottes Haus“ : ein kritischer blick auf die deutsche online-berichterstattung zum feuer auf dem kilimandscharo 2020
(Association for German Studies in Southern Africa, 2022-12) Ikobwa, James Meja
With respect to the fire on Kilimanjaro in 2020, the following article indicates that German media reporting on this incident was not only greatly influenced and affected by colonial imaginaries, but also propagated stereotypical images of Africa to the extent that „[an]other Anthropocene“ (Yusoff et al. 2020) emerged, which however, did not find validation in the reports. The article is structured as follows: firstly, the position of Kilimanjaro in the German imagination will be described. Secondly, a critical, comparative textual analysis on selected online media reports from different German newspapers will be made. Finally, the analysis will show that the online media reporting resulted in the alienation of the local actors by conforming to existing frames of portraying and interpreting African issues. The results and perspectives will be summarised in the conclusion.
Folie et identite feminine postcoloniale dans La folie et la mort de Ken Bugul
(Association for French Studies in Southern Africa, 2022-12) Tonleu, Madeleine
In this article, I explore the question of madness and feminism as presented by Ken Bugul in La folie et la mort (2000). Madness in this novel is firstly analysed as a socio-political crisis caused by, among other things, bad governance and secondly, as a metaphor for women’s emancipation. I examine the representation of the characters and how the author links their daily experiences to the negotiation of their identity. I draw on critical references from feminism and about madness to demonstrate that the forms of alienation experienced in Africa after independence are a direct consequence of the political systems put in place. They can therefore be compared to madness, which is not only an evil, but can also be a solution, a revolt that unfolds through the writings of African feminists.
Changes over time in language learning strategy use by foreign language learners
(NISC (Pty) Ltd and Informa UK Limited (trading as Taylor and Francis Group), 2021) Lancho Perea, Luis Andres; luis.lanchoperea@up.ac.za
This study explores the reported changes over time of the use of language learning strategies based on periodic self-reports of undergraduates that studied Spanish as a foreign language for three years. The purpose was to gain a better understanding of how the use of particular strategies evolved and consolidated or disappeared as students became progressively more proficient in Spanish. By using Oxford’s taxonomy that differentiates and classifies language learning strategies according to their function, and employing a mixed-method approach that combined successive administrations of Oxford’s Strategy Inventory of Language Learning with in-depth interviews, this study found that the most frequently used strategies as reported by students who started as absolute beginners and continued studying Spanish for three consecutive years were metacognitive strategies in the first year, social strategies in the second year and cognitive strategies in the third year. This study analysed and discussed these findings.
L’expansion de l’anglais : une menace pour la francophonie universitaire?
(Association for French Studies in Southern Africa (AFSSA), 2020-10) Tirvassen, Rada
There is a belief that Francophone institutions and organisations are powerless to counter the attraction of academics towards the English language. According to many Francophone decisionmakers, the expansion of the English language and its current supremacy in academia are largely driven by globalisation. This article questions this belief. In fact, drawing from two multilingual contexts, I will show that the demand for English stems from internal sociolinguistic dynamics. To support my stance, I will analyse some of the sociolinguistic dynamics in South Africa and Mauritius. More importantly, I will show that scholars should not conflate and confuse the expansion of the English language in science with the challenges of French-speaking academics. If, for example, Francophone institutions and organisations want to address the specific problem of the attraction of French-speaking academics for English academic journals, a safer approach would be to analyse how the English-speaking academic world is structured, what it offers and that Francophone academia does not offer. Pending such a comparative study, this article proposes that a number of initiatives be implemented in order to prevent the situation from becoming more difficult to manage in the future.
Grenzorte und Grenzdialektik in Lutz Seilers Kruso
(Peter Lang International Academic Publishers, 2019) Muhr, Stephan
Please read abstract in article.
Teaching grammar through literature in foreign language learning with German as an example
(University of Stellenbosch, Education Faculty, Department of Curriculum Studies, 2018) Weber, Angelika
Learning a language’s grammar is frequently experienced as a complicated, abstract and often boring process. To alleviate this situation, scholars like Harald Weinrich advocate the use of literature in grammar teaching and learning. Literature has a very special potential of emotionally touching its readers, causing them to reflect on what they have read. In turn, readers can easily be animated to respond. This article attempts to demonstrate how the potential of literature can be used even in grammar teaching and learning to stimulate the learners emotionally and lead them towards writing their own personal response to the text. In this way, they have the opportunity to express themselves in the foreign language while at the same time applying the grammar they have learned. Although the example is based on teaching German as a foreign language, the principle underlying the proposed pedagogical sequences can be applied to the teaching and learning of other foreign languages as well.
How Spanish is learnt matters : university students’ use of language learning strategies
(Routledge, 2019) Lancho Perea, Luis Andrés; luis.lanchoperea@up.ac.za
The study explored how Spanish is learnt at a South African university by analysing students’ self-reports on the use of language learning strategies. A mixed methods design was used. Considering that learning a foreign language poses particular and distinct challenges (as opposed to learning a second language), special attention was paid to aspects related to the learners’ ability to learn and the actions that they undertake to self-regulate their learning. The study found that the most frequently used strategies as perceived by students were compensation and metacognitive strategies. However, the study only found a statistically significant positive correlation between the perceived use of metacognitive strategies and the final marks received in the beginners’ course. Students who intended to continue studying Spanish also reported using statistically significantly more metacognitive strategies than those who eventually passed the beginners’ course but did not continue.
Interkulturelles Lernen im südafrikanischen DaF-Unterricht : Eine Studie
(Southern African Association of German Studies, 2018) Weber, Angelika
The call to transform South African university curricula necessitates revisiting possibilities and perspectives, also in teaching German as a foreign language. This article demonstrates how intercultural learning can take place by addressing a relevant and culturally sensitive topic like polygamy. The goal of this approach is to bring to the fore cultural differences, prejudices and misconceptions in order to promote dialogue and understanding and in this way promote intercultural learning. In order to determine if cultural learning indeed took place, an empirical study of the didactical intervention was conducted simultaneously.
Wissenschaftliches Gedächtnis als Erinnerungskultur : Zwei Fallstudien zum Kolonialkrieg in Namibia
(Southern African Association of German Studies, 2018) Muhr, Stephan
This contribution is based on the premise that remembering as representation of the past is always also the (re-)construction of reality and that the same applies to scientific memory. The generation of historical and ethnological knowledge of other times or cultures is not fundamentally different to everyday cultural memory, except that it is bound to specific institutions with specific practices of their cultural knowledge. In this paper, two such constructions of scientific memory on the colonial war in Namibia will examined in terms of their respective narratives of cultural memory. These are the historiographic work by Gesine Krüger Kriegsbewältigung und Geschichtsbewusstsein. Realität, Deutung und Verarbeitung des deutschen Kolonialkriegs in Namibia 1904 bis 1907 (1999) and the ethnological work by Larissa Förster Postkoloniale Erinnerungslandschaften. Wie Deutsche und Herero in Namibia des Kriegs von 1904 gedenken (2010). In so doing, this article is also participa-ting in an academic practice of remembering.
Deconstructing and reinventing the concept of multilingualism : a case study of the Mauritian sociolinguistic landscape
(University of Stellenbosch. Department of General Linguistics, 2017) Tirvassen, Rada; Ramasawmy, Shalini Jagambal
This article aims at deconstructing the conception of multilingualism developed in mainstream sociolinguistics by critically examining the assumptions underlying this trend of research, which is grounded in the scholarship of Labov (1972), Fishman (1984) and even Gumperz (1972). In order to engage in that discussion, we use the Mauritian sociolinguistic landscape, as described by researchers following that tradition, as a case. We, thus, carry out a meta-analysis of existing sociolinguistic research conducted in Mauritius, which serve to illustrate the extent to which knowledge produced bear the influence of the structuralist approach. Then, we critically discuss and reflect upon the assumptions underpinning such research, and in so doing, challenge key concepts such as language and diglossia. Finally, we open a discussion on the need to adopt an alternative epistemological position in order to construct a different type of interpretation of the phenomenon following the ground-breaking work of scholars such as Makoni and Pennycook (2007), Herdina and Jessner (2002), Blackledge and Creese (2010), Garcia (2009) and de Robillard (2005, 2007).
World Englishes et français régionaux : so different ou les limites de la théorisation en sciences du langage?
(Association for French Studies in Southern Africa, 2017) Tirvassen, Rada
The starting point of this article is that sociolinguistics and in fact any social science should acknowledge that there are different ways of constructing knowledge regarding human behaviour in society and that each of the main trend of scholarship is underpinned by basic philosophical principles. These principles are nested within paradigms that contain the researcher’s epistemological, ontological, ethical and methodological premises. Not questioning the paradigmatic choice implies that there is only one paradigm, one approach to interpret social behaviour. In order to support my argument, I have compared the research which has been carried out on what is termed as regional French and World Englishes. This comparative study has led me to two main findings. First, the tools of conceptualisation that have been provided by the dominant trends of sociolinguistics determine how the objects of studies are constituted as well as the way they are interpreted by scholars. The second one concerns the emergence of a marginal trend of research based on alternative epistemological and ontological foundations. The interpretation of several key aspects of regional French is renewed because of the different epistemological perspectives adopted by the researchers who have opted for a different research paradigm.
Interroger les fondements des travaux consacrés aux français régionaux
(Association for French Studies in Southern Africa, 2016) Tirvassen, Rada
This article analyses how studies on regional Frenches identify the phenomenon studied and how knowledge is elaborated. It addresses the issue of the relationship between ideological choices and the theoretical and methodological options of the field. It explains why scholarship in the field has not been able to theorise adequately with regard to the diffusion of a language in diverse multicultural and multilingual contexts. A comparison between this approach to regional Frenches and research conducted in the Indian Ocean on other aspects of regional Frenches, especially morpho-syntax, using another conceptualization of sociolinguistic variation, shows to what extent the field can benefit from a renewed approach. The article also illustrates the pitfalls of studies which do not question the epistemological foundations upon which scientific knowledge is built.
La saison des ertes » dans L'aine des orphelins de Tierno Monenembo
(Association for French Studies in Southern Africa, 2016) De Beer, Anna-Marie
When a group of African intellectuals undertake a collective journey to Rwanda four years after the genocide against the Tutsis, Tierno Monénembo writes his narrative, L'aîné des orphelins, from the point of view of Faustin, a young boy. Faustin is indeed the "oldest orphan" on various levels and it is the polysemous character of the notion of being at once the oldest and an orphan that I explore. The article analyses Monénembo's portrayal of this ambiguous position in which his protagonist finds himself. It furthermore considers the child narrator as a recurring figure in Monénembo's work and looks at how the theme of exile, which is common to his writing, takes shape in this particular novel.
The ill legitimacies of the modern age : Carl Schmitt and Hans Blumenberg in correspondence
(Southern African Association of German, 2016) Kistner, Ulrike
In making the case for the public role of religion in post-modernity, post-secularism posits the translatability of the claims of religion into claims on the grounds of morality and rationality. While much scope is given to this interrelation, the problem of legitimacy/legitimation, if not conjured away altogether, has received rather less attention. Placing it centre-stage, this article proposes to investigate it within the framework of political theology. To the re-statement of the problematic of ‘secular modernity’, the debates between Carl Schmitt and Hans Blumenberg make a definitive contribution, which I would like to consider in this article. In the eyes of some commentators, Schmitt and Blumenberg hold opposed positions on modernity – Schmitt asserting the persistence of political theology in the political forms of modern societies, and Blumenberg tracing the recession of the theological, making way for reflexive modernity. However, far from a simple opposition, we can observe a complex intertwinement of their respective positions. With the shifting sand between them, the common ground of their opposition disintegrates, opening paths for investigating an interarticulation of their claims, now no longer mutually exclusive or contradictory, with possibilities for an account of the role of the theologico-political distinct from, and beyond (post-) secularism debates.
Wo ist die Grenze? Begriffs- und problemgeschichtliche kritik
(Southern African Association of German Studies, 2016) Muhr, Stephan
Current discussions about borders often do not take into account what Hegel already developed as a totalizing dialectics of the boundary: Concepts as de-markations include not only the delimited, the ‘de-fin-ed’, but also the externally marginalized. They constitute in themselves a narrative sovereignty about the Own, the Other, as well as about the very distinction between them. Any discourses on boundaries or limits, any conceptual definitions have always ‘othered’ something from themselves and absorbed this in themselves. So whoever is asking about the ‘Where’ of the boundary has already established it. In this paper, the dialectics of the boundary is elicited from the history of concepts and problems. Then, the ‘modern’ solution of the boundary is discussed using Hegel as an example. ‘Postmodern’ discourses of liminality as in Bhabha, however, occasionally tend to level out this dialectics, whereas a phenomenological understanding of the boundary as threshold (“Schwelle”) by Waldenfels can reflect the dialectics successfully.

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