The function of genocide in post-apocalyptic fiction : 'Ondergang van die Tweede Wêreld' ('Destruction of the Second World') by Eugene N. Marais (1933)

dc.contributor.authorVisagie, Andries
dc.contributor.emailandries.visagie@up.ac.zaen_ZA
dc.date.accessioned2016-06-15T07:55:09Z
dc.date.issued2015-01
dc.description.abstractIn an effort to gain greater clarity about the purpose of the deployment of genocidal elements in what is probably the earliest post-apocalyptic text written in Afrikaans, entitled ‘Ondergang van die Tweede Wêreld’ (‘Destruction of the Second World’), this article offers a careful reading of the story against the background of the larger oeuvre of author Eugène N. Marais. Although the story develops as a thought experiment drawing on racial tensions that existed in South Africa during Marais's lifetime (1871–1936), an environmental disaster that threatens all life on Earth with extinction finally connects local exigencies with global concerns. With reference to the work of Norman Angell, who argued that violent interventions often merely lead to the perpetuation of the political injustice that they aim to eradicate, Marais introduces a ‘spectroperiscopic’ vision in his story that challenges the logic that underlies the genocidal motivations of his characters and, also, projects local concerns onto a global canvas. The emphasis on the survival of human life and the preservation of written testimonies finally function as counterpoints to the disconcerting view of an indifferent natural world that apparently fosters a relentless and cruel competitiveness among humans in their battle for survival in a post-apocalyptic landscape. Ultimately, in defence of Marais's story, the article challenges the arguments of earlier critics about the presumed dark subconscious urges of a morphine-addicted writer to account for the shocking scenes of genocide in ‘Destruction of the Second World’.en_ZA
dc.description.departmentAfrikaansen_ZA
dc.description.embargo2016-06-30
dc.description.librarianhb2016en_ZA
dc.description.urihttp://www.tandfonline.comtoc/reia20en_ZA
dc.identifier.citationAndries Visagie (2015) The Function of Genocide in Post-Apocalyptic Fiction: ‘Ondergang Van Die Tweede Wêreld’ (‘Destruction of the Second World’) by Eugène N. Marais (1933), English Studies in Africa, 58:1, 92-106, DOI: 10.1080/00138398.2015.1046645en_ZA
dc.identifier.issn0013-8398 (print)
dc.identifier.issn1943-8117 (online)
dc.identifier.other10.1080/00138398.2015.1046645
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/2263/53238
dc.language.isoenen_ZA
dc.publisherRoutledgeen_ZA
dc.rights© University of the Witwatersrand. This is an electronic version of an article published in English Studies in Africa, vol. 58, no.1, pp. 92-106, 2016. doi : 10.1080/00138398.2015.1046645. English Studies in Africa is available online at : http://www.tandfonline.comtoc/reia20.en_ZA
dc.subjectAfrikaans literatureen_ZA
dc.subjectDroughten_ZA
dc.subjectEnvironmental disasteren_ZA
dc.subjectGlobal catastropheen_ZA
dc.subject.otherHumanities articles SDG-15
dc.subject.otherSDG-15: Life on land
dc.titleThe function of genocide in post-apocalyptic fiction : 'Ondergang van die Tweede Wêreld' ('Destruction of the Second World') by Eugene N. Marais (1933)en_ZA
dc.typePostprint Articleen_ZA

Files

Original bundle

Now showing 1 - 1 of 1
Loading...
Thumbnail Image
Name:
Visagie_Function_2015.pdf
Size:
357.33 KB
Format:
Adobe Portable Document Format
Description:
Postprint Article

License bundle

Now showing 1 - 1 of 1
Loading...
Thumbnail Image
Name:
license.txt
Size:
1.75 KB
Format:
Item-specific license agreed upon to submission
Description: