On history and mythmaking in South Africa: the decolonial quest for truth(s) and relevance
SOURCE: Africa Insight
OUTPUT TYPE: Journal Article
PUBLICATION YEAR: 2018
TITLE AUTHOR(S): O.Bialostocka
KEYWORDS: COLONIALISM, HERITAGE RESOURCES, HISTORY, IDENTITY, POST APARTHEID SOUTH AFRICA
DEPARTMENT: African Institute of South Africa (AISA)
Print: HSRC Library: shelf number 10458
HANDLE: 20.500.11910/12458
URI: http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11910/12458
OUTPUT TYPE: Journal Article
PUBLICATION YEAR: 2018
TITLE AUTHOR(S): O.Bialostocka
KEYWORDS: COLONIALISM, HERITAGE RESOURCES, HISTORY, IDENTITY, POST APARTHEID SOUTH AFRICA
DEPARTMENT: African Institute of South Africa (AISA)
Print: HSRC Library: shelf number 10458
HANDLE: 20.500.11910/12458
URI: http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11910/12458
If you would like to obtain a copy of this Research Output, please contact Hanlie Baudin at researchoutputs@hsrc.ac.za.
Abstract
In responding to Ngugi wa Thiong'o's decolonial call for 'a quest for relevance', this essay deals with the issue of removal of colonial and apartheid-era monuments in South Africa as a way of creating a 'liberating perspective' and shaping a new national identity of the country. With a view to throwing light on the value and functionality of past vestiges, the paper engages with the definition of 'heritage' and its meaning for present-day communities. By examining the process of the selection of historical material and ways of assigning meaning to the relics of the past in heritage practice, it raises the question of power in historical knowledge production. By interrogating the concept of the truth of historical narratives, it discusses the plurality of interpretations of the past to stress the need for an 'ecumenical heritage' that would be relevant to the realities and self-image of South Africans today.-
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