A literary reflection of historical change; A study of the novels of Alex la Guma

Abstract

The thesis studies Alex La Guma's artistic response to historical change in South Africa. The writer's works are seen to constitute a socio-

hd.s co.r Lca I continuum in which the oppressed progre- ssively reach higher levels of political conscious­ ness ~n their liberation struggle. The thesis traces this process of development as portrayed through La Gwna's artistic sensibility. Throughout the thesis, we discuss artistic elements of the works which animate the content.

The thesis is confined to the novels of La Guma. It is divided into five parts: the introduc- tiOD, three chapters which spearhead its central thrust and a conclusion.

The introduction•provides a social and histo­ rical background to the South ~frican situation. The introduction has t:wosub-sections. The first, "The Socio-economic Genesis of Aparth~idfl, points to the historical origins of the ideology of apartheid.

We submit that it originated from the class interests of the white invaders and is a concomitant of the antagonist development of capitalism in the multi­ racial society. It seeks to rationalize and