Different narration, same history: The politics of writing ‘democratic narratives’ in Zimbabwe
Over the past five decades, Zimbabwe’s political trajectories were characterised by a historiographic revision and deconstruction that revealed varying ideological perceptions and positions of political actors. This article reconsiders the current shifts in the Zimbabwean historiography and focuses...
| Main Authors: | , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | Afrikaans |
| Published: |
Tydskrif vir Letterkunde Association
2020-09-01
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| Series: | Tydskrif vir Letterkunde |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://journals.assaf.org.za/index.php/tvl/article/view/6518 |
| _version_ | 1818807138694201344 |
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| author | Walter Kudzai Barure Irikidzayi Manase |
| author_facet | Walter Kudzai Barure Irikidzayi Manase |
| author_sort | Walter Kudzai Barure |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Over the past five decades, Zimbabwe’s political trajectories were characterised by a historiographic revision and deconstruction that revealed varying ideological perceptions and positions of political actors. This article reconsiders the current shifts in the Zimbabwean historiography and focuses on the politics of positioning the self in the national narrative. The article analyses three Zimbabwean political autobiographies written by political actors from the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC), particularly Michael Auret’s From Liberator to Dictator: An Insider’s Account of Robert Mugabe’s Descent into Tyranny (2009), Morgan Tsvangirai’s At the Deep End (2011), and David Coltart’s The Struggle Continues: 50 Years of Tyranny in Zimbabwe (2016). It also discusses how writing in Zimbabwe is a contested terrain that is bifurcated between oppositional and dominant imaginaries of politics, the revolutionary tradition, and past performances of power. |
| first_indexed | 2024-12-18T19:20:54Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-e8a8f3739bef4c49b89a82901a486579 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 0041-476X 2309-9070 |
| language | Afrikaans |
| last_indexed | 2024-12-18T19:20:54Z |
| publishDate | 2020-09-01 |
| publisher | Tydskrif vir Letterkunde Association |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Tydskrif vir Letterkunde |
| spelling | doaj.art-e8a8f3739bef4c49b89a82901a4865792022-12-21T20:56:00ZafrTydskrif vir Letterkunde AssociationTydskrif vir Letterkunde0041-476X2309-90702020-09-0157210.17159/tl.v57i2.6518Different narration, same history: The politics of writing ‘democratic narratives’ in ZimbabweWalter Kudzai Barure0Irikidzayi Manase1University of the Free State, Bloemfontein, South AfricaUniversity of the Free State, Bloemfontein, South AfricaOver the past five decades, Zimbabwe’s political trajectories were characterised by a historiographic revision and deconstruction that revealed varying ideological perceptions and positions of political actors. This article reconsiders the current shifts in the Zimbabwean historiography and focuses on the politics of positioning the self in the national narrative. The article analyses three Zimbabwean political autobiographies written by political actors from the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC), particularly Michael Auret’s From Liberator to Dictator: An Insider’s Account of Robert Mugabe’s Descent into Tyranny (2009), Morgan Tsvangirai’s At the Deep End (2011), and David Coltart’s The Struggle Continues: 50 Years of Tyranny in Zimbabwe (2016). It also discusses how writing in Zimbabwe is a contested terrain that is bifurcated between oppositional and dominant imaginaries of politics, the revolutionary tradition, and past performances of power.https://journals.assaf.org.za/index.php/tvl/article/view/6518historynarrativesoppositional and dominant imaginariespolitical autobiographiesZimbabwe |
| spellingShingle | Walter Kudzai Barure Irikidzayi Manase Different narration, same history: The politics of writing ‘democratic narratives’ in Zimbabwe Tydskrif vir Letterkunde history narratives oppositional and dominant imaginaries political autobiographies Zimbabwe |
| title | Different narration, same history: The politics of writing ‘democratic narratives’ in Zimbabwe |
| title_full | Different narration, same history: The politics of writing ‘democratic narratives’ in Zimbabwe |
| title_fullStr | Different narration, same history: The politics of writing ‘democratic narratives’ in Zimbabwe |
| title_full_unstemmed | Different narration, same history: The politics of writing ‘democratic narratives’ in Zimbabwe |
| title_short | Different narration, same history: The politics of writing ‘democratic narratives’ in Zimbabwe |
| title_sort | different narration same history the politics of writing democratic narratives in zimbabwe |
| topic | history narratives oppositional and dominant imaginaries political autobiographies Zimbabwe |
| url | https://journals.assaf.org.za/index.php/tvl/article/view/6518 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT walterkudzaibarure differentnarrationsamehistorythepoliticsofwritingdemocraticnarrativesinzimbabwe AT irikidzayimanase differentnarrationsamehistorythepoliticsofwritingdemocraticnarrativesinzimbabwe |