Andre P. Brink, retorikus par excellence
Date
2002
Authors
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Afrikaanse Letterkundevereniging
Abstract
From the seventies, the novels of André P. Brink have foregrounded the need for alternative histories to lend a voice to the marginalized other, (especially, and often in combination, indigenous people, slaves and women) in stories which are usually ignored by male historiographers. The distinctive way in which this train of thought is followed throughout his oeuvre, makes Brink a strong ideological author. It also makes him a persuader par excellence. This article reviews Brink's rhetorical point of departure and some of the rhetorical strategies applied in a number of his novels since 1973, coupled with the theoretical notions of, inter alia, the Rhetoric of Inquiry Movement and the New Historicism, which can also be called a rhetorical approach. After an analysis of these relevant aspects in ten novels by Brink, the conclusion is reached that Brink constructs his novels in a very logical way, with a mainly ethical objective, namely, to gradually effect an 'illumination' in his readers regarding the deeper truths generated by this alternative historiography.
Description
CITATION: Van Zyl, D. 2002. Andre P. Brink, retorikus par excellence. Stilet, 14(2).