Culture and gender in Mayosi's Iqhina Lomtshato

[摘要] ENGLISH ABSTRACT:The issues of culture and gender are not a well researched subject in Xhosa literature. So farthere is one doctoral research study by Mtuze (1990) conducted on prose works of 1909 -1980. This study aims to investigate culture and gender in Mayasi's novel, Iqhina lomtshato(1995). The main reason for this research is that Xhosa culture has been viewed in literatureto be patriarchal, which means that it is organised in such a way that it depicts maledomination. Women on the other hand are being regarded as inferior or subordinate.Findings in this research are that the character Sindiswa is presented here as a victim of maledomination and oppression when she is forced into a relationship without her consent. Thefact that Max, who is a much older man and unsuitable as her lover, leaves her with no choicebut to accept what we may call his induced proposal of love. Sindiswa's oppression is alsointensified by the urban culture that is new to her.

[发布机构] Stellenbosch University