ABSTRACT This research report comprises two parts: a theoretical introduction and a creative component. The theoretical introduction explores the extensive impact of militarism in South Africa during the South West African Border Wars of the 1970s and 1980s. It also reflects on some of the literary issues that were encountered during the research period. The creative component consists of three short stories that examine some of the reverberations of living in a militarised state.

Wartime lends itself to a particular form of communication. This type of communication is often regarded as propaganda, which is used to promote or alternatively dissuade pro-war fervour. This theory is no different during the Border War of South Africa (1966-1989). During the years that the war waged, the public’s sentiment towards the war had changed instigated by the continuing political unrest found both in South Africa and on its borders. The South African Defence Force (SADF) attempted to use its official magazine Paratus to disseminate pro-war communication in order to subdue the objectors and sway public opinion. Thus, this study aimed to understand how the magazine was used as a propaganda medium in terms of its editorial philosophy. Furthermore, attention was given to the main propaganda devices used in magazines as well as in Paratus itself, while changes in the editorial philosophy of the magazine during wartime formed the background of the study. By making use of the single case and longitudinal study, continuous data from a core single source, from 1970-1988, was investigated to gather data including the cover, advertisements, letters, articles and design features that will form the subject of rigorous content analysis in order to obtain rich and holistic information. An amagalmation of the propaganda devices identified by Lasswell (1927), the Institute of Propaganda Analysis – the IPA (1937) and the Propaganda Model (1988) was used as set criteria to base this propaganda study on. The study is rooted in a comprehensive literature review in order to contextualise the findings and avoid bias from the researcher. Ultimately, the study revealed that pro-war and Afrikaner nationalism and Calvinism ideals were supported and furthered through the means of mass communication approaches, specifically that of strategic communication, agenda-setting theory and framing, as well as propaganda devices, most notably the glittering generalities and transfer propaganda devices, while the ideology of anti-Communism alongside the rhetoric of “total onslaught” also formed part of the narrative of the magazine. / Dissertation (MIS)--University of Pretoria, 2019. / University of Pretoria: academic excellence bursary. / Information Science / MIS / Unrestricted

Stellenbosch University. Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences. Dept. of Visual Arts / Thesis (MA (VA)) -- Stellenbosch University, 2006. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Cultural evolution & genre: an investigation of three South African graphic narratives of the South African Border war (1975-1988) Magister in Fine Arts thesis, Department of Fine Arts, Stellenbosch University This study analyses three South African graphic narratives in the context of culture evolving in the Darwinian sense. It is deemed necessary to consider evolutionary theory in such a study of graphic narratives as it considers the development of culture as resulting from a process of evolution akin to natural selection. Special attention is paid to the theory of memetics, in the field of evolutionary epistemology, and its proposal to model cultural evolution. While this model relies on evolutionary theory, the development of culture is seen as evolving separately from biological evolution. This evolutionary perspective on culture is combined with the concepts of discourse and genre in social semiotics and media studies to investigate the changes in the depiction of the Border war in South African graphic narratives. As such this study focuses on the strategic viewpoint of cultural evolution, the role of memes in genre and its interaction with the evolution of discourse. This approach is offered as a useful method to analyse cultural artefacts. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Kulturele evolusie & genre: 'n ondersoek van drie grafiese verhale van die Suid-Afrikaanse Grensoorlog (1975-1988) Magister in Beeldende Kunste tesis, Oepat1ement Beeldende Kunste, Universiteit van Stellcnbosch Hicrdie studic ontleed drie Suid-Afrikaanse graficse verhale in die konteks van kultuur wat evolueer in die Oarwinistiese sin. Oit word belangrik gereken om evolusieteorie in so 'n studie van grafiese verhale in ag te neem aangesien die ontwikkeling van kultuur as die resultaat van 'n proses van evolusie, verwand aan natuurlike seleksie, geag word. Spesiale aandag word geskenk aan die teorie van meme, in die veld van evolusieepistemologie, en die teorie se voorstel om kulturele evolusie te modelleer. Terwyl so 'n teorie op evolusieteorie steun, word die ontwikkeling van kultuur beskou as 'n afsonderlike proses van natuurlike seleksie. Hierdie evolusienere perspektief op kultuur word verenig met die konsepte van diskoers en genre in sosiale semiotiek en media studies om die veranderende uitbeelding van die Grensoorlog in Suid-Afrikaanse gratiese verhale na te vors. Sodanig fokus hierdie studie op die strategiesc oogpunt van kulturele evolusie, die rol van meme in genre en die interaksie met die ontwikkeling van diskoers. Hierdie benadering word aangebied as 'n waardevolle metode om kulturele artefakte te ontleed.

The primary aim of this research was to explore the experiences of formerly white conscripted combat veterans during the ‘border war’ and furthermore, to uncover discourses of whiteness and masculinity embedded in their recounted experiences. This research made use of a qualitative research design. This study drew on the experiences of white male South Africans who were exposed to some form of active combat during the ‘border war’. The sample consisted of 8 white South Africans who were born roughly between the 1960s and 1970s. Data was collected through semi-structured interviews and analysed using discourse analysis. For the purpose of this research, a hybridised version of discourse analysis was used. This contained elements of critical as well as the discursive approaches to discourse analysis. This study concluded that both whiteness and masculinity are unstable constructs with no absolute definition. This study also found that many of the participants seemed conflicted and unsure of where to position themselves in relation to the ‘border war’, apartheid and contemporary South Africa as white men. For many it would seem it is easier to simply ignore those years of their lives. In terms of the intersectionality of whiteness and masculinity this research confirms the fact that both whiteness and masculinity, as socially and culturally constructed categories, work together and interact on multiple levels to either empower or marginalize individuals. However, in some instances it was also found that these discourses also function independently of each other. Ultimately it can be said that white masculinity exists in a space that is both troubled and unsettled. This study has illustrated that white men in South Africa have gone from a position of omnipotent power during apartheid to one of contested instability in present South African society. It is evident from this research that whiteness and masculinity are both complex and diffuse constructs that still warrant a great deal of exploration. That said, the future prospects for these individuals are both challenging and possible.

Konflikterna i södra Afrika under 1900-talets andra hälft är något som idag är främmande för många och som direkt för tankarna till apartheid regimen. Hårt pressat av omvärlden på grund av deras raspolitik kämpade Sydafrika i många år en oftast anonym konflikt mot kommunistiska styrkor som hade stöd från Kuba och Sovjetunionen. Under vissa perioder, speciellt mot krigsslutet, eskalerades stridigheterna och stora konventionella operationer bedrevs långt in i Angola för att hindra framfarten av fientliga styrkor.  Sydafrikas användandet av stridsflyg kopplas i denna studie till John A. Warden III:s teorier om hur luftmakt bör användas. Warden är mest känd från perspektivet att hans teorier var grundläggande i planerandet av Gulfkriget i Irak och andra amerikanska luftoffensiver under 1990- och 2000-talet. I detta arbete undersöks i hur stor utsträckning det är möjligt att finna spår av Wardens luftmakts-teorier i Sydafrikas gränskrig. Resultatet av studien visar, genom en analys, hur enskilda händelser och operationer korrelerar med utvalda begrepp ur Wardens teorier. Däremot finns det inga indikationer som pekar på att det större strategiska perspektivet överensstämmer med Wardens större konceptuella idéer. / The conflicts in southern Africa during the second part of the 20th-century are today a piece of half-forgotten history that immediately invokes images of the South African apartheid regime. Under immense pressure from the outside world, South Africa fought a conflict against a communist force that enjoyed support from states such as Cuba and the Soviet Union. The conflict tended to rise and fall in intensity and during the latter part of the war; conventional operations were executed deep into Angolan territory in order to halt the enemy offensive. In this study the South African use of fighter jets are compared to John A. Warden III’s theories on how an air war should be fought. Wardens claim to fame came with the Gulf war and the following conflicts that used methods that spawned from his ideas on how airpower should be used. This essay examines to what extent Wardens ideas are applicable to the South African border war.  The analysis shows that specific events and operations correlate with Wardens ideas, however there are no significant signs of what might be interpreted as operations of the type of conceptual thinking that Wardens uses on the larger, strategic scale.

Through their stories, South African Defence Force (SADF) veterans of the Border War participate in the historical revival of South Africa’s involvement in the Angolan conflict, 1966-1989. Their engagement in the Border War discourse sets these veterans apart for an analysis of their motivations to participate and how their views compare and contrast with one another. SADF veterans are reconstructing their past within their present context in the new South Africa. Their struggle to rectify public knowledge and perceptions of the past through the provision of their personal memories is a growing trend within South Africa, one that has become a conversation between the various competing narratives.

Thesis (MA (English))--University of Stellenbosch, 2010. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: This thesis explores masculinity and sexuality, hegemonic and “deviant” in the nation state of the old apartheid South Africa, by addressing aspects of fatherhood, boyhood and motherhood in white, predominantly Afrikaans family narratives. In doing this, I explore the ways in which the young boys in texts such as The Smell of Apples (1995), by Mark Behr, and moffie (2006), by André Carl van der Merwe, are systematically groomed to become the ideal stereotype of masculinity at the time: rugged, intelligent, successful and heterosexual. The main focus of this thesis is to explore the ideologies inherent in constructing the white, Afrikaner man, his woman and their family. This will be done with specific reference to the time frame between the early 1970s to the fall of the apartheid regime in the early 1990s, focussing on the young white boys who are sent to do military training and oftentimes, a stint on the border between Angola and the then South-West Africa, in order to keep the so-called threat of communism at bay. I explore what happens when this white-centred patriarchal hegemony is broken down, threatened or resisted when “deviance” in the form of homosexuality occurs. A second focus of this thesis is that of “deviance” in the army. I analyse “deviance” in three novels, moffie (2006) by André Carl van der Merwe, The Beautiful Screaming of Pigs (1991) by Damon Galgut and Kings of the Water (2009) by Mark Behr. These novels foreground “deviance” and I make use of them in exploring the punishment, or “consequences” of being homosexual or “deviant” in the highly masculine environs of the South African National Defence Force (SANDF) army. I also examine the muted yet, I argue, resistant voices of female characters in these novels. This thesis concludes by briefly noting the aftermath of this war, the after-effects of a white, hegemonic, conservative ruling party at the helm of a divided, war-faring country on its soldiers, who are now middle-aged men. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Hierdie tesis ondersoek manlikheid en seksualiteit, hegemonie en “afwykings” in die staat van ou apartheid Suid-Afrika deur te verwys na aspekte van vaderskap, seunwees en moederskap in blanke, oorwegend Afrikaanse gesinsvertellings. Eerstens sal daar ondersoek ingestel word na die wyses waarop jong seuns in tekste soos The Smell of Apples (1995) deur Mark Behr en moffie (2006) deur André Carl van der Merwe stelselmatig gekweek word tot die ideale stereotipe van manlikheid in die era: ongetem, intelligent, suksesvol en heteroseksueel. Die hoofklem van hierdie tesis is om die denkwyses onderliggend aan die konstruksie van die blanke Afrikaner man, sy vrou en hulle gesin, te verken. Dit sal bewerkstellig word deur na die tydperk vanaf die vroeë 1970s tot en met die ondergang van die apartheidsbewind in die vroeë 1990s te verwys, met spesifieke klem op jeugdige blanke seuns wat gestuur is vir militêre opleiding en dikwels ook diensplig aan die grens tussen Angola en destydse Suid-Wes Afrika om die oënskynlike kommunistiese aanslag af te weer. Daar word verken wat plaasvind wanneer hierdie blank-gesentreerde, patriargale oorwig afgebreek, bedreig of teengestaan word deur “afwykings” soos die voorkoms van homoseksualiteit. ‘n Tweede fokuspunt van hierdie tesis is die “afwykings” in die weermag. Die volgende drie “afwykingsromans” word ontleed: moffie (2006), The Beautiful Screaming of Pigs (1991) deur Damon Galgut en Kings of the Water (2009) deur Mark Behr. Hierdie romans ondervang die idee van “afwykings” en word gebruik in die ondersoek na die straf of gevolge van homoseksueel of “afwykend” wees in die uitsluitlik manlike omgewing geskep deur die SANW-opleiding. Daar word ook ondersoek ingestel na die stilgemaakte; dog, soos aangetoon word, versettende stemme van vroulike karakters in die romans. Hierdie tesis sluit af deur vlugtig te verwys na die nasleep van die oorlog en die gevolge van ’n blanke, heersende, konserwatiewe party aan die stuur van ’n verdeelde, oorlogvoerende land op sy soldate wat tans middeljarige mans is.

In 1978 the SADF carried out an airborne assault on Cassinga in Southern Angola. The South Africans claimed that Cassinga was a key SWAPO military headquarters, training camp and logistic base. SWAPO claimed it was a refugee camp and that the approximately 600 people who died in the attack were innocent civilians. The SADF said it had dealt SWAPO a significant military blow; SWAPO said the SADF had carried out a brutal massacre of old people, women and children. This dissertation focuses on the military dimensions of the raid, examining first the military situation in southern Angola and northern Namibia at the time, then looking at Cassinga itself before reviewing the airborne capability of the SADF, considering the decision that was made to launch the attack, describing the planning and preparations, the actual assault, a Cuban counter-attack and the extraction of the South African paratroopers. It concludes with the propaganda claims of both sides before assessing the military significance of the action. / History / M.A.

China and India claimed two territories along their borders on the Himalayas: Aksai Chin in the west and the North-East Frontier Agency in the east. The border dispute escalated and, on October 20, 1962, the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) opened fire on the two fronts and advanced into the disputed territories. One month later, on November 21, China declared a unilateral ceasefire and withdrew behind its disputed line of control. In response, the Indian government arrested over 2,000 Chinese living in India and interned them in Deoli, Rajasthan. When the Chinese were released between 1964 and 1966, they found their properties sold off by the Indian government. Many left India and immigrated to Canada. I interviewed four Indian-born Chinese who were interned and who now live in the Greater Toronto Area. I recorded their accounts of life in Deoli Detention Camp in Rajasthan.

China and India claimed two territories along their borders on the Himalayas: Aksai Chin in the west and the North-East Frontier Agency in the east. The border dispute escalated and, on October 20, 1962, the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) opened fire on the two fronts and advanced into the disputed territories. One month later, on November 21, China declared a unilateral ceasefire and withdrew behind its disputed line of control. In response, the Indian government arrested over 2,000 Chinese living in India and interned them in Deoli, Rajasthan. When the Chinese were released between 1964 and 1966, they found their properties sold off by the Indian government. Many left India and immigrated to Canada. I interviewed four Indian-born Chinese who were interned and who now live in the Greater Toronto Area. I recorded their accounts of life in Deoli Detention Camp in Rajasthan.