The central argument of this inter-disciplinary study is that IsiXhosa written poetry of 1912 – 2012 is a terrain of the struggle between the contending dominant ideologies of Segregation, Apartheid and Charterism (post-Apartheid); and the subordinate/ subaltern ideologies of Africanism, Charterism (pre-democracy), Pan- Africanism, Black Consciousness Movement and other post Apartheid ideologies. The study highlights the mutual relationship between the text and the context by focussing on the ideological contest which manifests itself in both form and structure (i.e. aesthetic ideology) and the content (i.e. authorial ideology) of the poetry of different epochs between 1912 and 2012. The study is located within the framework of Antonio Gramsci’s theory of cultural construction. Gramsci postulates that ideology and culture play a significant role in the process of asserting hegemony. Important concepts that constitute Gramsci’s theory of praxis are: ideology, culture, hegemony, organic intellectuals and both ideological and repressive state apparatuses. The first chapter presents the problem, the objectives, the methodology, and the scope of the study. The second chapter presents Gramsci’s theory of cultural construction and the work of scholars who developed his theory further. The tool that is employed for analysis and interpretation of textual significations of IsiXhosa written poetry is the revolutionary aesthetics, which is proposed by Udenta. The third chapter analyses and interprets literature of the epoch of 1912-1934 and exposes the contest between Segregation and Africanism ideologies. The fourth chapter contextualises and analyses the literature of 1934 – 1948, the second phase of contestation between Segregation and Africanism. The fifth chapter deals with literature of the first and second halves of the Apartheid epoch (1948 - 1973). The Apartheid ideology contested with the Africanist ideology which transformed into the Charterism ideology in 1955. In 1960 Pan-Africanism ideology and in 1969 Black Consciousness Movement ideologies entered the contest. The sixth chapter examines literature of the period 1973 – 1994 which is the second phase of the Apartheid epoch that ends with the “glasnost” period of 1990 - 1994. The seventh chapter studies literature of the democracy period of 1994 – 2012. The eighth chapter is the summary and general conclusion. The illumination of the nexus between culture and ideology during the past century (1912 - 2012) will provide insights that will assist us in addressing the challenges we face during the democracy period, and in the development on Arts and Culture in general, and literature in particular

Thesis (M.A. (African Languages)) --University of Limpopo, 2014 / The main aim of this study is to evaluate protest poetry in Mihloti (1981) and Xikolokolo nguvu ya Pitori (1987) by J.M. Magaisa with special references to theme, subject matter and the use of figures of speech.. Chapter 1 indicates the aim of the study, motivation, statement of the problem, research methodology, literature review and the key concepts which are used in this research. Chapter 2 explains the themes of the protest poetry in Magaisa’s poetry. In some explanation of the themes, some of the figures of speech have been used with the aim of making readers to understand his poetry. Chapter 3 indicates the modes of expression in Magaisa’ protest poetry. Some of the figures of speech and difficult terms have been explained in this chapter make people to understand them. Chapter 4 is the general conclusion which indicates the findings of the research and recommendations for further researches. / The University of Limpopo and C.S.D.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Howard University. / Facsimile, microfilm-xerography. Ann Arbor : Xerox University International, 1976. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 182-189).

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Wisconsin--Madison, 1974. / Typescript. Vita. Includes bibliographical references.

Poetry, like every other form of art, reflects the values of the artist himself as well as the values of the age in which he lives. "I would say that the poet may write about anything provided that the thing matters to him to start with, for then it will bring with it into the poem the intellectual or moral significance which it has for him in life". (Louis MacNeice). This thesis sets out to uncover some of the things which, in the long pageant of English poetry, have "mattered" to poets to such an extent that they have felt compelled to voice their protest against any violation of such things perceived by them in life around them. The basic study has been a search for the different kinds of values and codes of conduct, in social, political and moral spheres, which have been unacceptable to some of the major poets in English, and to examine particularly the manner and the tone of voice in which each one has expressed his disapproval. "Poetry was the mental rattle that awakened the attention of intellect in the infancy of civil society." (T.L.Peacock). English poets who have protested against whatever they regarded as worthy of protest have continued up to the maturity of civil society to be rattles (some soft and mellow, others loud and harsh), to awaken both the intellect and the conscience of their readers.

This interdisciplinary study locates Xhosa written poetry (1948-1990) within the framework of the socio-politico-economic scenario in South Africa. It sets out to examine the impact of the above stated factors on literature, by supporting the hypothesis that Xhosa written poetry of the Apartheid epoch is a terrain of the struggle for hegemony between the dominant ideology and the alternative ideologies.

A review of contemporary South African and European critical approaches 'to "Soweto poetry" is undertaken to evaluate their efficacy in addressing the diverse and complex dynamics evident in the poetry. A wide selection of poetry from the 1970's and early 1980's is used to argue that none of the critical models provide an adequate methodology free from both pseudo-cultural or ideological assumptions, and "reader-grid"(imposition of external categories upon the poems).From this point of entry, three groups of critics with similar approaches are assessed in relation to Soweto poetry. The second chapter illustrates the deficiency in critical method- ology of the first group of critics, who rely on a politicizing approach. Their critique presupposes a coherent shift in the nature of Black Consciousness poetry in the 1970's, which is shown to be vague and problematic, especially when they attempt to categorize Soweto poetry into "consistently thematic" divisions. In the third chapter, it is argued that ideological approaches to Soweto poetry are impressionistic assessments that depend heavily on the subordination of aesthetic determinants to materialistic concerns. The critics in this second group draw a dubious distinction between bourgeois and "worker poetry" and ignore the inter- play between the two styles. Pluralized mergings within other epistemological spectrums are also ignored, showing an obsessive materialist bias. The fourth chapter examines the linguistic approach of the third group of critics. It is argued that they evaluate the poetry in terms of a defined critical terminology which assumes an established set of evaluative criteria exist. This is seen to be empiricist and deficient in wider social concerns. In the final chapter, it is submitted that each of the critical approaches examined foregrounds its own methodology, often ignoring the cohabitation of different systems of thought. In conclusion it is argued that a critical approach can only aspire to the formulation of a "black aesthetic" if it traces the mosaic of cultural borrowings, detours and connections that permeate Soweto poetry. Michel Serres, with his post-deconstructionist "approach", is presented as the closest aspirant. Bibliography: pages 117-123.

Thesis (M.A. (English Studies)) -- University of Limpopo, 2020 / This mini dissertation examines the influence of the Black Consciousness Philosophy on Oswald Mbuyiseni Mtshali’s Post-Colonial protest poetry. This is done in the form of analysing selected poems to highlight the influence that the Black Consciousness Philosophy had on the poems that Mtshali wrote about the experiences of black people under a suppressive apartheid system. The aim of this study was to explore how Mtshali’s poetry exposed the extent to which black people had been socio-economically deprived and misled to a negative and false belief of their inferiority and subservience. The title of the mini dissertation, suggests that Black Consciousness poetry claims to have had an influence on the protest poetry of Oswald Mtshali. The poems were analysed to ascertain this. The poems were examined with the express aim of identifying and understanding their themes and the socio-economic context from which they emanate.

This thesis will attempt to trace the evolution and historical development of American anti-war and peace songs. Researching the study has been an adventure into an unknown aspect of American history. No published account of a similar or related study was discovered. The Library of Congress has no catalogue classification for pacifist songs. The Swarthmore College Peace Collection contains perhaps the only specific collection of peace songs in the country. Nevertheless, this study can draw upon a collection of over two hundred songs gathered from public and university libraries and interested individuals across the country.

A dissertation submitted to the Faculty of Arts, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, in fulfilment of the criteria for the c[egree of Master of Arts / The literature produced by writers who align themselves with national liberation and resistance movements presents a serious challenge to dominant standards of literary . aesthetics. Resistance writing aims to break down the assumed division between art and politics. and in this view literature becomes an arena of conflict and struggle. This dissertation examines certain aspects of the poetry of Mongane Wally Serote in order to explore the relationship between aesthetics and resistance in his writing. Over the last two decades, Serote has made a significant contribution to the development of South African literature, and his work has important implications for literary criticism in South Africa. Chapter 1 looks at some of these implications by discussing the concept of resistance literature and the main issues arising from the debates and polemics surrounding the work of Serote and other black political writers. Perhaps the most important here is the need to construct a critical approach to South African resistance literature that can come to terms with both its aesthetic qualities and political effects. This kind of approach would in some way attempt to integrate the seemingly incompatible critical practices of idealism and materialism. Accordingly, Chapter 2 is a materialist approach to aspects of Serote's early poetry. The critical model used is a simplified version of the interpretive schema set out by Fredric Jameson in The Political Unconscious. This model enables a discussion of the poetry in relation to ideology, and also suggests ways of examining the discursive strategies and symbolic processes in this particular phase of Serote's development. Serote's later work is 'characterised by the attempt to create a unifying mythology of resistance. Chapter 3 thus looks at Serote's long poems from an idealist perspective that is based on the principles of myth-criticism, As this is a complex area, this chapter merely sketches the main features of Serote' s use of myth as a form of resistance, and then suggests further avenues of exploration along these lines. The dissertation concludes by pointing towards some of the implications of recent political developments in South Africa for Serote and other resistance writers. / Andrew Chakane 2018