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The study takes an in-depth look at eight novels by white South African authors in which the main characters are black. The novels that were studied fell into two main categories, those that highlight (although not always to the same extent) the differences between white and black people and those in which the author takes care to depict the black main character as ‘a person just like any other’, or in which the emphasis is on the similarities between people regardless of race. The novels in the first category can be divided into purely fictional works on the one hand (Toiings (1934), Cry, the Beloved Country (1948) and Swart Pelgrim (1952)) and novels based on historical facts (Die Swerfjare van Poppie Nongena (1978) and Bidsprinkaan (2005)) on the other. In the fictional novels in this category, which are also the oldest/earliest of the selected novels, the narrator patronises the black main character, who is seen as naïve and in some cases at the mercy of baser urges. The researcher shows, however, that the intent of the authors was to gain the reader’s empathy for and understanding of the plight of the black character and, by implication, of black people in general. This applies regardless of whether the novel had an explicit political theme (e.g. Cry, the Beloved Country) or not (e.g. Toiings). The novels in the second category, i.e. those in which black characters are portrayed as not substantively different from white characters (Kennis van die Aand (1973), Proteus (2002) and Lerato (unpublished, 2011) also include novels in which the main theme is a political one (Kennis van die Aand) and those in which political issues are not central to the plot (Proteus) or in which there is hardly any reference to political issues at all (Lerato). The outcomes of the study show that the intention of the authors of the studied novels in the pre-apartheid era was to promote understanding and reconciliation and not to strengthen divisive stereotypes. While this cannot be measured in empirical terms, anecdotal evidence suggests that literature does contribute to social change, albeit in an indirect manner. Despite the harsh criticism (particularly from black authors and scholars) of the practice by white authors to make use of black main characters, it can be argued that, within the South African context, such novels have played a role in achieving mutual understanding and reconciliation. There is a notable shift in the post-apartheid novels. Rather than pleading the case of the black main character with the white audience, Meyer (2002) and Homann (2011) portray their black main characters as equal players in a diverse society. If literature is seen as a reflection of society, this is an encouraging sign that South Africa has substantively moved on from apartheid. / Dissertation (MA)--University of Pretoria, 2011. / Afrikaans / unrestricted

Le roman de Mohamed Toihiri : roman fondateur et représentatif de la littérature comorienne. Son étude nous conduit à affirmer que c’est un roman d’analyse sociologique dans la mesure où il constitue un excellent document sur la vie quotidienne des Comoriens durant près de deux décennies (1975-1992). Mais il serait fort réducteur de le limiter à cela car ce roman ne se contente pas de présenter finement le fonctionnement de la société comorienne, il véhicule aussi une critique socio-politique radicale de celle-ci et de ses gouvernants. Ce roman inscrit son lecteur, de façon très subtile, dans son fonctionnement interne. Ce qui amène le commentateur à étudier cette inscription du lectorat ainsi que la réception de ce même roman qui démontre que si le premier roman de Mohamed Toihiri a été accueilli très froidement du fait de son engagement politique, le deuxième, beaucoup plus conciliant sur le plan politique, a bénéficié d’une réception favorable, voire même élogieuse. / Mohamed Toihiri's novel : a founding and representative novel of the Comorian literature. The analysis confoirms it is a sociological novel to the extent that it is a great novel dealing with the Comorians 'daily life for two centuries (1975-1992). But it would be specific to stop there because this novel not only cleverly shows how the Comorian society works, it is also a radical criticism of this socio-political society and of its government. This novel sbtly includes the reader in its internal functioning. Thus the commentator studied this readers inclusion as well as the novel's reception : while his first novel was given a cold welcom due to its political commitment, his second novel, politically softer, received a positive welcome not to say laudatory.

Syftet med studien är att undersöka hur arrangörer av kortare workshops och kurser i kreativt skrivande förhåller sig till homogena deltagargrupper. Först undersöks deltagarnas sammansättning och sedan arrangörernas syn på mångfald utifrån sin organisations verksamhetsuppdrag. Arrangörerna arbetar på folkbibliotek och studieförbund och undersökningen genomförs med hjälp av kvalitativa intervjuer. Studien drar slutsatsen att arrangörerna har reflekterat över frågorna och har en vilja att skapa större mångfald under evenemangen. De grupper som anses delta i lägre utsträckning är män, ungdomar under trettio och kulturella minoriteter. Vidare beskrivs verksamheternas idéer och uppdrag som inte närvarande i själva evenemanget men i arbetet bakom, exempelvis i marknadsföringen. / The aim of this study is to examine how five organizers of shorter workshops and courses in creative writing reflect on and work with homogeneous groups of participants. First the composition of participants is examined and than the organizer’s view of diversity in relation to their organization’s purpose. The organizers work in public libraries and in organizations within the popular education, and the investigation is carried out using qualitative interviews. The study’s conclusion is that the organizers have reflected on the questions and have a will to create greater diversity during the events. The groups that are considered to participate less are men, young people under thirty, and cultural minorities. The organizers’ ideas are not described as present in the event, but in the work behind, for example in the marketing.