Philosophiae Doctor - PhD / This thesis examines how “unhomeliness” in a Zimbabwean context enjoins mobility and the diasporic particularities that manifest as subjects move back and forth in a homemaking journey between the country-side and the urban, as well as mobility to foreign countries and back to the homeland. Particularities of inclusion and exclusion, (re)emplacement, (re)identity, assimilation, rejection and (un)belonging, all loom large as mobility, paradoxically, takes root and comes to shape experience in as significant a way as being in a homeland or hostland. This thesis is also about the ways in which the “diasporic” settler, in one of the novels which destabilises the familiar paradigms of diasporic literature, can exist and be dominant in the foreign but colonised spatial setting without needing to assimilate, and how this attempt to territorialise can traumatise those marginalised by the settler community. Since the end of the twentieth century, there has been a rise in the significance of space in humanities and literary studies. Theories about diaspora, identity and belonging have featured strongly in works of scholars of space and place such as Henri Lefebvre, Yi-Fu Tuan, Doreen Massey, Edward Soja, Tim Cresswell, Nigel Thrift, Robin Cohen, John Agnew, and Kelly Baker. Space is largely regarded as a dimension within which matter is located.

A thesis submitted to the Faculty of Arts, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Art. / This study demonstrates the relationship between nationalism and identity formation by exploring the ways in which Zimbabwean writers have constructed identities within the context of a nationalist struggle for independence. By focusing on the predominant themes of disease, alienation and disintegration, it explores how these identities emphasise difference and heterogeneity in response to the homogenising discourses of colonialism and nationalism. The disparity between the ways in which nationalism articulates itself and is apprehended, and the ways in which nationalism allows for the foregrounding of particular identities is illustrated by reference to the idea of a pact or alliance - an agreement reached on the basis of the necessity of defeating colonialism. WhiIe motivations are often disparate, this common goal allows for a show of unity, often mistaken as homogeneity. The achievement of independence entails a shift in priorities, where those differing identities that previously seemed homogenous, come to the fore precisely to emphasise their difference. / Andrew Chakane 2019

Perception of risk was used as an independent variable and behaviour as the dependent variable in the research with the assumption that level of precaution used during sexual practices to safeguard against HIV infection will be positively related to the perception of risk to HIV. The conclusiveness of this approach was dependent on evidence that participants know what risky behaviour can contribute to contracting HIV/AIDS and on their willingness to report their risk perception honestly. A snowball sample consisting of 15 Zimbabwean women living in and around Johannesburg was employed. Research objectives were addressed through semistructured interviews. For all participants, perception of risk was qualified by a number of factors. Common precautionary strategies identified by women were to remain faithful to one partner and being more contemplative when choosing bed partners and using condoms. High risk perception was marked by having had various sexual partners, inconsistently using condoms, fear of sexual violence, mistrust of partners, feeling of fear of vulnerability to HIV whenever they had sex and survival concerns. Migrant women’s adoption of safe sex was limited by their circumstances and strategies of risk management and in particular their biases in assumptions about their partners’ sexual histories. This exposes them to the vulnerabilities of HIV/AIDS. Thematic analysis was used to interpret the data.

Magister Artium (Social Work) - MA(SW) / During the year 2000 Zimbabwe faced a multiplex of challenges linked to political and economic dynamics generated from its Fast Track Land Reform Programme (Raftopoulos, 2009). The country plunged into land grabs (dubbed Third Chimurenga) led by the war veterans, motivated by economic freedom and emancipation for the black majority. Thus began the economic decline and the exodus of citizens leaving the country in search for employment opportunities and better living conditions abroad. As expressed by Raftopoulos (2009), the problem of economic hardship and perpetual uncertainty worsened in 2008 due to the violent elections that were held in the country which resulted in rampant killings and a hyperinflation that saw the Zimbabwe dollar plunge into trillions. Many families were displaced as people were forced to flee to neighbouring countries including South Africa in search for a better life as well as opportunities. Zimbabweans entered the South African job market which had already begun struggling due to the economic recession experienced in 2008 (Matshaka, 2009). This left many Zimbabweans unemployed and with many survival challenges. In order to survive, many of these refugees started learning creative arts and crafts with the hope of using their skills and capabilities for self-employment. It is within this context that this research investigates the coping mechanisms used by Zimbabwean refugees in combating the challenges of unemployment and poverty by trading through craft markets in Hout Bay as a means of survival and livelihood. The Sustainable Livelihoods Framework (SLF) was used as a theoretical lens through which to examine the livelihood strategies of Zimbabwean refugees as a means of survival. With regard to the selection of research design the mixed methods approach was used to broaden the width and depth of assessment. This included both qualitative and quantitative methods in order to collect data relevant to the research question.

Magister Artium (Child and Family Studies) - MA(CFS) / Background: Over the past decade, the influx of Zimbabweans into the Diaspora heightened after the dismal failure of the Land Reform Policy saga, resulting in a political, social and economic crisis. South Africa being the first and ranked highest destination for Zimbabwean immigrants became a second home to these immigrants, however, little is known about their legacy beliefs. This study was guided by the theory of typology for legacy beliefs and generativity, which is the seventh stage of Erik Erikson’s eight stages of psychosocial development. Aim: The aim of this research was to explore and describe the perceptions of Zimbabwean immigrants regarding their legacy beliefs while living in South Africa. Two main objectives identified were: (i) To explore and describe Zimbabwean immigrants’ perceptions and their understanding regarding legacy beliefs. (ii) To explore and describe the factors influencing the Zimbabwean immigrants’ legacy beliefs. Methods: A social constructivism paradigm that embraced explorative and descriptive qualitative research designs was utilised to answer the research question: How do Zimbabwean immigrants perceive legacy beliefs while living in Cape Town, South Africa? Fifteen participants were purposively selected and they participated in the unstructured individual interviews that were audio-recorded and transcribed verbatim. The data collected was thematically analysed utilising Creswell's (2009) six steps of data analysis and the process was trustworthiness, as the researcher adhered to credibility, transferability, conformability, and dependability. Ethical approval was sought from HSSREC and the principles of confidentiality, self-determination, no harm, and beneficence were ensured. Four main themes emerged: Understanding of legacy beliefs; Categories of legacies shared in families; Re-emerging legacies in families and Challenges in preserving family legacy beliefs. Conclusion: Based on the research findings recommendations were made to immigrant parents, social service professionals and governmental institutions on how to alleviate the challenges that come with being an immigrant and trying to preserve one's legacy beliefs.

All bodies of critical discourse on any given literary canon seek visibility through self- celebration, subversion of competing critical ideas and identification with supposedly popular, scientific and incisive critical theories. Thus, the literary-critical quest for significance and visibility is, in essence, a quest for „space‟, „voice‟ and „authority‟ in the discussion of aspects of a given literary corpus. This research explores the politics of „space‟, „voice‟ and „authority‟ in „white critical thought‟ on „the black Zimbabwean novel‟. It unfolds in the context of the realisation that as a body of critical discourse on „the black Zimbabwean novel‟, „white critical thought‟ does not only emerge in an intellectual matrix in which it shares and competes for „space‟, „voice‟ and „authority‟ with other bodies of critical thought on the literary episteme in question; it also develops in the ambit of Euro-African cultural politics of hegemony and resistance. Thus, the research sets out to identify the ways in which „white critical thought‟ affirms and perpetuates or questions and negates European critical benchmarks and cultural models in the discussion of selected aspects of „the black Zimbabwean novel‟. The investigation considers the fissures at the heart of „white critical thought‟ as a critical discourse and the myriad of ways in which it interacts with competing critical discourses on the „the black Zimbabwean novel‟. It derives impetus from the fact that while other versions of critical thought on „the black Zimbabwean novel‟ have received extensive metacritical discussion elsewhere, „white critical thought‟ remains largely under-discussed. This phenomenon enables it to solidify into a settled body of critical thought. The metacritical discussion of „white critical thought‟ in this research constitutes part of the repertoire of efforts that will help check the solidification of critical discourses into hegemonic bodies of thought. The research makes use of Afrocentric and Postcolonial critical tenets to advance the contention that while „white critical thought‟ on „the black Zimbabwean novel‟ is fraught with fissures and contradictions that speak directly to its complexity and resistance to neat categorisation, it is largely vulnerable to identification as part of the paraphernalia of European cultural and intellectual hegemony in African literature and its criticism, given its tendency to discuss the literature outside the context of critical theories that emerge from the same culture and history with the literary corpus in question. / African Languages / D. Litt. et Phil. (African Languages)

Thesis (PhD)-- Stellenbosch University, 2013. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: The last decade in Zimbabwe was characterised by an unprecedented economic and political crisis. As the crisis threatened to destabilise the political status quo, it prompted in governmental circles the perceived 'need‘ for political containment. The ensuing attempts to regulate the expressive sphere, censor alternative historiographies of the crisis and promote monolithic and self-serving perceptions of the crisis presented a real danger of the distortion of information about the situation. Representing the crisis therefore occupies a contested and discursive space in debates about the Zimbabwean crisis. It is important to explore the nature of cultural interventions in the urgent process of re-inscribing the crisis and extending what is known about Zimbabwe‘s so-called 'lost decade‘. The study analyses literary responses to state-imposed restrictions on information about the state of Zimbabwean society during the post-2000 economic and political crisis which reached the public sphere, with particular reference to creative literature by Zimbabwean authors published during the period 2000 to 2010. The primary concern of this thesis is to examine the efficacy of post-2000 Zimbabwean literature as constituting a significant archive of the present and also as sites for the articulation of dissenting views – alternative perspectives assessing, questioning and challenging the state‘s grand narrative of the crisis. Like most African literatures, Zimbabwean literature relates (directly and indirectly) to definite historical forces and processes underpinning the social, cultural and political production of space. The study mainly invokes Maria Pia Lara‘s theory about the ―moral texture‖ and disclosive nature of narratives by marginalised groups in order to explore the various ways through which such narratives revise hegemonically distorted representations of themselves and construct more inclusive discourses about the crisis. A key finding in this study is that through particular modes of representation, most of the literary works put a spotlight on some of the major talking points in the political and socio-economic debate about the post-2000 Zimbabwean crisis, while at the same time extending the contours of the debate beyond what is agreeable to the powerful. This potential in literary works to deconstruct and transform dominant elitist narratives of the crisis and offering instead, alternative and more representative narratives of the excluded groups‘ experiences, is made possible by their affective appeal. This affective dimension stems from the intimate and experiential nature of the narratives of these affected groups. However, another important finding in this study has been the advent of a distinct canon of hegemonic texts which covertly (and sometimes overtly) legitimate the state narrative of the crisis. The thesis ends with a suggestion that future scholarly enquiries look set to focus more closely on the contribution of creative literature to discourses on democratisation in contemporary Zimbabwe. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Die afgelope dekade in Zimbabwe is gekenmerk deur ‗n ongekende ekonomiese en politiese krisis. Terwyl die krisis gedreig het om die politieke status quo omver te werp, het dit die ‗noodsaak‘ van politieke insluiting aangedui. Die daaropvolgende pogings om die ruimte vir openbaarmaking te reguleer, alternatiewe optekenings van gebeure te sensureer en ook om monolitiese, self-bevredigende waarnemings van die krisis te bevorder, het 'n wesenlike gevaar van distorsie van inligting i.v.m. die krisis meegebring. Voorstellings van die krisis vind sigself dus in 'n gekontesteerde en diskursiewe ruimte in debatte aangaande die Zimbabwiese krisis. Dit is gevolglik belangrik om die aard van kulturele intervensies in die dringende proses om die krisis te hervertolk te ondersoek asook om kennis van Zimbabwe se sogenaamde 'verlore dekade‘ uit te brei. Die studie analiseer literêre reaksies op staats-geïniseerde inkortings van inligting aangaande die sosiale toestand in Zimbabwe gedurende die post-2000 ekonomiese en politiese krisis wat sulke informasie uit die openbare sfeer weerhou het, met spesifieke verwysing na skeppende literatuur deur Zimbabwiese skrywers wat tussen 2000 en 2010 gepubliseer is. Die belangrikste doelwit van hierdie tesis is om die doeltreffendheid van post-2000 Zimbabwiese letterkunde as konstituering van 'n alternatiewe Zimbabwiese 'argief van die huidige‘ en ook as ruimte vir die artikulering van teenstemme – alternatiewe perspektiewe wat die staat se 'groot narratief‘ aangaande die krisis bevraagteken – te ondersoek. Soos met die meeste ander Afrika-letterkundes is daar in hierdie literatuur 'n verband (direk en/of indirek) met herkenbare historiese kragte en prosesse wat die sosiale, kulturele en politiese ruimtes tot stand bring. Die studie maak in die ondersoek veral gebruik van Maria Pia Lara se teorie aangaande die 'morele tekstuur‘ en openbaringsvermoë van narratiewe aangaande gemarginaliseerde groepe ten einde die verskillende maniere waarop sulke narratiewe hegemoniese distorsies in 'offisiële‘ voorstellings van hulself 'oorskryf‘ om meer inklusiewe diskoerse van die krisis daar te stel, na te vors. 'n Kernbevinding van die studie is dat, d.m.v. van spesifieke tipe voorstellings, die meeste van die letterkundige werke wat hier ondersoek word, 'n soeklig plaas op verskeie van die belangrikste kwessies in die politieke en sosio-ekonomiese debatte oor die Zimbabwiese krisis, terwyl dit terselfdertyd die kontoere van die debat uitbrei verby die grense van wat vir die maghebbers gemaklik is. Die potensieel van letterkundige werke om oorheersende, elitistiese narratiewe oor die krisis te dekonstrueer en te omvorm, word moontlik gemaak deur hul affektiewe potensiaal. Hierdie affektiewe dimensie word ontketen deur die intieme en ervaringsgewortelde geaardheid van die narratiewe van die geaffekteerde groepe. Nietemin is 'n ander belangrike bevinding van hierdie studie dat daar 'n onderskeibare kanon van hegemoniese tekste bestaan wat op verskuilde (en soms ook openlike) maniere die staatsnarratief anngaande die krisis legitimeer. Die tesis sluit af met die voorstel dat toekomstige vakkundige studies meer spesifiek sou kon fokus op die bydrae van kreatiewe skryfwerk tot die demokratisering van kontemporêre Zimbabwe.

Thesis (PhD)--Stellenbosch University, 2013. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: The study explores the post-2000 popular song genre (expressed in Shona) in order to analyze its rhetorical potential in its appropriation as a medium for the construction and contestation of meanings concerning land, history and selected (political, social and religious) identities. The goal is to discover how the turbulent post-2000 period in Zimbabwe is narrativized through the lyrics of popular songs. The rationale to focus on popular songs in the context of this period was my observation of the uniquely high level of appropriation of the popular song in the Zimbabwean public sphere by political parties and the ordinary people to communicate various discourses (of their interest). The period surpasses by far the pre-2000 era in its rate of output of songs. Old songs were revived and new ones composed while new musical genres emerged and existing ones thrived. I also noted in previous researches gaps in both theoretical and coverage of the analyses of popular songs in Zimbabwe. There is little in terms of linguistically-rooted approaches while analyses are largely limited to politically-inspired songs. I therefore, besides the politically-oriented songs, also explore socially and religiously-oriented songs. I adopt a multi-perspective approach combining APPRAISAL, genre, “small stories/voices” and the “rediscovery of the ordinary” frameworks to study the rhetorical property and capacity (to communicate) of the popular song. I employ the APPRAISAL theory to deal with the songs’ language of evaluation in terms of the authorial stances and ideological positions singers adopt. I utilize the genre theory in making a typology of the various popular song texts on the basis of their communicative properties (which determine their rhetorical purposes). I employ the remaining theories to classify the songs into three clusters (‘grand narrative songs’; ‘small stories/voices songs’ and ‘songs of ordinary life’) based the sources of their ideological concerns. In pursuit of the connection between the songs’ language and its communicative effects, I note in chapters two, four, five and six, the high level of intertextuality the post-2000 popular song has assumed. I argue that the unique intertextuality can be explained in relation to the high demands being placed on the language of the song texts by composers and singers in a context in which the state and opposition are pitted in an intense competition for the “power to mean”. The state appropriates the popular song to demonize and delegitimate the opposition at the same time legitimating its hegemony, based on patriotic discourses derived from chimurenga (nationalist) grand narrative values. On the other hand, the opposition manipulates the popular song to legitimate its struggle for change through counter-state discourses exposing Zanu-PF’s political vices and debasing its power. The ordinary people also appropriate the popular song in their struggle to resolve issues of personal concern in their attempt to give meaning to their lives. It is therefore the study’s main thesis that the popular song in post-2000 Zimbabwe narrativizes the period in unique ways as illustrated through the manipulation of its rhetorical potential to construct meanings concerning land, history and identities. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Die studie het die populêreliedjiegenre (in Shona uitgedruk) ná 2000 verken om die retoriese potensiaal by die aanwending as ʼn medium vir die konstruksie en omstredenheid van betekenisse rakende grond, geskiedenis en geselekteerde (politieke, maatskaplike en godsdienstige) identiteite te ontleed. Die doel was om vas te stel hoe die turbulente tydperk ná 2000 in Zimbabwe deur die lirieke van populêre liedjies aangebied word. Die rasionaal om op populêre liedjies teen die agtergrond van hierdie tydperk te fokus was my waarneming van die buitengewoon hoë vlak van aanwending van die populêre liedjie in die Zimbabwiese openbare sfeer deur politieke partye en gewone mense om verskillende diskoerse (tot eie voordeel) te kommunikeer. Die tydperk oortref verreweg die tydperk voor 2000 wat betref die spoed waarteen liedjies verskyn. Ou liedjies is opgediep en nuwes is gekomponeer terwyl nuwe musiekgenres na vore gekom en bestaandes floreer het. Ek het ook leemtes in vorige navorsing opgemerk, beide ten opsigte van die teoretiese ontledings van populêre liedjies in Zimbabwe en die dekking daarvan. Daar bestaan min inligting ten opsigte van linguisties-begronde benaderings terwyl ontledings hoofsaaklik beperk is tot polities-geïnspireerde liedjies. Ek het dus, afgesien van die polities-georiënteerde liedjies, ook liedjies wat sosiaal en godsdienstig geïnspireer is, ondersoek. Ek het ʼn multiperspektiefbenadering ingeneem en raamwerke met betrekking tot WAARDEBEPALING, genre, “klein stories/stemme” en die “herontdekking van die gewone” gekombineer om die retoriese eienskap en kapasiteit (om te kommunikeer) van die populêre liedjie te bestudeer. Ek het die teorie van WAARDEBEPALING aangewend ten einde aan die liedjies se evalueringstaal ten opsigte van die standpunte wat die skrywers inneem en ideologiese posisies van die sangers aandag te gee. Ek het die genreteorie gebruik om ʼn tipologie van die verskillende populêre liedjietekste op grond van hulle kommunikatiewe eienskappe (wat hulle retoriese doelwitte bepaal) op te stel. Ek het die oorblywende teorieë gebruik om die liedjies in drie groepe te klassifiseer (‘meesternarratief-liedjies’, ‘liedjies oor klein stories/stemme’ en ‘liedjies oor die gewone lewe’) gebaseer op die bronne van hulle ideologiese besorgdhede. In ʼn soeke na die skakeling tussen die taal van die liedjies en die kommunikatiewe effekte daarvan, wys ek in hoofstukke twee, vier, vyf en ses op die hoë vlak van intertekstualiteit wat die populêre liedjie ná 2000 aangeneem het. Ek voer aan dat die unieke intertekstualiteit verklaar kan word in verhouding met die hoë eise wat deur komponiste en sangers aan die taal van die liedjies se tekste gestel word in ʼn konteks waarin die staat en opposisie in konflik verkeer in ʼn intense wedywering om die “mag om te beteken”. Die staat eien hulle die populêre liedjie toe ten einde die opposisie te demoniseer en te delegitimeer en terselfdertyd sy hegemonie te legitimeer, gebaseer op patriotiese diskoerse afgelei van chimurenga (nasionalistiese) waardes van die meesternarratief. Aan die ander kant, die opposisie manipuleer die populêre liedjie om sy stryd om verandering te legitimeer deur diskoerse te weerlê en so Zanu-PF se politieke gebreke aan die kaak te stel en sy mag te verminder. Jan Alleman en sy maat eien hulle ook die populêre liedjie toe in hulle stryd om kwessies van persoonlike kommer uit die weg te ruim in hulle poging om betekenis aan hulle lewens te gee. Dit is dus hierdie studie se hoofhipotese dat die populêre liedjie in Zimbabwe ná 2000 die tydperk op unieke wyses beskryf soos geïllustreer deur die manipulasie van die retoriese potensiaal daarvan om betekenisse rakende grond, geskiedenis en identiteite te konstrueer.

<p>In the Zimbabwean past, farming societies utilized mineral resources for their own use and for exchange to local and regional populations, as well as to markets beyond African borders. Successful agriculture was constrained by environmental hazards, principally unpredictable and often inadequate rainfall. Farming communities managed this predicament in various ways. It is likely that some groups used mineral resources found in the vicinity of their settlements to produce materials or items to exchange. The social contexts that defined the nature of mineral production and exchange altered between the mid-first and mid-second millennium AD, as social ranks emerged and political and economic systems became increasingly complex. The thesis is a commentary on how the motivation of society to broaden its resource base, to improve the benefits to households and to society in general, contributed to the emergence of leaders and, ultimately, of an elite class. The focus of the research is on iron and copper production because the author has examined gold production thoroughly in a previous study. Four published papers outline the history of iron and copper production in Zimbabwe. The papers provide case studies of the scale and social context of iron and copper production and exchange.</p>

The republic of South Africa has a “health for all” policy, regardless of nationality and residence status. However, challenges still exist for non-nationals and little is known regarding migrants’ maternal healthcare experiences. This study explores the maternal healthcare experiences of migrant Zimbabwean women living in Johannesburg, South Africa. It focuses on the lived experiences of women aged 18years and above, who engaged with the public healthcare system in Johannesburg during pregnancy and childbirth. A desk review of the literature was undertaken. The theoretical framework in this study draws from three concepts (1) the Social determinants of health framework (WHO 2010), (2) the Access to healthcare framework (McIntyre, Thiede and Brich 2009) and (3) the “three-delays (Nour 2008). Primary data was collected through the use of open-ended semi-structured interviews with a sample of 15 migrant Zimbabwean women who have been in Johannesburg for a minimum of 2 years, and have attended and given birth or are currently attending antenatal care in inner city Johannesburg. Thematic content analysis was used to analyse data since it helps to extract descriptive information concerning the experiences of Zimbabwean women in Johannesburg and to construct meaning in order to understand their perceptions and opinions about the healthcare system in the city. Although the findings indicate that documentation status is not a key issue affecting access to healthcare during pregnancy and delivery, a range of other healthcare barriers were found to dominate, including the nature of their employment, power relations, language, and discrimination(generally) among others. Language was singled out as the major challenge that runs throughout the other barriers. More interestingly the participants raised their desire of returning home or changing facilities within the Public sector or to private institutions in case of any further pregnancy. This study concludes that the bone of contention is on belongingness, deservingness and not being able to speak any local language, that runs through the public health care institutions and this impact on professionalism and discharge of duties.