CHRIS THURMAN: Rediscovering the ordinary as the world burns
Playwright Mike van Graan offers both comfort and a challenge to those of us feeling ill-equipped to help in a planet on fire
We live in a time of spectacle. Trump and company “flooding the zone” of media and public discourse — in the US and around the world — with outrageous announcements and cruel antics. Natural disasters caused by climate crisis. And for years now we have witnessed what could, in SA writer and intellectual Njabulo Ndebele’s terms, be described as the “spectacular” suffering of the people of Palestine and the Ukraine.
In the 1980s, Ndebele observed that the challenge facing his fellow writers was to avoid simply representing the gruesome spectacle of apartheid, casting black South Africans as heroes or victims in an epic tale of oppression and struggle. The task, he felt, was to “rediscover the ordinary”, to tell stories of people going about their lives with dignity and quiet courage. Or perhaps failing to do so. That, too, is ordinary...
Would you like to comment on this article?
Sign up (it's quick and free) or sign in now.
Please read our Comment Policy before commenting.
Subscribe now to unlock this article.
Support BusinessLIVE’s award-winning journalism for R129 per month (digital access only).
There’s never been a more important time to support independent journalism in SA. Our subscription packages now offer an ad-free experience for readers.
Cancel anytime.
Questions? Email helpdesk@businesslive.co.za or call 0860 52 52 00. Got a subscription voucher? Redeem it now.