Sol Plaatje: A life in letters
rian Willan and Sabata-mpho Mokae
Historical Publications Southern Africa
SKU: 9780994720764
This reader impression was written and sent to LitNet on the writer's own initiative.
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As a historical figure, Solomon Tshekisho Plaatje (1876–1932) stands out as one of the greatest minds ever to emerge from South African history. Plaatje’s literary contributions continue to be a critically important source of historical information.
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As a historical figure, Solomon Tshekisho Plaatje (1876–1932) stands out as one of the greatest minds ever to emerge from South African history. Plaatje’s literary contributions continue to be a critically important source of historical information. Despite Plaatje being a person of humble beginnings (he only received a primary education), his achievements include, among others, being a founding member of the South African Native National Congress in 1912 (later rebranded as the African National Congress or ANC), translating some of the works of William Shakespeare (1564–1616) into the Setswana language, as well as publishing various books of fiction and nonfiction. His greatest contribution is perhaps the book Native life in South Africa (1916), which was a critique and exposé of the Union government’s policies with respect to black South Africans, in particular the 1913 Land Act, which confined black South Africans to 10% of the land in the Union.
Sol T Plaatje: A life in letters is the 2020 volume of the annual Historical Publications Southern Africa (HiPSA), formerly known as the Van Riebeeck Society. The book has recently been crowned as the winner in the category Creative Non-Fiction Literary Award 2021 at the South African Literary Awards. Brian Willan, who co-edited the publication with Sabata-mpho Mokae, is a renowned scholar on the life of Sol Plaatje, having also been awarded the prize Best Non-Fiction in 2020 at the 5th annual Humanities and Social Sciences Awards ceremony, for his biography titled, Sol Plaatje: A life of Solomon Tshekisho Plaatje, 1876–1932.
The volume under discussion contains a collection of 260 letters written by Plaatje during the years 1896–1932. Plaatje started his career as an official working in the post office in Kimberley. He moved on to become a court translator and later a journalist, eventually travelling to Europe and the United States of America for the purpose of political activism and also to publish his books. According to Howard Phillips, the chair of HiPSA, Sol T Plaatje: A life in letters is the fourth publication by HiPSA “which give[s] verbatim voice to prominent members of South Africa’s early political elite” (v). The book follows publications by HiPSA of the writings of Isaac Williams Wauchope (1852–1917), Richard Victor Selope Thema (1886–1955) and Dr Alfred Bitini Xuma (1893–1962), all of whom Plaatje was acquainted with. Although there are a number of resources on the life of Sol Plaatje, the publication of this volume therefore gives readers access to some of Plaatje’s own words, other than, of course, his official publications.
The 260 letters in this volume have been divided into eight sections by the editors. These divisions correspond to different recognisable periods in Plaatje’s career. As Plaatje was a well-known polyglot, it is no surprise that his letters are written in several different languages, such as English, Setswana and Dutch/Afrikaans, with short passages in German, and some letters being a mixture of different languages. The letters are all published in the original languages, but are provided with English translations for those letters not written in English. It is noted by the editors in the introduction that the letters obviously do contain large gaps. It is, for example, most unfortunate that not a single letter survived between Plaatje and his wife, Elizabeth.
Plaatje wrote most of his letters under his own name, but there are known instances where he wrote letters under different names, of which some are also included in this collection. A recurring theme in the letters is the financial struggles that Plaatje had to endure, particularly in relation to the publication of newspapers and books. Plaatje had lots of sympathy for his political activism in England, where he resided for a long time, and continued corresponding with acquaintances on private and political matters long after he departed. The fact that the letters do not include response letters makes it frustrating to read, at times, as it does leave the reader with many loose ends. In some instances, the editors do provide a short response to, or outcome of, a particular letter, which is a welcome addition. It should be noted, however, that if responding letters were included, the volume would probably not have been manageable.
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Sol T Plaatje: A life in letters provides an important glimpse into the life of Plaatje, his ideas, his relationships and the world in which he lived. Another important feature of note in the book is the index, which is critically important and will greatly ease the task of future researchers.
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Sol T Plaatje: A life in letters provides an important glimpse into the life of Plaatje, his ideas, his relationships and the world in which he lived. Another important feature of note in the book is the index, which is critically important and will greatly ease the task of future researchers. The book is also provided with some photographic material. Some of these photographs will be familiar to most seasoned readers of historical works, particularly those with an interest in the life of Plaatje, his times and related themes. A list of all the archival collections that were consulted is also included, as well as short biographical summaries of all the people with whom Plaatje corresponded in the letters. As the book covers a wide spectrum of Plaatje’s letters, it will be of value not only to historians, but also to various other fields of study.
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