Homebru 2006 author: Melinda Ferguson

Lauren Segal is the author of Number Four: The Making of Constitution Hill, published by Penguin Books South Africa.

1.   What does it mean to you to have your writing recognised and celebrated as "South African"?

   A lot! To be South African at this moment in time is to be path-breaking, fresh, subversive, surprising, progressive. I like thinking our book, and others in the Homebru selection, is all of these things.

2.  What was it that led you to write a book about this aspect of South Africa?

   The Constitution is at the heart of the new South Africa and 2006 celebrates ten years of the Constitution. Constitution Hill - the home of the Constitution and the Constitutional Court – tells the remarkable story of transformation, of the old repressive regime being replaced by the new democracy, of the journey from pain to hope, from darkness to light. It is a story that captures so many aspects of our history and our current reality. The stories in the book describe the abandonment of the site, the revival of the inner city, the building of the first public post-apartheid building in South Africa, capturing and representing the voices of ex-prisoners who once inhabited the jails at Constitution Hill, and the creation of a prime destination for South Africans and the rest of the world.

3.   Is it possible for one's thinking, and therefore writing, as a South African to be free of political and historical influence?

   For our generation (40-somethings) the answer is an emphatic no. Our identity, our philosophies, our relationships feel as if they will be forever shaped by our apartheid past. I am astonished at the post-1994 generation of South Africans who are so ignorant (and free?) of the divisions, the pains, the triumphs that we lived through.

4.   Is there a writing community in South Africa, or is writing in this country a solitary journey?

   The making of Constitution Hill has been a collaborative effort and so too has the book. I worked on this book in a diverse team of people – fellow authors Sharon Cort and Karen Martin and a group of talented designers and researchers. This was anything but a solitary journey. It was full of lively interaction and debate about the stories that should be told and the way the book should look. This may be exceptional rather than typical of a South African book project, but a team like this one has become the way I love to work.

5.   What different (or similar) roles do fiction and non-fiction play in constructing a South African experience/literature in 2006 and beyond?

   Both give us the capacity to dream our world into existence and create lines and contours where there were once only shadows.

6.   Do you think South African non-fiction has international appeal? If so, can the same be said for unashamedly South African fiction?

   The international community is fascinated by our story/stories large and small. Speaking specifically about the Hill, there isn’t a single person from overseas who has visited Constitution Hill and is not blown away by what they see. They are more than often reduced to tears. Why should a book that tells the story of the site not have the same capacity to make people stop in their tracks and look at the world a little differently? Similarly for other South African non-fiction and fiction that deals with our rich and complex reality.

7.   Who do you think is the most influential South African writer today? And who is your favourite local author?

   JM Coetzee even though he isn’t here anymore.
   I love Zake Mda’s books.

8.  If you could choose five works (fiction, non-fiction, poetry, performance poetry, etc) from South African literature that would be able to communicate "the South African experience", which five would you choose, and why?

   Sandile Dikeni’s and Lesego Rampolokeng’s poetry for their vivid language and emotional renditions of South African experiences.
   Antje Krog’s Country of My Skull for her poetic writings on the TRC.
   Zake Mda’s books for his magical insights into life in this country.
   Charles van Onselen’s books for their meticulous descriptions of history.

9.   What makes you a South African?

   The ability to embrace change and not being scared of trying out something that has never been done before.

10.  What is your favourite South Africanism?

    “Howzit”, “just now” and “shame!!”.

Moenie ons Homebru 2006-kompetisie misloop nie! Wen 'n lekker Suid-Afrikaanse boekpakkie! Klik hier om meer uit te vind.

LitNet: 10 May 2006

Click here to read answers of the Homebru 2006 fiction writers
Click here to read the answers of the Homebru 2006 non-fiction writers

Have your say! To comment on this interview write to webvoet@litnet.co.za, and become a part of our interactive opinion page.

Click here and subscribe to our fantastic free newsletter - for your weekly cultural fix! Click here to see the latest edition

to the top / boontoe

© Kopiereg in die ontwerp en inhoud van hierdie webruimte behoort aan LitNet, uitgesluit die kopiereg in bydraes wat berus by die outeurs wat sodanige bydraes verskaf. LitNet streef na die plasing van oorspronklike materiaal en na die oop en onbeperkte uitruil van idees en menings. Die menings van bydraers tot hierdie werftuiste is dus hul eie en weerspieël nie noodwendig die mening van die redaksie en bestuur van LitNet nie. LitNet kan ongelukkig ook nie waarborg dat hierdie diens ononderbroke of foutloos sal wees nie en gebruikers wat steun op inligting wat hier verskaf word, doen dit op hul eie risiko. Media24, M-Web, Ligitprops 3042 BK en die bestuur en redaksie van LitNet aanvaar derhalwe geen aanspreeklikheid vir enige regstreekse of onregstreekse verlies of skade wat uit sodanige bydraes of die verskaffing van hierdie diens spruit nie. LitNet is ’n onafhanklike joernaal op die Internet, en word as gesamentlike onderneming deur Ligitprops 3042 BK en Media24 bedryf.