Bettina Weiss Boeken

This study is the first book-length analysis of African women’s writing of Southern Africa with a focus on writing the body. The thesis is that women are not voiceless, but hold a powerful, liberating potential: they «throw their voices» by implementing a strategic corporeal. Notably, this mode is not carried out in a way of emphasising corporeal difference by lack, but by attributing positive markers to the body. It reaches beyond a speaking which only represents women’s thoughts and emotions physically – a mode which might render the impression that they are incapable of expressing their conceptions and sentiments linguistically. It is an empowerment that reflects their skill to break up the bonds between language and body. This study is wide-ranging in its choice of authors and themes.

This study examines contemporary literatures from southern Africa, uniting scholars addressing critical issues surrounding Othering and marginalized narratives—stories deemed unacceptable by society, including those about female experiences and the distorted notions of family, nation, and history. The contributors explore strategic devices that uphold these constructions while also identifying strategies that can challenge and destabilize them. Key topics include the varied representations of HIV/AIDS in South African and Zimbabwean literature, the socio-(homo)sexual experiences of Black men in South Africa, and the traumatic shifts in Namibia following war, analyzed through a gender lens. The collection also offers homoerotic interpretations of Black women’s desires and highlights how ‘speaking’ textiles symbolize the contradictions within the postcolonial voice, providing new frameworks to address silence. The essays collectively aim to elevate unheard narratives, shifting them from the margins to the forefront of discourse. They illustrate that the conclusion of these unheard narratives carries a dual significance, emphasizing the complexity and richness of the stories within the region's literature.