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Abstract
Can Themba’s iconic story, “The Suit” (1963), tells of a devastating punishment visited upon an adulterous wife, Matilda, by her husband, Philemon. This article begins by examining some implications of Themba’s story and touching on subsequent adaptations that have re-imagined this haunting tale from various perspectives. I then move on to consider two stories by Makhosazana Xaba (2013) which add significant elements to the original fable. “Behind ‘The Suit’” is written in epistolary form by Philemon’s dying male lover to his daughter, thus queering the narrative. “‘The Suit’ Continued: The Other Side” is recounted in first-person narration by Matilda, after her suicide. It delineates the affair between Matilda and another woman, and their plan to have a baby, adding further queer temporalities. Citing theorists of queer and bisexual temporalities, I provide a close reading of the effects Xaba creates in her re-fashionings of Themba’s Ur-text. I argue that both stories critique hetero-patriarchy; they queer marriage, procreation, Sophiatown, black communities and the South African nation; and they contribute meaningfully to postcolonial queer writing and reading.
Notes on Contributor
Cheryl Stobie is an Associate Professor of English Studies at the University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg campus. Her current research and teaching interests involve representations of gender, sexuality, race and nation in contemporary written and visual texts, mainly South/African. Some recent publications focus on African cinematic re-workings of the Carmen story, queer temporalities in film and fiction, and textual representations of Ubuntu. She combines an emphasis on cultural specificity with close textual analysis. She is an NRF-rated scholar.
Disclosure Statement
No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author.
ORCID
Cheryl Stobie http://orcid.org/0000-0002-7138-7340