“Land of my sons”: The politics of gender in Black Consciousness poetry

Abstract

Black Consciousness (BC) poetry in 1970s and 1980s South Africa has been largely acclaimed as an excellent articulation of black subjectivity in the face of apartheid oppression. Despite its emancipatory longings, however, this poetry failed to construct an empowering black identity for both men and women. This article argues that BC poetry’s modern black selfhood is wrought by internal contradictions, depending conceptually on the suppression of women’s agency and their participation in the liberated nation. It is suggested that BC masculinity, defined by social and sexual conservatism, can today be seen reflected in the masculinities performed by some current ANC leaders.

Keywords:

• Black Consciousness poetry
• black nationalism
• apartheid/anti‐apartheid
• gender
• Mother Africa

Acknowledgements

The author wishes to thank Elleke Boehmer and Stephanie Newell for their comments on previous drafts of this paper.