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Fantasy, Myth, and Legend

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Transition and Transgression

Part of the book series: SpringerBriefs in Education ((BRIEFSEDUCAT))

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Abstract

This chapter moves away from the realistic themes of the previous chapters to explore works of young adult fiction which incorporate fantasy, myth, history and legend into the narrative. There is a clear development from older works featuring sangomas and traditional healers to more complex works in which the beliefs and shamanistic practices of the /Xam are a central part of the narrative. All of the writers have made use of South African history and myth and all of the works are situated in a clearly South African geographical landscape. The chapter ends with several works that represent a new and innovative direction in South African young adult fantasy fiction, notably horror novels and speculative fiction in which authors are experimenting with the genre without the same formerly rather rigid constraints of socio-political conditions.

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Notes

  1. 1.

    Igqira means ‘witch’ in isiXhosa.

  2. 2.

    Sangoma means ‘traditional healer’ in isiZulu.

  3. 3.

    This novel is also discussed briefly in Chap. 3 of this study.

  4. 4.

    A volume which brings together /Xam beliefs based on articles published by Dorothea Bleek is Customs and Beliefs of the /Xam Bushmen (Hollman 2004). For a recent collection of the San tales recorded by Lucy Lloyd and Dorothea Bleek, see Stories that Float from Afar edited by Lewis-Williams (2000).

  5. 5.

    The /Xam are one of the San peoples or clans.

  6. 6.

    An alternative spelling for gora.

  7. 7.

    The San word for shaman.

  8. 8.

    The spirit force, linked to the real world by a silver thread at the back of the neck.

  9. 9.

    In Old English, the word haga referred to an enclosure, especially in a forest.

  10. 10.

    Siener is the Afrikaans word for prophet or soothsayer. Siener van Rensburg (1864–1926) was a Boer whom some considered a prophet.

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  1. Translation and Interpreting Studies, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa

    Judith Inggs

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  1. Judith Inggs
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Correspondence to Judith Inggs .

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Inggs, J. (2016). Fantasy, Myth, and Legend. In: Transition and Transgression. SpringerBriefs in Education. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-25534-7_6

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-25534-7_6

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  • Print ISBN: 978-3-319-25532-3

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-319-25534-7

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