History, Literature and Identity in John Dube’s Writings (South Africa, 1920s-1930s)

ABSTRACT

The article analyzes the novel Jeqe, the Bodyservant of Shaka, originally published as Insila kaShaka (1931), by the South African educator and politician John Langalibalele Dube, with a focus on the construction of Zulu national identity through the interweaving of History and Literature. Emphasis is placed on the connections between Dube's trajectory and literary production with cultural and political movements in the early decades of the 20th century, particularly in light of the political mobilizations led by South African leaders in response to the rise of segregationist legislation. In Jeqe, Dube sought to idealize a new type of Zulu man and to reframe the collective memory of figures associated with the foundation and expansion of the Zulu kingdom, such as Shaka kaSenzangakhona, looking to the past for strategies to confront the new political realities of the South African nation-state.

Keywords:
History and literature; South Africa; John Langalibalele Dube