Unisa Press Journals (University of South Africa)
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The Perceived Value of the “More Than” Process for Social Cohesion: A Case Study from Touws River, Western Cape, South Africa
No full textTouws River, a once prosperous town for the rail line between Cape Town and Johannesburg that ran through it, suffered financial and social decline after the railway closed in the 1980s. The MoreThan#MeerAs project, a project aimed at facilitating social cohesion, was started in the town in 2021. The MoreThan#MeerAs NGO reframes perceptions by encouraging connection and creativity through inclusion. The aim of this paper is to describe the reflections of participants in this community development project on the history of the town and hopes for its future. The study was qualitative, adopting a phenomenological design, the sample made up of 23 participants. Semi-structured focus group discussions provided data. The participants, all members of the community, reported struggling with poor service delivery and a lack of jobs. Despite these challenges, they did express hope, longed for community and wanted to make a difference. The MoreThan#MeerAs project gave the participants courage to challenge their circumstances. The findings suggest substantial financial, social and structural investment is needed to secure a future for Touws River and similar towns. For this to happen, multiple stakeholders need to be involved
“In This Life One Must Live and Not Survive”: Understanding Day Labourers’ Vulnerability through the Lens of Max-Neef
No full textDay labouring is one of the most visible forms of precarious employment in South Africa as those involved earn low and uncertain levels of income, leaving many of them in a state of deprivation, poverty, and marginalisation. This article aims to contribute to the documentation and analysis of the precarious nature of informal employment and the vulnerabilities workers face in this uncertain work environment. A case study research design involving 66 (45 respondents from quantitative data collection and 21 participants from qualitative data collection) male day labourers from Mbekweni was used. The findings of this study were analysed using Max-Neef’s theory of the nine fundamental human needs. This study found that day labourers from Mbekweni receive little to no income, struggle with access to decent housing, face food insecurity, and often struggle with access to basic services. In addition, while all day labourers face various forms of poverty, only South African day labourers have access to social security benefits, while those who are foreign nationals do not
Africa Methodist Council: A Counter of John Wesley’s 1786 Fear and a Fulfilment of his 1739 “The World is My Parish” Statement
No full textJohn Wesley was the founder and anchor of the Methodist movement. As he grew older, he realised the implication his death would have on the movement. In 1786, he documented his envisioned fears, “I am not afraid that the people called Methodists should ever cease to exist either in Europe or America. But I am afraid lest they should only exist as a dead sect, having the form of religion without power” (Wesley 1786,1). Contrary to his fears, his 1739 statement, “The World is My Parish” (Wesley 1739,42), was fulfilled as Methodism arrived in Africa four years after his death as a religion with the power to transform society. This paper presents the birth and developments of the Africa Methodist Council as a counter to Wesley’s 1786 fear and a confirmation of his 1739 statement “The World is my Parish.” The numerical and philanthropical growth of Methodism in Africa is evidence of its visibility and power to transform the African society, true to the 1739 conviction and contrary to the 1786 fear. This paper uses a qualitative research methodology to present the development of the AMC. Furthermore, the paper is informative and utilises Wesley’s fears and his vision of Methodism in the world to discuss the birth and development of the Africa Methodist Council. The paper concludes by buttressing the view that Methodism in Africa fulfils Wesley’s statement of the world as his parish. It also affirms the power of Methodism to transform society
Revisiting the Debate on Christian Missionary Imperialism in South Africa: Its Role in Oppressing the IsiXhosa Language and Culture
No full textIn this article, I critically probe the role of Christian missionary imperialism in South Africa and its destructive contribution to the oppression of the isiXhosa language and culture, untangling the roots and shadows of a system that sought to distort indigenous identity under the guise of Christian salvation. Qualitative meta-synthesis and cultural imperialism as a theory are applied to anchor the argument. This article uncovers three notable findings. First, the use of language as a strategic and political weapon of imperialism obligated Christian missionaries and the church to abolish isiXhosa linguistic and amaXhosa cultural structures, and replace them with Western philosophies, elevating English and Afrikaans as the dominant mechanism of education and religious discourse. Second, the Christian church’s condemnation and oppression of ancestral amaXhosa practices led to their gradual erosion under the crushing weight of Christian dogma. Third, through its pervasive influence, missionary imperialism imposed Western cultural values that disconnected the threads of intergenerational transmission of amaXhosa knowledge systems, leaving far behind a fractured cultural mosaic that continues to obstruct the recovery of amaXhosa heritage in a post-colonial scenery. In the end, by interweaving historical accounts, ethnographic critiques, and cultural discourses, I unmask the indelible scars of Christian missionary and church interventions and advocate for the revitalisation and advancement of the isiXhosa language and amaXhosa culture
“Life Must Move Forward”: Indonesian Students’ Efforts to Understand Traumatic History through Knowledge-Aware Multimodal Dialogue Systems
No full textThis study explores the experiences of students using a multimodal dialogue system to engage with sensitive historical content, specifically focusing on the challenges they face and how these challenges are addressed. Data were collected from 35 participants across six public and private schools in Semarang utilising qualitative methods, including interviews and focus group discussions. The findings reveal that students encounter various challenges, such as emotional discomfort and difficulty in articulating their thoughts on traumatic historical events. However, the multimodal dialogue system facilitates a supportive environment that encourages open discussion and reflection, allowing students to navigate these challenges effectively. The study highlights the importance of creating safe spaces for dialogue, where students can explore their identities and values in relation to traumatic history. Additionally, the research underscores the potential of technology to enhance student engagement and foster deeper understanding of sensitive topics. The implications for educators and curriculum developers are significant, suggesting that integrating multimodal dialogue systems can enrich history education and promote critical thinking. Limitations of the study include a small sample size and a focus on a specific geographic area, indicating the need for further research to generalise findings across diverse educational contexts
Romantic Narratives: The role of Ndebele trickster tales in premarital romance counselling
No full textAbstract
This paper examines the role of Ndebele trickster tales in premarital romance counselling. Premarital romance counselling is a form of counselling or guidance and support that helps courting couples prepare for marriage, focusing mainly on their courtship or romantic relationship. The study argues that premarital romance counselling is critical in the promotion of stability and success of a marriage. It demonstrates how the traditional Ndebele people of Zimbabwe deployed genres of oral literature such as trickster tales as vehicles of romance premarital counselling. The study however points out that Ndebele people have neglected the use of oral literature for this purpose due to Westernisation and cultural imperialism. As a result, young people lack adequate premarital counselling required at courtship, a situation that is detrimental to the stability of marriages. Statistics on increasing cases of divorce in Zimbabwe call for a reflection on the role of premarital counselling to marital stability and success. The study argues that there is a need for creativity and innovation in contemporary oral art literature. It should equip young people with the necessary knowledge and skills to navigate the contours of courtship. The trickster tales analysed in this paper were derived from selected Ndebele folktale anthologies. Textual analysis, focus group discussion and interviews were employed in the collection of data. The paper adopts the Narrative theory which emphasizes the importance of storytelling in shaping human experience and understanding
Correlation Study of Primary Caregiver Burden and Anxiety in Breast Cancer Patients
No full textThis article explores the correlation between primary caregiver burden and anxiety in breast cancer patients; in order to increase the social attention to the mental health of this group and improve their quality of life. Using the convenience sampling method, general data, the caregiver burden scale (ZBI) and the anxiety scale (SAS), 207 breast cancer patients admitted to a grade A hospital from September 2023 to October 2023 were sampled. The primary caregiver care burden score was 51.08±14.65 and the anxiety score was (57.62±12.12. The Spearman Correlation analysis indicated a positive association between primary caregiver care burden and anxiety (=0.764, <0.001), with a positive correlation between individual burden and primary caregiver anxiety (=0.759,<0.001) and a positive association between responsibility burden and primary caregiver anxiety (=0.675,<0.001). Regression analysis showed that primary caregiver care burden and dimensional individual burden in breast cancer patients compared with the general information education, work status mainly affected the anxiety level of the primary caregivers of breast cancer patients (=0.652, <0.001). This study concluded from relevant survey analysis that the heavier the caregiving burden of the main caregivers of breast cancer patients, the heavier the anxiety. The society needs to pay attention to the mental health of the main caregivers of breast cancer. When necessary, certain measures can be taken to help this group to reduce the care burden of the main caregivers and relieve anxiety, in order to improve the quality of life of this group
Desire at the End of the White Line: Notes on the Decolonisation of White Afrikaner Femininity, by Azille Coetzee
No full textThe Impact of COVID-19 on the Institutional Fabric of Higher Education: Old Patterns, New Dynamics and Changing Rules?, edited by Rómulo Pinheiro, Elizabeth Balbachevsky, Pundy Pillay, and Akiyoshi Yonezawa
No full text“A Talent for Wonder”: The Performatist Double Frame and Characters with Autistic Traits in Marlene van Niekerk’s Short Story Oeuvre
No full textThis article explores Raoul Eshelman’s concept of the performatist double frame as it manifests in Marlene van Niekerk’s short story oeuvre, with a particular focus on her depiction of characters with autistic traits in two volumes of short stories: Die vrou wat haar verkyker vergeet het (1992) and Die sneeuslaper (2010). Eshelman’s theory, which hinges on the use of narrative framing to compel readers to adopt a single interpretive stance, provides a lens through which Van Niekerk’s narratives can be analysed. In Van Niekerk’s short stories these characters are integral to the construction of framed scenarios where the reader is drawn into accepting the story’s fantastical elements as plausible, thereby suspending scepticism. The article argues that this narrative strategy facilitates a performative engagement with the text, allowing the reader to momentarily experience the world of the story as real, and to consequently feel a sense of enchantment. Furthermore, the article identifies a significant shift in Van Niekerk’s short story oeuvre, wherein earlier portrayals of characters with autistic traits emphasised their marginalisation and expulsion from society, while later works position these characters as central figures who drive the narrative’s engagement with themes of belief, perception, and inspiration. This evolution reflects a nuanced approach to the depiction of characters who display intellectual “otherness” as well as the use of narrative framing, and highlights Van Niekerk’s contribution to contemporary Afrikaans (and South African) literature as a space for reimagining the boundaries of storytelling