College of Humanities

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A critical discernment of the image of God amongst the Black, urban, isiXhosa speaking Catholics within the Catholic Archdiocese of Cape Town, in relation to other sources of sacred power, in a context of on-going change.
(2024) Goldie, Pierre.; Decock, Paul Bernard.
With view to a deeper appreciation of how the Xhosa Catholics within the Archdiocese of Cape Town have assimilated Catholicism, the thesis delimits this compound objective to the way in which the image of God has been appropriated by the urban amaXhosa, in relation to other sources of sacred power, a manageable scope for this paper. Pauw (1975) presents research on how the Xhosa have adopted Christianity, assisted by a substantial team of research assistants. Some Catholic researchers have contributed to religious-cultural analyses of indigenous Catholics in South Africa, but there is a research deficiency within the Cape Town environs due in part to the relatively smaller proportion of Black Catholics within this Archdiocese. These numbers have grown substantially with on-going migration from country to city. A qualitative questionnaire has been utilised as part of an interpretative phenomenological analysis to explore the image of God held by the Xhosa Catholics supplemented with a comprehensive literature review. The research discovers that there are a range of contenders for sacred power with which to cope with existential issues, not only ‘God’. Also, God exists no longer as a distant, awesome deity, represented as such in African Tradition. He now dominates the religious consciousness of the people. The ancestors have been displaced from their formerly dominant role but are still perceived as significant dispensers of sacred power. Christ’s image as God is overshadowed and he does not appear to command a pre-eminent, authoritative relationship with the congregants. The ancestors generally invite more deliberation than Christ. This depreciation of the Christ image critically undermines the Easter mystery, for the Catholic Church the pivotal episode of revelation. Catholic parishioners also patronise other sources of sacred power. The research results generally concur with literature, concluding that the qualitative impact of Christianity is found wanting. Lack of cultural awareness, and imperfect evangelization account for the partial realization of Christian mission. The Holy Spirit too has only been partially appropriated. Results highlight a significant Christological shortcoming, even crisis. Tlhagale (2018) adjudicates indigenous Christians to be closer to ATR than to Christianity. Strategies are proposed to address the challenges.
An analysis of experiences and meanings that community members have attached to the South African government’s neoliberal and privatisation policies in historically disadvantaged suburbs.
(2022) Mashalane, Nkgere Sharon.; Isaacs, Dean Lee.; Bobat, Shaida.; Reuben, Shanya.
This research aimed to explore the experiences and meanings that community members have attached to the South African government’s neoliberal and privatisation policies in historically disadvantaged suburbs. This study sought to understand how community members of Wentworth make sense of neoliberal and privatisation tactics. Using a qualitative research design, the study further sought to understand how the privatisation of basic services makes community members feel. Participants were community members of Wentworth, a suburb of the city of Durban, who have been residents in the community for more than ten years. Participants were selected using snowball sampling, and the researcher used semi-structured interviews to solicit points of view from the participants on their experiences of the privatisation of basic services in their area. Data was analysed using Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis. The analysis produced the following themes: unemployment, unsafe communities, poverty-stricken homes, government shortcomings, not having a place to call home, and dissatisfaction with life. The research revealed that the residents’ understanding of these changes were strongly influenced by the injustices of the past, which now manifest as class instead of race. Recommendations for practical implications and future research were made.
Deconstructing African identities: notions of fatherhood amongst Zulu men in Eshowe, KwaZulu-Natal.
(2023) Mdletshe, Prudence Thandeka.; Zibane, Sibonsile Zerurcia.; Hlengwa, Wellington Mthokozisi.
This study is a decolonial study of fatherhood in South Africa. It is located within the broader ambit of decolonial liberatory psychology and Afrocentrism. It is informed by the hypothetical claim about the erosion of African cultures, being, and subjectivities. It posits that while fatherhood is obviously socially, culturally, and historically contingent, the Anglo-American notions of fatherhood are the most dominant in South Africa. This is because of the matrix of power of the modern colonial world system that undermines African identities. Data was collected using Indigenous research methods which share some similarities with qualitative research methods. These included the sharing circles and conversational interviews that were used to collect data. A total of two sharing circle interviews and 20 one-on-one in-depth conversational interviews were conducted in Eshowe which is a rural community of KwaZulu-Natal. Study participants consisted of Zulu people from 35 to 75 + years of age. The interviews were conducted in IsiZulu; and recorded using a digital audio-recorder, and then transcribed later. The transcription first took place in the language of the respondents and then were translated into English. Zulu Folklores and proverbs were also used in the data collection process. They also served as conversation starters, reflection points, and for stimulating the conversation exchanges in sharing circles. Data was analysed using Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA). IPA was chosen because it is a method that allows for the data to be collected using Indigenous research methods. It is a qualitative analysis method that is primarily used in the disciplines of the human sciences. This method is mainly concerned with giving voice to the voiceless people who are either marginalized or excluded in society such as peasants, women, and indeed racialized populations. Most significantly, IPA also seeks to explore such participants’ experiences and the meaning they attribute to their experiences. The findings of the research are presented in the form of thick descriptions of the participant’s notions of fatherhood. The participants’ experiences, memories, and stories symbolized the resilience of indigenous knowledge systems in Eshowe. As one of the participants opined, as long as the Zulu people still live, their culture cannot be entirely obliterated by the old and new forms of colonialism.
Discontinuity without change? the place and discourse of colonial memory in Zimbabwe’s post- Mugabe Zanu-PF politics.
(2024) Kupeta, Noah.; Lubombo, Musara.; Dyll, Lauren Eva.
Zimbabwean politics are notably complex and difficult to understand, even by scholars with a strong interest in African affairs with a long institutional memory of the historical determinants of the independence and post-independence struggles within Zimbabwe. Through the lens of political culture and functional theory campaign communication, this qualitative inquiry titled “Discontinuity without change? The place and discourse of colonial memory in Zimbabwe’s post-Mugabe ZANU-PF politics” scrutinizes the colonial narratives in the political discourses in Zimbabwe’s ruling party ZANU (PF) following the Robert Mugabe era intending to understand how colonial memory shapes the party’s the ideological foundations and policy directions. The study draws on eight speeches delivered by former president Robert Mugabe during the 2002 elections, as well as speeches by his successor and current president Emmerson Munangagwa during the 2018 election campaign. It also incorporates insights from key informants within ZANU (PF), Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation (ZBC), Zimpapers, and Alpha Media Holdings (AMH) to explore the role of media in influencing the nuanced interplay between historical legacies, political discourse, and contemporary governance. By examining the ebbs and tides of electoral politics in Zimbabwe spanning nearly decades through the prism of post-colonial memory, the study concludes that while Mnangagwa’s ascendance as President hinted at a departure from his predecessor’s politics, there is a notable continuity in the streams of colonial memory that informed ZANU-PF electoral strategies. This underscores how political discourses and power dynamics during elections are deeply entrenched within the broader context of Zimbabwean politics and pan-African pursuit of of self-determination (Nyika inovakwa nevene vayo), identity and independence. Despite certain shifts in Mnangagwa’s ‘New Dispensation’ that deviate from Mugabeism, the persistence of colonial memory underscores its pivotal role in shaping the principles and practices of representative democracy within Zimbabwe. The media’s influence in (re)shaping post-Mugabe discourse sheds light on the implications of memory appropriation in contemporary Zimbabwean political communication.
Exploring the factors and differentials driving contemporary internal migration in South Africa.
(2020) Dlamini, Njabulo.; Nzimande, Nompumelelo Barbara.
This study explores the factors and differentials driving contemporary internal migration in South Africa looking at migration for South african citizens and then touch on inter-provincial migration. There is limited research done on internal migration in South Africa and globally. The bulk of studies done on migration focused the most on international migration and there is enough literature on international migration. However, internal migration has limited literature though moves mostly happen nationally rather than internationally. This study uses community survey 2016 (CS2016) data which was conducted by Statistics South Africa. The overall aim of this study is to explore migration factors and differentials driving internal migration between the year 2011 which was the year the last census was done and 2016 the year community survey 2016 was conducted. A quantitative research approach was adopted, and STATA 15 software was used to analyse data. A nested logistic model was used to explore the factors and determine differentials among the exploratory variables. It was evident in the study that all the independent variables chosen for the study does influence migration singularly and when combined with others. Nested models for the general population, females, and males were able to show the effectiveness of each independent variable in contributing to migration. The finding from this study can help the government in implementing policies since it shows how the South African population moves with the country at a municipal level and provincial level.
Exploring visual impairment through the built environment.
(2023) Mancotywa, Mbuso.; Cloete, Magdalena Catharina.
Visual impairment can present itself as a tough challenge in a human's life, and navigating the built environment independently is often one of the biggest obstacles to be approached. Not being able to perceive the environment around one and having an absence of a strong relationship or bond to the spaces one encounters leads to visually impaired people feeling lost in space. These issues get exacerbated by the gross insufficiencies of the built environment in its response to being inclusive for the visually impaired. This is often caused by the modern architectural approach, which did not factor in significant consideration for the other senses within their designs and favoured an ocular-centric approach that gave much preference to the sense of sight in architecture. As a result of the isolation in space, visually impaired people end up being excluded from the built environment and even other activities that may take place within buildings due to the lack of inclusivity within many different architectural typologies. This dissertation will explore how the built environment can respond more to visual impairment. The framework of the research will be formulated through the literature covering the theories of Phenomenology, Place theory, Universal Design and Multi-sensory design. These theories will more profoundly explore the human senses' role in the perception of the built environment. Understanding how architecture can respond will assist in making the built environment more inclusive for the visually impaired and strengthen the relationship of the senses to space to make architectural design more meaningful.
Grounding African political theory on afro-communitarianism: arguments and implications=Ukuqeqeshelwa injulalwazi yezombusazwe yase-Africa i-African Political Theory phezu kwenzululwazi yokuxhumuna komuntu ongumAfrika nomphakathi i-Afro-Communitarianism: Imibonomcabango Nemithelela.
(2023) Adeate, Tosin Blessing.; Clare, Julia.
This thesis critically analyses Afro-communitarianism as a philosophical foundation for modern African political theories and practices. The thesis links the reception of Afro-communitarian political philosophy in modern African political philosophy with its long-standing tension between community and individual as well as the conflict between rights and duty in modern African political philosophy. The attempt to resolve this tension in literature has mainly focused on the ideas of personhood. The thesis shows how development of the personhood approach to resolving this tension was manifested in three senses, i.e. duty-based, rights-based, and Afro-communitarian rejectionism. These three senses are both interrelated and independent discourses in African political philosophy. The duty-based personhood approach holds that personhood is defined solely by the structure of the community and not the self. It contends a notion of the self whose definition of meaningful life is generated outside the reference to community dependency. According to this approach, an ideal individual is a communal conformist, one that prioritises the duty to the community over the self. As a result, this approach defends a political society where concerns of rights, especially individual rights, do not matter. Following this approach is the rights-based personhood response. The rights-based approach responds to the lacunae in the duty-based personhood approach. Rights-based personhood approach is also an independent position at resolving the tension in Afro-communitarian political thought. This approach seeks to defend the compatibility of rights with Afro-communitarianism and its equal status with communal obligation. It argues for certain features of humans that suggest the partial dependency of the self on the community in the definition of human personhood. Grounding on these features, the approach established the place of rights, autonomy, and freedom in the Afro-communitarian discourse. However, what stands clear in this account of personhood is the persistence of the community and its overwhelming nature in framing the functions of the political virtues of rights, autonomy, and freedom believed to be individual properties. Rights only matter to the extent of their coherence with communal values. It becomes apparent that the idea of individual rights remains vague, especially in the face of specific human expression in communitarian African societies. The conflicts between individual and community and rights and duty in the idea of personhood in Afro-communitarian thought stirred up the third response and the third sense of the personhood approach, which I refer to as Afro-communitarian rejectionism. Scholars in this camp suggest the need to have a conversation on modern African politics without Afro-communitarian ideas. This position rests on the claim that modern African philosophy will be influenced by diverse orientations, which are sometimes incompatible with the ideas of Afro-communitarianism. However, the challenge with this conception of personhood is that it ruled out the possibility of a developed modern Africa profiting from the merits of Afro-communitarianism. While the tension between the individual and community persists, the thesis argues that attention should be given to the analysis of the community. In analysing the idea of community, the thesis identified the various forms of community that undergird the various ideas of personhood in Afrocommunitarianism, namely cultural community and community as self-interested individuals. The first form of community is the Afro-communitarian notion of community. I show how the idea of humiliation is inherent in the ideal notion of community in Afro-communitarianism and the conception of self it informs. The question of humiliation is omitted in the various conceptions of personhood. For Afro-communitarianism to ground modern African political ideas and practices, its notion of the community must be non-humiliating. Achieving a non-humiliating community involves a review of the norms of the cultural community. I attempt this review with what I call the doctrine of cultural permissibility. This thesis redirects Afro-communitarian debates by arguing for a shift to the community. The thesis concludes that postcolonial African politics can only benefit from Afro-communitarianism preoccupied with the desire for a ‘non-humiliating’ community that accommodates plural conceptions of personhood. This thesis would provide nuanced views on the ongoing conversation among Afro-communitarian theorists. Iqoqa Lolu cwaningo luhlaziya ngokunzulu inzululwazi yokuxhumuna komuntu ongumAfrika i-Afro-communitarianism njengenzululwazi eyisisekelo sezinjulalwazi zezombusazwe nokwenziwayo kobu-Afrika. Ucwaningo luxhumanisa ukwamukeleka kwenzululwazi yezombusazwe i-Afro-communitarian yenzululwazi yobu-Afrika yesimanje nodweshu oseluhambe ibanga elide phakathi komuntu ngamunye nomphakathi kanjalo nodweshu oluphakathi kwamalungelo nokwenziwa komsebenzi enzululwazini yezombusazwe yase-Afrika. Umzamo wokuxazulula lokhu kungqubuzana emibhalweni sekugxile kakhulu kokomuntu. Ucwaningo lukhombisa ukuthi kwenziwe kanjani ukuthuthukiswa kwendlela yokomuntu ukuxazulula ukungqubuzana ngezindlela ezintathu okuyilezi; okugxile emsebenzini, okugxile emalungelweni, nomcabango wokwenqaba ngokwe-Afro-communitarian. Indlela yokomuntu okugxile emsebenzini yencike ekuthini okomuntu kungachazwa kuphela ngesakhiwo somphakathi kodwa hhayi ngokomuntu nje. Ngokwale ndlela, umuntu okahle yilowo ohambisana nokomphakathi, lowo oqhuba phambili imisebenzi yomphakathi kunalokho okungokwakhe. Ukulandela le ndlela yindlela ephendula okomuntu, okuyindlela evikela ukuhambisana nezinga elilinganayo ngokwamalungelo nemisebenzi. Nokho-ke, okuzimele obala kulo mbiko ngokomuntu yimbelesi yomphakathi nemvelaphi yawo ngokubanzi ezungeze imisebenzi yamalungelo, ukuzimela nenkululeko. Umqondo wesithathu wendlela yokomuntu yileyo engiyibiza ngokwala kwe- Afro-communitarian. Ongoti baleli qoqo baphakamisa isidingo sokuba nengxoxo ngezombusazwe zobu-Afrika zesimanje ngaphandle kwemibono ye-Afro-communitarian. Isimo sencike ekuqakuleni ukuthi inzululwazi yobu-Afrika yesimanje itheleleka yizimfundiso ezahlukene, kwenye inkathi ezingahambisani nemibono ye-Afro-communitarianism. Ngenkathi kuqhubeka ukungqubuzana phakathi komuntu nomphakathi, ucwaningo luqakula ukuthi kufanele kuqashelwe ukuhlaziywa komphakathi ngokukhomba izinhlobo ezahlukene zomphakhathi eziqukethe imibono eyahlukene yokobuntu kwe-Afro-communitarian. Ngikhombisa ukuthi umbono wokujivazeka ungena kanjani embonweni womphakathi, wesiko nasekwakhekeni ukwazisa okokomuntu. Umbuzo ongokujivazeka uyeqiwa ekwakheni okwahlukahlukene kokomuntu. Ukwenzela ukuthi i- Afro-communitarianism yeseke imibono yezombusazwe yase-Afrika yesimanje, umongo wayo womphakathi kufanele ungajivazi. Ukuzuza umphakathi ongajivazi kufaka ukubuyekezwa kwezinjwayezi zomphakathi nangokwesiko. Ngizama lokhu kubuyekeza ngalokho engikubiza ngokuthi yimfundiso yokuvumeleka ngokwesiko. Ucwaningo luphetha ngokuthi ezombusazwe zasemva kobukoloni zingazuza ngokwe-Afro-communitarianism egxile ekulangazeleleni emphakathini ongajivazi futhi owamukela imibono eyahlukene yokomuntu.
Identity reconstruction of black african learners in a muslim primary school.
(2022) Makhanya, Euphemia Nonhlanhla.; Mkhize-Mthiyane, Ncamisile Parscaline.
The overarching objective of this study is to explore and understand how Black African Learners (BAL) reconstruct their identity and how this influences their lives. Learner identity ‘reconstruction’ is still under-researched, especially in Muslim schools. This is supported in literature, where it is highlighted that regarding learner identity studies, the becoming and changing process is either neglected or not ascribed much significance (Lundgren & Scheckle, 2019, Kerr, Dean & Crowe, 2019). The rationale for conducting this study is mainly rooted in my personal experiences and observations as a teaching practice assessor, an employee in one of the higher education institutions in KwaZulu-Natal, Durban. The framework that underpinned this study was Social Identity Theory (SIT) by Henri Tajfel (1974). This theory assisted me in exposing what learners think and how they interpret their educational experiences, which include what they see and how they feel about multiple realities in their school, across, within, and between cross-cultural and post-disciplinary boundaries, as proposed by Wilber (2005) and Marquis (2007). An interpretivist paradigm and qualitative case study was adopted. One Muslim Primary School (MPS) and five learner participants were purposely selected. Data was generated utilising written narratives, semi-structured one-on-one interviews, and focus groups discussions where these were transcribed and thematically analysed. The findings of the study revealed that identity reconstruction of BAL in MPS represent a lever that can perpetuate or decrease inequality; depending on how it is philosophically interpreted. Immigration was viewed as one of the precursors for identity reconstruction sparked by immigration of BAL families from other parts of the continent into South Africa. Furthermore, BAL encounter a wide range of experiences that incorporate more painful, positive, and even contradictory, perceptions about self. The study concludes that identity reconstruction in an MPS ought not to be framed by foreign conceptions, but should rather be anchored in local, indigenous knowledge systems and practices. Instead, BAL should build up their Black African dignity and reclaim African-Muslimcentric identity; something to look forward to as democracy matures in South Africa, as BAL individually and uniquely reconstruct their identity.

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