Literature on the Apartheid
In studying the different text from different authors, we can have a much wider perspective on their views and opinions on the implementation of Apartheid. From the different texts, we can also feel what people are going through as they are written from different perspectives. In Alan Paton’s novel, Cry, the Beloved Country although it makes certain inferences on the superiority of whites over the black, it does not give a direct insight on the implementation of Apartheid as it focuses more on relationship matters. However, it does give a good description of the feelings and experiences of the native African protagonist during the time of the Apartheid. As Paton is a white African in the time of Apartheid the reliability of his novel is queried. But firstly this novel was based on a true story and it is thus difficult to distort the facts. Secondly, he wrote openly about Apartheid in most of his works, resulting in numerous police investigations over fifteen years.
This is in comparison to what is demonstrated in figures. Leonard Monteath Thompson’s book A History of South Africa focuses very much on the happenings and history of South Africa and is more direct in discussing topics such as Apartheid. Thus this book is a valuable resource in my research and is also very useful. However, Thompson himself is a white man and how reliable can a white man’s opinions be on a system that is biased towards him? In all, all three sources are certainly useful to my research in the implementation of the Apartheid and will be used in the preparation of the research paper.
Existing Material on Apartheid
In the implementation of the Apartheid, much propaganda was also used in the process. Therefore my research will cover a little on the propaganda involved in the implementation. Thus, my research brings me to the result that computers were actually used to support the oppression. More than any other single technological advancement; the computer fostered the concentration of administrative power in the hands of Africa's white elite (NARMIC 1982). Nonetheless, the discussion of media technologies will occupy only a small part of my research.
Much of my research will be focused on the effects of the implementation of Apartheid by the whites and blacks (coloured) in South Africa. The novel Cry, the Beloved Country is one good example in demonstrating the real feelings and the social awkwardness of being a black and it also shows how the whites felt towards the blacks at that time. Therefore it will be essential in my research on the effect of the implementation of Apartheid on the blacks and partially on the whites. Thus this novel will be used in my research.
To find out many more facts behind the reason of the implementation, the book, A History of South Africa by Leonard M. Thompson will be used. As this book is not focused on a storyline whereas, it is based more on facts. [How were these facts obtained? Are they reliable and valid?] It also provides a well-written and scholarly survey on this topic. This book is reliable and thus will be utilized in my research.
Another source about the Apartheid can be found on the internet by a group of students from Stanford University. Although their topic is ‘Computers and the Apartheid Regime in South Africa’ but they still cover a substantial amount of information on the history of Apartheid therefore only a small part of their work will be used.
Conclusion
The aim of this research is to investigate the reasons for the implementation of Apartheid and to find out the effects of the implementation on the whites and the blacks in South Africa. In the process of investigating the sources, I discovered that some sources were rather one-sided. I also realised that some of the present work, especially the websites, have rather incomplete information on Apartheid, thus allowing my work to further expand on. Apartheid is a discrimination system in which whites are legalised to discriminate against the blacks therefore it is important to study this system to prevent it from appearing around the globe.
Bibliography
Paton, Alan. (1991) Cry, the Beloved Country. Longman Group: Longman Literature Series
Chokshi, M etc. Computers and the Apartheid Regime in South Africa. www-cs-students.stanford.edu/~cale/cs201/apartheid.hist.html. Date Retrieved: 13th April 2004
Thompson, Leonard M. (2001) A History of South Africa. Yale University Press; 3rd Edition
Unknown. Brief History of South Africa. http://www.southafrica-travel.net/history/eh_menu.htm. Date Retrieved: 14th April 2004
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