INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON THE HUMANITIES IN SOUTHERN AFRICA

Theme: LANGUAGE, THE CREATIVE ARTS AND THE MEDIA

The English Academy of Southern Africa mounts a conference every three years. In the light of the successful collaboration among five like-minded associations in Cape Town in 2005, it was decided that we should repeat the experience in 2008. The same five plus an additional one participated. The English Academy, the South African Writers Association (SAWA), the Association of University Teachers of English (AUETSA), the South African Association for Commonwealth Language and Literature Studies (SAACLALS); Die Suid Afrikaanse Vereninging vir Algemene Literatuur Wetenskappe (SAVAL) and Die Suid-Afrikaanse Akademie vir Wetenskap en Kuns all joined forces at this international conference.

The Unisa School of Arts, Education, Languages and Communication hosted the conference, and Professor Zodwa Motsa (HOD, Department of English Studies, Unisa) and Professor Rosemary Gray (Professor Emerita, University of Pretoria) were appointed as conveners.

The conference aimed to establish a forum for serious debate and exchange on and across the triangular thematic framework. On a broad socio-political and cultural level, language, the creative arts and the media are linked in important ways to communal, national and geopolitical identities, both within South Africa and throughout the world. Understanding the complex, rapidly evolving ways in which such identities are constructed and function poses an exciting and exacting challenge.

Attendance and format

The venue was the University of Pretoria Conference Centre.

The conference was opened by the Deputy Minister of Education (Mr Surty) standing in for Minister Naledi Pandor, the Advisor to the Vice Chancellor at the University of Pretoria (Professor Anthony Melk) and the Vice Chancellor and Principal of Unisa (Professor Barney Pityana). There were seven plenary lectures by scholars from Ethiopia, London, Oxford, New York, Johannesburg, KwaZulu-Natal and Cape Town.

Two Academy awards were made during the opening ceremony: the Thomas Pringle award for best educational article to Dr Ambrose Chimganda from Botswana and the Gold Medal for distinguished service to English over a lifetime to Professor Rosemary Gray.

132 participants from 19 countries around the world attended. Entertainment included the Gaabo Motto Tenors, Drum Zone Africa and Writers in Action; and Rave caterers again excelled themselves with meals fit for kings and queens.

Conference review

Electronic and telephonic feedback has been both widespread and extremely positive – the Namibian and Swaziland contingents being the most appreciative of this opportunity to participate in cutting-edge academic debate and to grow intellectually. Those sessions discussing language issues appear to have been both best attended and most vibrant. One local scholar reported enthusiastically on the 24 sessions she had managed to attend.

What was disappointing was that a number of delegates were not able to attend owing largely to visa or health problems, while some delegates simply did not turn up.

Although little funding was forthcoming, which caused grave concern to the finance committee, we managed to break even, thanks to support in kind from the University of Pretoria and to seed funding provided by the Academy from the 2005 conference.

Without the assistance of Professors Titlestad, Raftery and Jenkins and Dr Basel and Canna Gray before and during the conference, the conference could not have been the success it was.

Publication of papers

Two issues each of the English Academy Review and the Journal for Literary Studies have been set aside for the publication of peer-reviewed, revised articles emerging from the conference. Professor Margaret Raftery will guest edit EAR 26(2) 2009 and Professors Rosemary Gray and Zodwa Motsa EAR 27(1) 2010. Professor Gray has also been asked to guest edit the two issues of JLS.

Past Conferences

Every three years the English Academy has held a conference. These are the conferences we have held up to now:

• The Need for an English Academy in Southern Africa (inaugural conference); Johannesburg 1961
• English as Communication; Johannesburg 1966
• South African Writing in English and its Place in School and University; Grahamstown 1969
• Teaching English in African Schools; Roma (Lesotho) 1973
• Teaching English in Afrikaans Schools, Colleges and Universities; Pretoria 1975
• The Teaching of English as First Language in Schools; Pietermaritzburg 1977
• English in a Multilingual Society: Planning for the Future; Johannesburg 1979
• English for Everyman; Grahamstown 1980
• English Language and Literature in South African Society, 1961 to 1986; Johannesburg 1986
• English at Tertiary Level; Pretoria 1989
• Access to English; Cape Town 1992
• English in Africa; Grahamstown 1995
• English at the Turn of the Millennium; Johannesburg 1998
• Mother Tongue, Other Tongue: Law, Learning and Literature; Pretoria 2002.
• Africa in Literature; Cape Town, 2005
• Language, the Creative Arts and the Media; Pretoria, 2008