But it is time we consider the case of the third type, the man who would care i. And this despite the fact that several of Du Toit's main helpers were Dutch. It is good to realize how deeply the feelings were aroused by the burning of the farms and the enormously excessive number of minors in the concentration camps.
Such things are by-products and do not touch the heart of the matter. However, in fairness, it must be seen in the light of that period and the colonial politics of that time. Moreover, the development of the African language has made a tremendous contribution to the purity of the language.
Afrikaans developed from Dutch a medium that was more suited to the specific needs of the country. In the same way, Latin, the universal language of the Middle Ages, was supplanted in the Renaissance hy ]angnages, as e.g. Post-war poets were also deeply moved to perceive the deeper meaning of literary form.
It finds its finest and most beautiful expression in the work of Totius, the priest's pen name. The inspirational quality of his verse makes him one of the most popular African poets. The counterpart of this theme, the struggle between predators, is found in the work of the Hobson brothers.
New Forms in Afrikaans Poetry*
It was no easy task.' Not only was the genius of the two languages different, Greek having a musical and Latin a stress accent, but some of the most common Latin words refused to fit into the hexa-. But note, Virgil's hexameter is Roman in character: his use of the strong caesura and the spondee reflects Roman gravitas and distinguishes him from Homer. The question arises: can the hexameter be made at home in the speech of the African peasant, as it was in the speech of the Roman peasant.
No one who knows the artistic variation of Virgil's hexameter, the effect of quantity, the coincidence or collision of prose and verse accent, the variation of dactyls and spondees, and the caesura, will not imagine in the modern language, where quantity is largely at the mercy of accent, which is more than an approximation of the complexity of classical beauty. Although we can only imitate the drop of verse stress and the rhythmic pause known as the major caesura, there is certainly something to be said for exploiting such rhythms as Hawtrey's. Does he do this because English has comparatively few natural dactyls 1 Or because he believes in attempting spondeic effects 1 I say attempted because true spondees are rare in English: bee/-steak is said to be one of the few.
I suggest that here you find the Homeric character more clearly - the weak caesura, the predominance of dactylic feet and the avoidance of the weak syllable at the beginning of the line. FROM AFRICAN 73 Let us look at the Latin hexameter, which is generally characterized by the heavier effect of the strong caesura. Let's compare the famous hexameter translation of the Aeneid by the Dutchman Terwen with what is possible in Afrikaans.
If we compare these versions with the original, we find that, as usual, the Latin is better, having more open syllables (for sonority or lightness depending on whether they are long or short) and fewer consonants - which contributes to a smooth line. But when comparing the Dutch and Afrikaans versions, we find that Dutch tends to be more difficult. This in itself is not a definitive test, as the quality and quantity of consonants play a role.
Scliolars in Holland expressed their approval of the suitability of Afrikaans to render the hexameter.:;:' Thus writes Fuldauer in De Nieuwe Rotterdamsche Courant: "Place other translations of Homer beside this copy. The Classical Review (Feb. 1933) a journal which tends to be both conservative and serious in its pronouncements, quoted with approval my Afrikaans hexam('representing the A 1•ncid. The whole question requires further investigation, and these examples, based on my total impression, is incomplete, but I think Afrikaners can fairly claim a place for themselves among those languages which attempt to convert the glory of the ancient hexameter into modern phrase.
As to the suitability of Afrikaans vocabulary for translation, I may remind you that Rouse (Introduction to Arnold's On Translating Homer) regards one as the ideal translator of Homer who can "refine the sharp colloquialism of the English peasant." And we can find in Afrikaans the freshness and directness necessary for Homeric translation. But we have crossed a boundless breadth of the plain, and it is time to loosen the smoking necks of the horses.
The Difficulties of a Johannesburger
Partly because of our local actions and responses, we find that Afrikaans is recognized by people in Britain while it is ignored or despised here. When Sir Thomas Holland, the distinguished head of the University of Edinburgh, visited South Africa in 1929 as president of the British Association, several people dissuaded him from learning Afrikaans, saying it was not worthwhile. 01" AFRIKAANS 89 emphasized dilatiug 011 the freshness, immediacy and literary possibilities of the language.* Although Sir Thomas later learned that an English translation had already appeared (under the title The Adventures of a Lion Family), he was perfectly satisfied with the interest which he had because of work.
In general, what is needed is not so much good will, but 'imagination and knowledge'. And how delighted we were at the description of our characteristic colors and birds and beasts. It is typical of a time when an older and more complex culture clashes with a powerful younger brother.
The Afrikaner, too, must realize that it is sometimes more a matter of manners than of feeling that makes the Englishman appear contemptuous. When all is said, however, the attitude persists in some quarters, and it is important that it should go, for its opposite is aggressiveness in Afrikaans: an aggressiveness which has sometimes produced a feeling of stern grievance in our English fellow-citizens. Beneath the rugged exterior of the country Boer, lies a nature surprisingly sensitive and conscious of a personal dignity; a people who never forget a good deed and do not easily forget an evil one."
De Boer feels deeply; and one of the things he thinks about most deeply right now is his use of language. We hear much about the traditional and illiberal attitude of the Afrikaner towards the Native, and this matter cannot be discussed here; but there is one point that should be kept in mind. Those of us who are Afrikaners by race, but who have come to appreciate the cultural gifts of England, are concerned that the Afrikaners of the present generation should not miss out on that experience.
But we remember that in many ways we are still suffering from the swing of the pendulum, and take heart from an ancient story. Both in surroundings and in character they were not unlike the Boers of the early 19th century - points of resemblance have been noted at various times from. But the race is for thinking men, liberals, as was the case with the Fathers of the Church in their fear of heathen books.
A Short Bibliography of Afrikaans for English Readers
GEDENirnOEK VAN DIE GENOOTSKAP VAN REGTE AFRIKANERS, 1925 (contains a complete list of works in Afrikaans up to 1925). On the Literature of South Africa (in the forthcoming volume Cambridge History of the British Empire). Kritzinger giv.e;; a collection of photographs of African writers and facsimiles of rare documents with explanations.
