Sol Plaatje : an intellectual giant in the 20th century history of black South Africa

International audienceA talended intellectual and a erudite, Sol Plaatje employed his literary skills to write essays, pamphlets and academic literature, which align his thought with a certain form of militancy. The aim of this chapter is to explore the foundational role of Sol Plaatje played in bolstering the campaign on behalf of the black populations of South Africa. All his life, he sought to promote Tswana language and culture in numerous works. To that extent, it would be exaggeration to regard him as the founder of the "black press". The chapter is organized as follows : the second section suveys a range of historical events in South Africa which exerted a lasting influence on sol Plaatje's thought. The third section reveals the emancipatory influence of Sol Plaatje's tought, throug his involvement in the struggle against inegalities face by blacks