South Africa from Text to Film: ‘Cry Freedom’ and ‘A Dry White Season’

Selected Papers from the 15th Florida State University Conference on Literature and Fil

Review of The State and the Global Ecological Crisis

Review of: Barry, John and Robyn Eckersley. The State and the Global Ecological Crisis. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press, 2005. 307 pp. ISBN: 0-262-52435-X. US$27.00 (softbound)

Representing South Africa: Apartheid from Print to Film

The article presents information on apartheid in South African motion pictures. Cry Freedom, A World Apart, A Dry White Season -- three major films on South Africa released within two years of each other -- share two striking facts. In each a black man is arrested, detained, tortured, and killed by South African police; and in each the focus is on apartheid\u27s impact on its central white character. The three films under discussion doubly refine South Africa, as they are based on texts that span the range of print media: Donald Woods\u27 autobiographical, journalistic, book Biko, Shawn Slovo\u27s semi-autobiographical screenplay, A World Apart, and André Brink\u27s straightforward fictional novel, A Dry White Season. Each author writes from memories of living in South Africa, drawing upon the authority of having been there, having felt apartheid at work. The texts on which the films are based have clear, direct motivations: Woods wrote Biko in horrified revulsion against his sudden understanding of apartheid\u27s brutality; Shawn Slovo wrote the screenplay of A World Apart in response to her mother\u27s murder. Only Brink\u27s novel has the aesthetic distance of a traditional fictional work, and indeed it does veer sharply away from issues of apartheid, happily miring itself in a sexual subplot

Review: Intelligent Courage: Natural Resource Careers That Make a Difference

Review: Intelligent Courage: Natural Resource Careers that Make a Difference By Michael E. Fraidenburg Reviewed by Victoria Carchidi Washington, DC, US

Development and Women’s Writings from Southern and Northern Africa

Women have historically provided vision and leadership to African countries and are now being recognized as pivotal to the overall sustainable development of Africa. In many cases, however, this recognition has not resulted in the empowerment of African women, who still face great discrimination. This edited volume explores the contributions women have made to all phases of development—planning, design, construction, implementation, and operation—and the obstacles they have had to face. Besides analyzing the current situation and identifying trends, the contributors also make recommendations for policy reform and for future planning

Review: MetroGreen

Review: MetroGreen: Connecting Open Space in North American Cities By Donna Erickson Reviewed by Victoria Carchidi Washington, DC, US