Antjie Krog and the Post-Apartheid Public Sphere: Speaking Poetry to Power

Anthea Garman. 2015. Antjie Krog and the Post-Apartheid Public Sphere: Speaking Poetry to Power. Pietermaritzburg: University of KwaZulu-Natal Press. 224 pp.

In the early years of South African democracy the African National Congress (ANC) understood the importance of a vibrant and inclusive public sphere where the diverse opinions of the people could be heard. At the present there is much socio-political unrest and the function of the public sphere is keenly felt. Anthea Garman's timely monograph, developing from her interest in media and citizenship, examines the construction of the South African post-apartheid public sphere through a prominent intellectual-Antjie Krog.

An associate professor in the school of Journalism and Media Studies at Rhodes University, Garman argues convincingly that the genesis and trajectory of Krog's career as poet, political activist, journalist, translator, and writer provides insight into how the public sphere in South Africa is constructed and contested. Garman uses Krog as a "proxy or 'trope'" (p. xiv) for someone who embodies the potential of democracy and the promise of the public sphere. This focalization inhibits the critical analysis of the public sphere. However, the...