Die funksie van die figuur in die gedig soos dit voorkom in die Afrikaanse poësie
Abstract
This study addresses the neglect of figure (character) as a conceptual element in poetry. This neglect is conspicuous in the literature on this subject which gives very little or no attention to it - whereas character is very much in question when the discourse is on prose or drama. An investigation into the function of figures in poetry is justifiable and of primary importance. These figures show more possibilities and a wider applicability in poetry than in the other genres. This dissertation explicitly indicates that all phenomena, even those which are regarded as dead matter, can function as a figure in a poem. A person, an object (trivial as it may be) or an animal can determine or undergo the action in a poem. It can either be an active or a passive figure. These figures represent a rich diversity with many different functions. Among others examples of Afrikaans poems in which all three types perform jointly have been discussed. This study has revealed that the conceptualization of these figures can be quite simplistic, superficial and even static. On the other hand they can be conceived very complexly an profoundly. It has been illustrated that the conceptualization of a figure in an Afrikaans poem reveals its versatility as well as the mutations this figure can undergo. Focusing on the figure(s) in the poetry of a specific era discloses the very nature and value of poetry in that period . It gives the researcher access to the evolutionary progress of Afrikaans poetry. The socio-political and socio-economical circumstances of a period determine to a great extent the figures that would be activated/created in that period. A change in these circumstances introduces new figures and also results in the mutation of known figures. It was thus necessary to distinguish broad periods in the development of Afrikaans poetry. In doing so it was possible to investigate figures who recurred in different periods , others who disappeared as well as new figures who were introduced and some who underwent mutation. A study like this is ultimately closely linked to perspective. It reveals the
perspective from which a figure is being looked at as well as the way in which the figure itself looks upon the surroundings. The examples used illustrate how limited and unilateral this perspective can be, but also how wide in vision it can be. It can even transcend the limits of time and location and establish a cyclic figure. This study proceeded from the assumption that figure in a poem is a primus inter pares concept which cannot be isolated. Therefore it was studied in coherence with the other conceptual as well as linguistic elements. As a result of the volume of Afrikaans poems, examples were selected to be representative and to reveal the main tendencies . Examples were mainly taken from the work of some of the major poets , adding examples by others where applicable to emphasize a tendency or indicate the various possibilities. To indicate the mutation that a known figure underwent during several periods, the primary text had to be compared with a later version thereof or a few poems containing a common character had to be compared. This revealed a variety of functions. The ways in which we get to know these figures in more recent poems are far more intricate than the direct information given about them in the poetry of the early stages. If this study has enhanced the importance of the figure(s) in a poem, has illustrated the integrated function of a figure in Afrikaans poetry and has revealed the awesome intricacy through which some major figures came into being , the goal will have been reached.
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