André Brink

André Brink

André Brink in Lyon, France, June 2007
Born 29 May 1935 (1935-05-29) (age 76)
Vrede
Occupation Writer
Nationality South African
Notable work(s) A Dry White Season
An Act of Terror
The Other Side of Silence

André Philippus Brink, OIS, (born 29 May 1935 in Vrede) is a South African novelist. He writes in Afrikaans and English and is a Professor of English at the University of Cape Town.

In the 1960s he, Ingrid Jonker and Breyten Breytenbach were key figures in the Afrikaans literary movement known as Die Sestigers ("The Sixty-ers"). These writers sought to use Afrikaans as a language to speak against the apartheid government, and also to bring into Afrikaans literature the influence of contemporary English and French trends.

His novel Kennis van die aand ("Knowledge of the night") (1973) was the first Afrikaans book to be banned by the South African government.[1] André Brink translated Kennis van die aand into English and published it abroad as Looking on Darkness. This was his first self-translation.[2] Since then André Brink writes his works simultaneously in English and Afrikaans.[3]

While Brink's early novels were especially concerned with apartheid, his more recent work engages the new range issues posed by life in a democratic South Africa.

Brink's son, Anton Brink, is an artist.[4]

Contents

Works

For a more comprehensive publication list, see the Afrikaans article on André P Brink.

Novels

Memoirs

Notes

  1. ^ Brink, André. "A Long Way from Mandela's Kitchen," New York Times. September 12, 2010.
  2. ^ Brink, André (2003): "English and the Afrikaans Writer" in: Steven G. Kellman Switching languages. Translingual writers reflect on their craft. University of Nebraska Press, p. 218.
  3. ^ "A Chain of Voices (review)". http://bluerectangle.com/book_reviews/view_one_review/2529. Retrieved 2010-06-14. 
  4. ^ "anton brink". South Africian Artists. http://www.southafricanartists.com/showartist.asp?Code=BRINK001. Retrieved 2008-06-27. 

External links