Sol Plaatje: Selected Writings

Sol Plaatje is one of South Africa’s most important political and literary figures. A pioneer in the history of the black press, he was one of the founders of the African National Congress, a leading spokesman for black opinion throughout his life, and the author of three well-known books: Mafikeng Diary, Native Life in South Africa, and his historical novel, Mhudi. These books are not Plaatje’s only claim to fame. In the course of a prolific career he wrote letters to the press, newspaper articles and editorials, pamphlets, political speeches, evidence to government commissions of enquiry, unpublished autobiographical writings, and many personal letters. Together they provide both an engaging personal record and a very readable – and revealing – commentary on South African social and political affairs during the era of segregation, from 1899 through to Plaatje’s tragically early death in 1932. What he wrote has a unique historical importance, all the more meaningful from the perspective of a democratic South Africa. Brian Willan has assembled and edited this fascinating collection from a variety of disparate and often obscure sources, making a comprehensive selection of Plaatje’s writings available to a wider audience.

Brian Willan is an honorary research fellow at Rhodes University. A former publisher, he has had a longstanding interest in Sol Plaatje, having edited and introduced the Ravan Press edition of Native Life in South Africa in 1982. This was followed by a biography of Plaatje (1984) and a collection of his writings (1997).