Robben Island and Prisoner Resistance to Apartheid [Paperback]

Fran Lisa Buntman (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0521007828 | ISBN-13: 978-0521007825 | Publication Date: October 27, 2003

Robben Island prison in South Africa held thousands of black political prisoners, including Nelson Mandela, who opposed apartheid. This study reconstructs the inmates' resistance strategies to demonstrate how they created a political and social order behind bars. Although survival was their primary goal, challenging apartheid was their ultimate objective. Robben Island was continually transformed by its political inmates into a site of resistance, despite being designed to repress.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"[T]his book is much more substantial than any previous treatment of Robben Island as a place of incarceration of political prisoners. It is also unique in its simultaneous treatment of the prison as a place of punishment, of intended demoralization and isolation from the world, and also of the counter efforts of the prisoners. [T]he book remains a landmark contribution and deserves very serious study by all interested not only in Robben Island and penology, but the evolution of the struggle against apartheid in general." Raymond Suttner, University of South Africa, Pretoria, H-Net

"The acid test of the quality of any book is that it stumulates the reader to think hard about the arguments made and to ask additional questions about the issues raised. There is no doubt that Buntman succeeds mightily in this score. This is a superb book, both substantively and methodologically, and it deserves a readership far beyond those with a substantitive interest in South Africa." The Law and Politics Book Review

"...Buntman has written an important book. She has opened Robben Island, illustrated how the prisoners there were able to survive as long as they did, and shown how, despite their incarceration, they played an important role in the creation of the new South Africa." International Third World Studies Journal and Review, David T. Jervis

"Robben Island and Prisoner Resistance to Apartheid is an important book not only for its theoretical and substantive insights, but also because it preserves and contextualizes the stories of so many Robben Island "graduates" and those who were involved in the prison system on the other side of the bars." African Studies Review

"...fascinating and highly original..." Foreign Affairs

Book Description

Robben Island prison in South Africa held thousands of black political prisoners, including Nelson Mandela, who opposed apartheid. This book reconstructs the inmates' resistance strategies to show how these men created a political and social order behind bars. Survival was their first goal; challenging apartheid was their true aim. So although Robben Island was designed to repress, it was continually transformed by its political inmates into a site of resistance.

Product Details

• Paperback: 358 pages
• Publisher: Cambridge University Press (October 27, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0521007828
• ISBN-13: 978-0521007825
• Product Dimensions: 8.8 x 5.9 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #508,179 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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