Violence and Memory: One Hundred Years in the Dark Forests of Matabeleland, Zimbabwe (Social History of Africa) [Paperback]

Jocelyn Alexander (Author), JoAnn McGregor (Author), Terence Ranger (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 085255642X | ISBN-13: 978-0852556429 | Publication Date: July 20, 2000

Violence has powerfully shaped the history of Matabeleland from the 1890s to the 1980s, and silence has surrounded the history of this region of Zimbabwe, excluding it from national memory. This text aims to break the silence and redress the imbalance of Zimbabwe's national history. North America: Heinemann; Zimbabwe: Weaver

Editorial Reviews

Review

Anyone who wants to understand Zimbabwe's current path to authoritarian rule would do well to begin with this richly-layered and thought-provoking study. - Shula Marks in THE ENGLISH HISTORICAL REVIEW ... a powerful indictment of the present through a longer historical lens. - David Simon in LUCAS Bulletin ... should be compulsory reading for anybody wishing to begin or end an insurgency war. - Jan-Bart Gewald in AFRICAN STUDIES REVIEW ... an incisive, captivating, lucid and in-depth investigation of the relationships between anti-colonial resistance, nationalism, ethnicity and religion... This is a people's book - one that not only the people of Nkayi and Lupane will identify proudly with, but indeed all the people of Zimbabwe and the continent at large. It is a publication that should grace the bookshelves of discerning scholars of Africa and her history. - Pathisa Nyathi in AFRICAN AFFAIRS This is a complex and fascinating book...revisionist history in the best sense of the term - challenging the orthodox view of an established historiography by bringing to light new data and subjecting it to fresh interpretation...the best account yet available of Zimbabwe's dreadful violence in the 1980s, and should be essential reading for all those interested in understanding the nature of the post-colony in Africa...In understanding violence, detail and context matter; and while social scientists may be frustrated that the authors of Violence and Memory have largely ignored social theories of violence, they will surely welcome the emphasis upon events and their gestation. This is an important book that should be widely read. - David M. Anderson in JOURNAL OF MODERN AFRICAN STUDIES

About the Author

JoAnn McGregor is a Research Fellow in the Department of Geography at Reading University.

Jocelyn Alexander is Lecturer in History at Bristol University.

Terence Ranger is Emeritus Rhodes Professor of Race Relations, University of Oxford and Visiting Professor of History at the University of Zimbabwe. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Product Details

• Paperback: 320 pages
• Publisher: James Currey (July 20, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 085255642X
• ISBN-13: 978-0852556429
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 5.8 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #7,706,637 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)