Whiteness Just Isn't What Is Used to Be: White Identity in a Changing South Africa (Suny Series, Interruptions -- Border Testimony(ies) and Crit) [Paperback]

Melissa E. Steyn (Author)

Book Description

Series: Suny Series, Interruptions -- Border Testimony(ies) and Crit | Publication Date: September 2001

Narratively explores how the changes in South Africa's social and political structure are changing the identity and sense of its white population.

Editorial Reviews

From the Back Cover

The election of 1994, which heralded the demise of Apartheid as a legally enforced institutionalization of "whiteness," disconnected the prior moorings of social identity for most South Africans, whatever their political persuasion. In one of the most profound collective psychological experiences of the contemporary world, South Africans are renegotiating the meaning of their social positionalities. In this book, Melissa Steyn, herself a white South African, grapples with what it means to be white, reflecting on events in her past that still resonate with her today. Her research includes discourse with more than fifty white South Africans who are faced with reinterpreting their old selves in the light of new knowledge and possibilities. Framed within current debates of postcolonialism and postmodernism, "Whiteness Just Isn't What It Used To Be" explores how the changes in South Africa's social and political structure are changing the white population's identity and sense of self.

About the Author

Melissa Steyn is Director of the Professional Communication Unit at the University of Cape Town and the coeditor of Cultural Synergy in South Africa: Weaving Strands of Africa and Europe.

Product Details

• Paperback: 228 pages
• Publisher: State University of New York Press (September 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0791450805
• ISBN-13: 978-0791450802
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #843,418 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars NOW what is whiteness?, January 23, 2002

By 

Elizabeth "melaniesteyn" (Stellenbosch, Western Cape South Africa) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Whiteness Just Isn't What Is Used to Be: White Identity in a Changing South Africa (Suny Series, Interruptions -- Border Testimony(ies) and Crit) (Paperback)

When change finally came to South Africa, it came fast. Whites are the focus of this fascinating study, because whether they fought for or against that change, whites find the carpet pulled out from under their old identities. Just like their black compatriots, they are redefining themselves. Melissa Steyn conveys much about the dynamics of personal and social change and describes some of the currents flowing in the new South Africa. The book is searching and objective, in keeping with its academic status, but it is accessible, with touches of humour.