"Concrete fragments": An interview with Henrietta Rose-Innes. (March 2020)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Riach, Graham K.
• Other Names: Soldati-Kahimbaara Khulukazi guest-editor.; Fasselt Rebecca guest-editor.; Sandwith Corinne guest-editor.
• Is Part Of: Journal of Commonwealth literature. Volume 55:Number 1(2020)
• Page Start: 111
• Page End: 120
• Publication Date: 2020-03
• Subjects: gender -- Gothic -- Henrietta Rose-Innes -- Ivan Vladislavić -- J. M. Coetzee -- place -- politics -- short story -- South Africa -- space -- white writing; English literature -- Periodicals; Commonwealth literature (English) -- Periodicals; Littérature anglaise -- Périodiques; 820.05
• DOI: 10.1177/0021989418777021
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0021-9894

Abstract

South Africa has a long and rich tradition of short story writing, stretching from the early oral-style tale (MacKenzie, 1999), through the writing of the "fabulous fifties" (Driver, 2012; R. Gaylard, 2008), to the most recent post-apartheid texts. In this interview, Henrietta Rose-Innes describes her practice as a short story writer, noting how it differs from that of writing novels or poetry. For Rose-Innes, the short story offers a way to capture her view of the world; that is, in sudden, intense moments, rather than in wholly narrative terms. Combining a number of short stories into a collection, Rose-Innes suggests, can offer some perspective on the plurality of contemporary South African life. Over the course of the interview, she discusses her exploration of conventional gender categories, her unconscious use of Gothic tropes, and the possibilities for political writing in contemporary South Africa. Throughout, there is a concern for how her works negotiate questions of space and place, particularly in the context of South African writing.