Reconciliation Discourse: The case of the Truth and Reconciliation CommissionThis volume is a research monograph analysing the South African Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) from an ethnographic/linguistic point of view. The central proposition of this book is that the TRC can be regarded as a mechanism that leads to the hegemony of specific discourses, thus excercising power. The analysis illustrates how, through a certain type of reconciliation discourse constructed at the TRC hearings, a reconciliation-oriented reality took shape in post-TRC South Africa. Basically, the study points to the long-term implications a truth commission can exert on a traumatised post-conflict society. The book is unique on several levels: TRC discourse is explored in-depth on the basis of personal stories from TRC testifiers; a combination of Poststructuralist and Critical Discourse Analysis approaches form the theoretical foundations; and an extensive bibliography provides an impressive database of TRC publications. |
From inside the book
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Page 13
... stories had to be representative for the experiences of many people in the region; they had to be able to resist the pressure and stress such a public hearing would involve; and they had to be able to express their ideas in a ...
... stories had to be representative for the experiences of many people in the region; they had to be able to resist the pressure and stress such a public hearing would involve; and they had to be able to express their ideas in a ...
Page 17
... stories, victims realised that their suffering had not been a private matter, but that it had been part of a social experience in which millions of people played a role. In this way it became easier for them to deal with the past trauma ...
... stories, victims realised that their suffering had not been a private matter, but that it had been part of a social experience in which millions of people played a role. In this way it became easier for them to deal with the past trauma ...
Page 20
... stories before the TRC, but that the vast majority of South Africans had not come forward. The response of high-ranking officials was especially disappointing, and the testimonies ofthose who did come forward had often been unbelievable ...
... stories before the TRC, but that the vast majority of South Africans had not come forward. The response of high-ranking officials was especially disappointing, and the testimonies ofthose who did come forward had often been unbelievable ...
Page 21
... stories in public. Considering the victim-orientedness ofthe HRV hearings, special attention was paid to ensuring that the victims would feel at ease when testifying. Therefore, the victims were allowed to tell their stories in the ...
... stories in public. Considering the victim-orientedness ofthe HRV hearings, special attention was paid to ensuring that the victims would feel at ease when testifying. Therefore, the victims were allowed to tell their stories in the ...
Page 23
... stories for many days in a row and especially to identify with the victims was very demanding emotionally. This emotional component made interpreting at the HRV hearings very difficult. Although the debriefing service offered to the ...
... stories for many days in a row and especially to identify with the victims was very demanding emotionally. This emotional component made interpreting at the HRV hearings very difficult. Although the debriefing service offered to the ...
Contents
1 | |
7 | |
31 | |
4 The sample | 43 |
5 Layering and HRV discour | 53 |
6 Reconciliation discourse truth and society | 141 |
62 A multilayered reconciliation discourse in South African reality | 155 |
7 Exercising power through discourse | 167 |
8 Towards a conclusion | 185 |
References | 193 |
Index | 229 |
The series Discourse Approaches to Politics Society and Culture | 239 |
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Common terms and phrases
a-typical African National Congress Afrikaans Alex Boraine amnesty apartheid past apartheid victims archons audience Bambiso Beck Blommaert Boraine Buthelezi Cape Town code switching concept conflict constructed Critical Discourse Analysis David Philip Publishers defined definitely diflerent Discourse Analysis emotional explicitly expressed final find findings first forgiveness Foucault groups historical HRV Committee HRV discourse HRV hearings Human Rights Violations ideal testifiers identified identity ideology influence institution interpretation Iohannesburg language layering liberation movement linguistic Mandela MANTHATA master narrative national unity Nelson Mandela officials ofthe TRC perpetrators police political Reconciliation Commission reconciliation discourse reconciliation in South reconciliation-oriented Reflections reparations SABC Siko social South Africa South African society specific statements stories stress struggle talk term reconciliation testifying victims testimony tion tortured traumatic TRC Act TRC archive TRC process TRC Report 1998 TRC’s Truth and Reconciliation Truth Commission Tutu ubuntu University Press Villa-Vicencio Whitfield