Postures of Protest: The reinterpretation of FAK folk songs as expressions of (a new) nationalism and nostalgia

Abstract

In post-apartheid South Africa, as part of deep-rooted socio-political and cultural disputes, Afrikaner ethnic anxiety is pervasive, while marginal and liminal experiences of being white and Afrikaans bring to the fore both self-protective positions of whiteness, and those that strive to undo regressive ideas of white power. Ever since the apartheid era, Afrikaans alternative music has voiced dissenting positions that confront questions of race, ethnicity and power. In this article ‘recycled’ FAK songs are analysed by way of Postural Theory, a theoretical framework developed by the South African philosopher Johann Visagie. Complemented by relevant perspectives relating to an understanding of opposing dislocated apartheid and post-apartheid senses of self, our examination of the deeper strata of the songs highlight postures of (morally and ethically) taking care, either of the self or the other – but also those of meaninglessness and suffering, pointing to loss as a central aspect of the ‘threatened identity’.

Keywords

• Protest songs
• Postural theory
• Threatened identity
• "Siembamba"
• "Vat jou goed en trek, Ferreira"