Synopses & Reviews
Recent events in South Africa have taken on renewed interest for historians and general readers alike. In this third edition of
The Making of Modern South Africa, Nigel Worden provides a comprehensive and up-to-date introduction to the key themes and debates central to an understanding of the region.
The book examines the major issues in South Africa's history, from the colonial conquests of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, through the establishment of racism, segregation and apartheid; the spirit of reform, resistance and repression of the 1980s and up to the present day. In this new edition, Worden brings events up to the second democratic election of 1999, and incorporates new material published since 1990.
With the break up of institutional apartheid, perspectives on recent South African history have undergone a significant shift. Nigel Worden examines these changes and assesses developments within the new South Africa in a wide historical context, providing a sharp, analytical overview for all those interested in modern South African history and politics.
Review
"A masterly summary of the major themes which have gone into the making of modern South Africa and of the debates which historians have had about them. It is clear and succinct; marvellously well-researched; absolutely up-to-date; and easily accessible to the general reader. It is at once the best book of its kind available."
Journal of Imperial and Commonwealth History"Nigel Worden's book has a good chronology, excellent bibliography and it certainly enriches the literature on South Africa." Africa World Review
"Good, scholarly one-volume overviews of South African history are not plentiful. The Making of Modern South Africa, is already proving invaluable to students and lecturer alike because it is so up to date... the book is admirably organized, remarkably comprehensive and bound to be widely used." The English Historical Review
Synopsis
The book examines the major issues in South Africa's history, from the colonial conquests of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, through the establishment of racism, segregation and apartheid, to the spirit of reform, resistance and repression of the 1980s and, now, in this new edition, the first democratic elections in April 1994. With the break up of institutional apartheid, perspectives on recent South African history have undergone a significant shift. Nigel Worden examines these changes and assesses developments within the new South Africa in a wide historical context, providing a sharp, analytical overview for all those interested in modern South African history and politics.
Description
Includes bibliographical references (p. 147-162) and index.
About the Author
Nigel Worden is Professor of History at the University of Cape Town. He was previously Research Fellow at Clare Hall, University of Cambridge and Lecturer in Commonwealth History at the University of Edinburgh. He is the author of Slavery in Dutch South Africa (1985) and co-author of Cape Town: The Making of a City (1998, with Elizabeth van Heyningen and Vivian Bickford-Smith) and Cape Town in the Twentieth Century (1999, with Elizabeth van Heyningen and Vivian Bickford-Smith).
Table of Contents
1. Introduction: The Changing History of South Africa.
2. The Conquest of the Land.
3. Changes in Town and Countryside.
4. White Supremacy, Segregation and Apartheid.
5. The Heyday of Apartheid.
6. Apartheid in Decline.
Bibliography.