Interdissiplinêre taal- en literatuurstudie in Suid-Afrika

Abstract

Interdisciplinary cooperation as an option flows from a fundamental adjustment of public thinking in the country, and from the belief that it could possibly contribute to the dynamic survival of smaller departments under the threat of rationalisation. Several initiatives during the 1980s, especially from the HSRC, serve as a foundation for future planning. While not implying the disappearance of individual departments, interdisciplinary work does require a sharing of common experiences and a greater interaction between departments. It also implies the raising of the status of secondary sources, including translations of literary works. As an international vehicle, English could serve as common medium in interdisciplinary interaction. While neighbouring departments are free to devise their own programmes, preference should be given to national priorities, such as South African spoken language and historical-comparative literary studies. The need for training for comparative work, coordination, adequate funding, professional liaison and lobbying, may compel language and literature associations to federate in an umbrella body, especially in the wake of the rationalisation of the Institute for Research into Language and the Arts at the HSRC.