Maris McCance-Price and Scott Smith
French psychoanalyst Jacques Lacan said ”a world of words is a world of things”.
Words are the building blocks of everything we do, but in the materialistic cellphone and Internet culture of the 21st century, the world of things often
takes precedence over the appreciation of literature and poetry: the shaping and
sculpting of words into art.
Wordfest, an independent festival taking place within the national arts festival, is a celebration of words. Wordfest is about ”getting people interested in reading and the world of words,” says Wordfest media liaison Maretha Potgieter.
Wordfest was launched at the 1999 arts festival as a multilingual and developmental initiative to promote a culture of reading in South Africa. This
year’s programme is more ambitious than in previous years and offers a wide range of activities, including book launches, poetry readings and exhibitions.
It features writers from a broad cultural and linguistic spectrum, from debut
novelists to well-established authors such as Commonwealth Writers Prize-winner
Zakes Mda to writer and TV celebrity Denis Beckett.
Wordfest recognises the need to cultivate a love of words in all languages, especially in a multilingual country like South Africa. English, Xhosa, Sotho
and even Swahili writers are among those who will participate.
Among the many books to be launched are Isiseko by distinguished Xhosa academic
and writer BB Mkonto; Welcome to our Hillbrow, a debut novel by Phaswane Mpe;
African Stories by poet and novelist Stephen Gray; best-selling poet Annelie
Botes’s Raaiselkind; and Anatomy of Dark, a posthumously published complete anthology of poetry by political exile Arthur Nortje.
Unlike many of the shows at the arts festival, Wordfest is not simply a performance from which the audience is cut off. ”Audience participation is encouraged and is essential for the success of Wordfest,” explains Potgieter.
Along with international writers Edwin Thumboo and Dennis Brutus, and CNA prize-
winner Sarah Ruden, aspiring writers are invited to read their poetry and prose
at open mike sessions to be held on most nights.
Open forum discussions will also be held at which those interested can air their
views on issues surrounding language policies and the future of the word in South Africa. Continuing one of last year’s innovations, there will be a Wordwall on which all forms of expression from graffiti to poetry can be scribbled.
Wordfest will also be hosting workshops on writing mother tongue children’s books and the developmental benefits of reading from a young age.
”The links between increased cognitive development and reading are well- documented,” says Potgieter. ”It is important for adults and children to deal
with fiction and not only reading for information and Wordfest hopes to foster
an appreciation of literature and words in South African culture.”
Although booking is advised for some presentations at the festival, many of the
activities, readings and performances are free. And that’s in keeping with the
driving principle behind Wordfest that the creation of a society in which poetry, literature and words are appreciated is indeed priceless.