I realized that I may someday want a long Swaziland reading
list in a central location, so I decided to start a list on here. I will keep updating this list as I read
more. Most highly recommended books/articles
are listed first. Most of these relate
to the politics of Swaziland. (I had to write a lot of grad school papers
this semester.) There’s TONS more out
there that I have yet to discover, so stay tuned for updates!
O’Neil, Owen Rowe. Adventures
in Swaziland: The Story of a South African Boer. (Free on Kindle!)
AMAZING AMAZING
AMAZING! This is Heart of Darkness, but
real life. It’s the autobiography of a
colonial Boer’s coming-of-age in Swaziland around the turn of the 20th
century. I was cringing at the number of
times O’Neil can write ‘savage’ on one page, as well as his sensationalist
account of Bhunu’s short but cruel reign.
The matter-of-fact way O-Neil describes his treatment of slaves, his own
murdering of blacks, and his utter disdain for the ‘lesser’ race is absolutely
bone-chilling. However, it is an important
time piece, and a well-written book. It
provides a stark contrast to the academic, politically correct literature in
the rest of this list. His descriptions of Swazi customs around this time are fascinating, but should probably be taken with a grain of salt.
Fleminger, David (2009).
Swaziland Southbound Travel Guide.
Most thorough and
up-to-date guidebook for the more serious traveler. It also includes a great deal of Swazi
history as well as detailed histories of the places it recommends visiting. The tidbits make it worth it. For instance, a queen in the 1700s boiled her
son’s right hand in porridge so that he would be forced out of the succession
due to Swazi suspicions about left-handedness! Information about border crossings, highways, transport,
etc. is also good and up-to-date.
A must-read!
Gillis, D. Hugh. (1999). The Kingdom of Swaziland: Studies in Political History. Westport,
CT: Greenwood Press.
Fantastically thorough
political history of Swaziland, beginning with Swaziland’s consolidation in the
early 1800s up to the 1980s. People who are interested in politics will get the most out of this book.
Kuper, Hilda. (1986). The
Swazi: South African Kingdom. New York, NY: CBS College
Publishing.
Written by an
anthropologist who spent many years in Swaziland. Generally good at history, cultural
practices, and profiling modernization. Most
other prolific works cite her as a source, and she has many interesting tidbits
that I have yet to read in other books.
This is updated from an earlier book based on research conducted in the
1930s.
Liebenow, Debra. In
the Kingdom of Roses and Thorns.
Fiction, but could be
true stories. The stories of 5 Swazi
women of different worlds and life experiences.
All of these stories are simply narrated, giving it an easy-read vibe. Definitely a tear-jerker. It also does an excellent job of highlighting
some of the greatest tragedies of Swaziland in a non-judgmental way- AIDS, the
violence and oppression of patriarchy, and neo-colonialism are all expertly
weaved into the plots.
Potholm, Christian. (1972). Swaziland: The Dynamics of Political Modernization. Berkley, CA:
University of California Press.
Excellent
modernization-theory book. Potholm
examines the question as to why Swaziland remained a monarchy, despite the
generally opposite trend in other post-colonial African states. He concludes that the strength of the
monarchical political institutions, as well as their ability to adapt to a
Western political culture were key, although there are other, less-important
factors discussed in the book.
(Basically, the pre-colonial political institution of the
highly-centralized monarchy just changed its name to become a political
party).
Marwick, Brian. (1966). The Swazi: An Ethnographic Account of the Natives of the Swaziland
Protectorate. London: Cambridge University Press.
Similar to Kuper’s
work. Also cited as an important source
for later works. Haven’t actually read
this one yet, so I’m not able to give an opinion.
Booth, Alan. (1983). Swaziland:
Tradition and Change in a Southern African Kingdom. Boulder, CO:
Westview Press, Inc.
Good book, but a bit
redundant of other, better reads. Also a bit colonial.
Kuper, Hilda. (1978). Sobhuza II: Ngwenyama and King of Swaziland, The story of an
hereditary ruler and his country. New
York, NY: Africana Publishing Company.
Another book by
Kuper. A highly detailed read, mostly
discusses the political history in great detail, but also some interesting
cultural ideas about interactions with colonists.
Lange, Matthew K. (2004). British Colonial Legacies and Political
Development. World Development,
32(6), 905-922.
Basically, whether a
country was ruled by the British directly or indirectly determined a lot about
their post-colonial political development.
A dual system like Swaziland’s is not discussed, but it really matches
the indirectly ruled model closely.
Miller, Norman. (1968). The Political Survival of
Traditional Leadership. Journal of Modern African Studies, 6(2), 183-198.
Modernization
literature piece, so it’s somewhat dated in its theory. However, the discussion of the political role
of traditional leadership is great for political science students.
Mkandawire, Thandika. (2010). On Tax Efforts and Colonial
Heritage in Africa. Journal of Development
Studies, 46(10), 1647-1669.
Basically, the
post-colonial tax systems line up with the colonial tax systems. Whites get a free ride, and poor blacks pay
the brunt of it.
Barker, Dudly. (1965). Swaziland. London: Her Majesty’s Stationary Office.
Extremely colonial and
superficial, but worth getting a late-colonial British perspective.
Sihlongonyana, Mfaniseni. (2003). The Invisible Hand of the
Royal Family in the Political Dynamics of Swaziland. African and Asian Studies, 2(2),
155-181.
Different explanations
for the continuation of the Swazi monarchy are summarized.
Sangmpan, S.N. (2007). Politics Rules: The False
Primacy of Institutions in Developing Countries. Political Studies (55)1, 201-224.
Not Swaziland
specific, but this article offers an alternative perspective on the role of
institutions in developing countries.
Movies:
Wah-Wah
Movie about a colonial
British family failing apart around Swazi independence period
Without the King
Banned by his majesty
Mswati III, this movie is fantastic at highlighting wealth inequality and
political oppression in the Kingdom. It
is an extremely important film.
Life, Above All
South African film which won a lot of awards, and it could be relevant to Swaziland. A girl shows courage as she cares for her dying mother and prostitute friend. She battles the stigma of her community with quiet grace. It will leave you reaching for the tissues, but the ending is hopeful!
