Not Either an Experimental Doll: The Separate Worlds of Three South African Women

by Shula Marks (Editor)

"... remarkable... " —Foreign Affairs "... illuminates the workings of institutionalized racism through the correspondence of three South African women in the 1940s and ’50s." —Feminist Bookstore News "The history of a place and time is made vivid by the combination of the rich personal record of the letters and the theoretically framed analytic discussion. The result is new insight into the history of black education in South Africa, and a revealing study of the dynamics of women’s relations under colonialism across the lines of race, age and power." —Susan Greenstein, The Women’s Review of Books "A riveting and revealing book—one in which few of the characters wear hats that are spotlessly white." —Third World Resources "This rich collection of letters deserves its own reading, as do Shula Marks’s bracketing essays. They are invaluable for clarifying the myriad ramifications that the letters raise for African women." —International Journal of African Historical Studies "... powerful and perceptive....speak[s] eloquently to a Western audience that is poised to deal with the political and personal lives of South African women in an intimate holistic fashion." —Belles Lettres The roots of modern Apartheid are exposed through the painful and revealing correspondence of three very different South African women—two black and one "liberal" white—from 1949 to 1951. Although the letters speak for themselves, the editor has written an introduction and epilogue which tell of the tragic ending to this riveting story.

Genres: History, Nonfiction, South Africa, Read For School

Hardcover

First published December 22, 1988

Reviews

[Annika · Rating 4 out of 5]

A nonfiction book comprised of letters between three women between 1949-51 in South Africa.

I’ve never read a nonfiction book in this format, but it was quite enjoyable. If you end up reading the book, I’d suggest you read the introduction in tandem with the letters because it greatly aids your understand of what’s happening as well as the cultural context of the period.

As I’m writing this, I’ve taken a break from writing my paper on the book which requires me to explore how race and gender structured access to economic and political power in the 20th century South Africa. There are certain parts of the book that I have to include in my paper as well.

4/5

Read for my Colonialism and Africa class.

[Diwakar Ganesan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent book if you're interested in South African history.

[Moses · Rating 2 out of 5]

As a history student, I usually love reading old letters, but I found this collection rather dull for the most part. It had its moments, but they were few and far between to the extent that the rest of the text did not feel worthwhile. I'm sure there is more historical significance to be found in the way that Lily and Dr. Palmer relate to one another as a black girl and an educated white woman in apartheid South Africa, but I didn't feel like I picked up much from it. Also, the title feels a bit misleading: the correspondence in this book is very much between and about Lily and Dr. Palmer; Makhanya is more of a side character.
Kind of interesting, but mostly just okay.