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Dianne Shober

In May 2014, Dianne Shober, Professor of African Literature and Head of the English Department at the University of Fort Hare, South Africa, visited the Department of African Language Studies in Bayreuth. Her research areas are South African literature, especially the works of Sindiwe Magona, literary history, feminist theory and popular culture. During her stay in Bayreuth, she gave a talk on “South African literary history” at the Africanist research Colloquium. Within the framework of the BIGSAS Salongespräche, she gave a presentation on “Women in higher education in South Africa” and engaged in a lively discussion with BIGSAS experts in the field. Students of the BA and MA study programme “Afrikanische Sprachen, Literaturen und Kunst” here in Bayreuth benefitted from her insights into the South African publishing landscape and how it affects writers in South Africa. Diane Shober’s stay offered a good opportunity for a fruitful exchange of ideas from which the concept for a long-term student and staff exchange between the Departments African Languages, English and Comparative Studies at Fort Hare and the Department of African Language Studies at the University of Bayreuth emerged. In spring 2015 already, Irina Turner (Afrikanistik I) will be teaching at Fort Hare University within the framework of the DAAD-short term lecturing programme.

NAB XIV, 2014, p. 49.