Abstract
A “SELECT” biography tends to arouse a certain diffidence, not to say mistrust, in the manner of its reception; but when the material is drawn from a space of four centuries and a literature of the proportions and character of that relating to the natives of South Africa, much weeding is necessary if a practical value is to be secured for anyone who is not already in a great measure expert. The danger of bias, which may be, and indeed often is quite unconscious, has been eliminated in this South African bibliography by calling in the assistance of experts each to be responsible for the department of native studies in which he is an accepted authority, such as, for example, Prof. M. R. Drennan (physical anthropology), or Dr. A. J. Goodwin and Prof. C. van Riet Lowe (archaeology) or the Rev. C. M. Doke (linguistics). The editor, whose ability to take an objective and scientific view of native problems has been abundantly demonstrated on many previous occasions, has been responsible not only for the section covering ethnography, both general and tribal, but also for that which deals with the status of the modern native population. It is perhaps unnecessary to comment on the fact that this last-named is the most considerable section in the bibliography, covering 93 pages as against ethnography, 72 pages. The very brief notes following entries, and indicating the scope and character of the item catalogued, will be found helpful and trustworthy by young students.
Select Bibliography of South African Native Life and Problems
Compiled for the Inter-University Committee for African Studies, under the direction of I. Schapera. Pp. xii + 250. (London: Oxford University Press, 1941.) 10s. 6d. net.
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Select Bibliography of South African Native Life and Problems. Nature 147, 525 (1941). https://doi.org/10.1038/147525c0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/147525c0