Arthur Greene
U-Abdulrazak Gurnah, odabuka e-Zanzibar, uqokwe njengomnqobi wendondo ye-Nobel Prize emibhalweni wezincwadi wangowezi-2021, okungumklomelo ohlonishwa kakhulu emkhakheni wawo.
Iphaneli lomklomelo liveze umsebenzi kaGurnah “wokungavumelani kwemibhalo yakhe enozwelo ngokwenzeka ngezikhathi zamakoloniya kanye nesiphetho sombaleki phakathi kwamasiko namazwekazi” njengezizathu zokuwina kwakhe.
UGurnah wakhulela esiqhingini sase-Zanzibar, kodwa ngenkathi eneminyaka engama-20 waphoqeleka ukuthi ahambe nomndeni wakhe ukuze abalekele ukuhlukunyezwa kwezakhamizi zase-Arab nezase-South Asia kulandela uguquko lwase-Zanzibar ngeminyaka yama-1960.
Ngenkathi efika eNgilandi njengombaleki ngowe-1960, umsebenzi wakhe waqhubeka nokuhlola izingqikithi zokufuduka, ikoloniyalizimu kanye nesipiliyoni sombaleki.
I-In By the Sea, enye yamanoveli ayishumi ashicilelwe nguGurnah, indoda endala eyafika e-UK njengomuntu ofuna ukukhoseliswa.
Kodwa-ke, iningi lezincwadi zakhe zibekwe e-East Afrika. I-Gravel Heart yindaba yobuntwana bomfana owakhula ngeminyaka yama-1960 njengoba aphila ngaphansi kweNguquko yase-Zanzibar, ngenkathi iningi labase-Afrika lisusa iqembu elincane lase-Arab.
Umhleli wesikhathi eside kaGurnah, u-Alexandra Pringle, umchaze kwi-Guardian “njengomunye wababhali abahamba phambili base-Afrika.”
Uphawule ukuthi uthanda ukubhala ngokuhamba kwabantu emibhalweni yakhe, “kodwa ngezindlela ezinhle kakhulu nezithusayo zalokho okususa abantu kubawelisele kwamanye amazwekazi”.
Umbhali oneminyaka engama-73 ubesekhishini lakhe ngesikhathi aziswa ngokuwina kwakhe futhi ubecabanga ukuthi bayamdlalisa.
“Bengicabanga ukuthi bayangidlalisa,” etshela i- The Guardian. “Bekungeyona into ebisengqondweni yami nhlobo. Bengicabanga nje ukuthi, “Kazi ubani ozoyithola?.”
Umbhali wokugcina wase-Afrika ukuwina lo mklomelo ngumbhali waseNingizimu Afrika uJohn Coetzee owanqoba ngowezi-2003. Ngaphambi kwalokho, uWole Soyinka wase-Nigeria wawina ngowe-1986 kwathi umbhali wase-Egypt uNaguib Mahfouz wawina lo mklomelo ngowe-1988.
Ngemuva kokuwina kwakhe uthe, “Ngiyabonga ngokunikwa lo mklomelo nokujoyina ababhali abangandulele kulolu hlu. Kuhle kakhulu futhi ngiyaziqhenya”.