An analysis of parallelism in the epic "Dikgang tse pedi" by G.C. Motlhasedi

Abstract

This mini-dissertation analyses the phenomenon of parallelism in the epic "Dikgang tse pedi" with specific reference to "Kgang ke oe Bakwena". The first part of the dissertation deals with theoretical issues and attempts to arrive at a working definition of parallelism, based on the viewpoints of different researchers. The central theoretical focus of this study will be based on Kunene's (1971) and Pretorius's (1988) viewpoints regarding the differentiation between different types of parallelism. Other devices that contribute to the creation of parallelism are also briefly dealt with in order to identify their interrelation with parallelism. Various types of parallelism and relevant examples of different authors are discussed. The second part of the dissertation consists of an analysis of the poem "Kgang ke eo Bakwena" using Kunene's and Pretorius' tenets regarding parallelism as the theoretical matrix. The conclusion of this study indicates that the viewpoints of Pretorius and Kunene can be successfully applied in the analysis of parallelism in poetry.