Keorapetse Kgositsile: revolutionary poet laureate

Abstract

South Africa's Poet Laureate from 2006 to 2018, "Professor" Keorapetse William 'Bra Willie' Kgositsile was strongly influenced by his grandmother and mother, whose family had a long tradition of passing on the collective wisdom of their ancestors through oral tradition. This instilled in him a love of storytelling, and he acquired a wealth of historical insights that were to influence his literary work later. Other influences were his grandmother's strong distaste for the English language, which she saw "as a tool to bludgeon and kill the cultures and languages of the natives", and his uncle's love of jazz.