Solomon Mutsvairo as a Historical Artist: The Interface of History and Fiction

Introduction Throughout his writings, Solomon Mutsvairo shows an obsession with the Zimbabwean past. His protagonists are Zezuru mythical and legendary figures whom he alleges to be the real makers of Zimbabwean history. Nehanda, Kagubi, Mapondera and Chaminuka are key figures in Mutsvairo's fiction as he endeavours to recreate Zimbabwean history. The ruling ZANU-PF party which has been in power since independence in 1980 is predominantly Zezuru. It has and is still working tirelessly to convince the various ethnic groups in the country to believe that the history of Zimbabwe is synonymous with that of the Zezurus and that the first war of liberation for the country was the prerogative of the Zezurus. As such the whole Zimbabwean nation owes its allegiance to them for liberating them. In Harare, the capital city of the country, buildings with key government functions have been named after the aforesaid Zezuru mythical and legendary figures as a constant reminder to the nation that the Zezuru ethnic group emblems the history of the country and that the heroes of the first war of liberation were Zezurus. Streets, avenues and schools in the country have also been named after these political figures with the tacit approval of the ruling party to justify its unprecedented lengthy rule in the country. Mutsvairo's fiction has been written from the Zezuru perspective to further cement the ruling ZANU-PF party's hold onto power in the country. It is therefore the intention of this paper to deconstruct and demystify Zimbabwean history through an analysis of Mutsvairo's fiction. The paper argues that his fiction has a lot of weaknesses and regional political biases which falsify Zimbabwean history. Though historical artists have the liberty to fictionalise the past, they have the obligation to teach their readers the truth about their past. Who is Solomon Mutsvairo? Solomon Mutsvairo is a renowned Zimbabwean historical novelist born on the 26th of April, 1924 in Zuwa, Mazowe District in Zimbabwe. He is Zezuru by birth and descent. He went to Canada in the early 1960s with the hope of training as a medical practitioner. However, he could not make it due to fierce competition and racial discrimination, so he opted for a Masters degree in Geography which he completed in 1964 and later a PhD in African Studies in 1978. He taught in various schools while in Canada from 1965 to 1968. He also lectured in American universities from 1976 to 1980 before joining the University of Zimbabwe's African Languages Department in 1981, becoming its writer in residence. In 1991 his lyrics were chosen among a host of others to be the basis of the new Zimbabwe national anthem. He died in 2005 and was accorded provincial hero status by the ZANU-PF government that is predominantly Zezuru despite the fact that during his whole life he took a very low profile in politics and national events and did not even go to war for the liberation of the country. He was accorded this provincial hero status presumably for endeavouring to promote cultural nationalism and for propping up the image of the ruling ZANU-PF party and the Zezurus in his literary works. Consequently he received a State-assisted funeral against the dissenting voices from the other ethnic groups like the Manyikas, the Ndaus and the Korekores who felt that their own liberation heroes were being sidelined. Ndababingi Sithole, a well known nationalist and founder of the ZANU party from which ZANU-PF was born in 1963, was not accorded national hero status, not to talk of provincial hero status as was the case with Solomon Mutsvairo. Ndabaningi's crime was that of being the leader of the ZANLA party that fought the war of liberation, a post that Robert Mugabe also aspired to have. Ndabaningi was unfortunately ousted by Robert Mugabe from the leadership of the party under the pretext that he had dinner with the enemy. He was outlawed from the party and declared an enemy of the people. …

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