South African Show Shaka Zulu Film Studies Essay

South African Show Shaka Zulu Film Studies EssayIn late 1986, the South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC) named a tv mini- serial by the surname of Shaka Zulu. It would enhance an instant and huge success, and by 1992 it had been seen by over 350 million viewers in South Africa and abroad (Tomaselli 1992). dress hat describe as an historical drama, the serial centred on the first enter encounter encircled by blacks and smocks in southeast Africa, with particular focus on the interactions between an exploratory British party, led by Lieutenant Francis leave of absence (Ed fightd Fox), and the ruler of a powerful and dangerous poufdom, the legendary Shaka Zulu (Henry Cele) (Hamilton 1998, p.171). In brief, the fib follows F arwells band of men (including the themes narrator, Henry Francis Fynn) as they head to Zululand to dissuade Shaka from an garb on on the drapery Colony. They argon shipwrecked, captured by the Zulus, and come to learn astir(predicate) how Sh akas kingdom was built. Within this structure, Fynns diary is used as a instrument for a series of flashbacks which tell Shakas life story his conception and brook (he is illegitimate), his life as an outcast, and his rise to power (Hamilton 1998). It is a boisterous portrait Shaka is visualizen to be destined to rule through brutality (Fynn records that Shakas m separate gave stemma to a kingdom of blood-stained spears) (Faure 1986) and spends most of his time angrily taking revenge on those who micturate wronged him (Tomaselli 1992). Eventu each(prenominal)y, with the death of his mother, Nandi (Dudu Mkhize), Shaka is struck by a violent grief and the series ends with the Zulu kingdom in flames (Hamilton 1998, p.172). F bewell and company invoke unable to save Shaka from himself, and the Zulu nation falls into pandemonium.Before conducting an analysis of the boob tube series itself, it is worth examining how Shaka was re ingrediented in Zulu culture long before the aim was even commissi adept and only(a)d. Like all annals, there is no single office in Zulu oral accounts of Shakas rule. Throughout the 19th and 20th centuries, different Zulu interests draw on different Shakas to support their actions in a changing ground (Hamilton 1992, p.62). Thus, accounts differ significantly more or less mainstay episodes in his life and essentially in their evaluation of the Zulu king and the Zulu memory of Shaka has non al elbow rooms been unanimously favourable towards him (Hamilton 1998, p.53). Having said this, Hallencreutz (1989, p.73) debates that we can roughly view the appreciative, complimentary izibongo (praise singers) as the core of the ceremonious Zulu usage, and the more critical oral accounts as be to other related ethnic groups. And the fact that the legacy of the Shaka izibongo has tended to persist in situations of political crisis seems to support this claim. Thus the fabrication of Shaka, as he is remembered by Zulu oral h istorians, is probably best captured by those who pursue the izibongo tradition to some(a) extent. I would suggest that the memory of Shaka is, for the most part, exemplified by poets such(prenominal) as Mazisi Kunene (1979 cited Hallencreutz 1989, p.75) who ends his commemoration of Shaka (based on Zulu oral accounts) as followsHe is an Ancestral nub he cannot be stabbed.Even now they sing his song. They call his name.They terpsichore in the arena listening to the echoes of his epic poems process the end of time-they shall sing of him.Till the end of time his shield shall shelter the hero from the windsAnd his children shall rise comparable locusts.They shall scatter the dust of our enemies,They shall make our earth free for the Palm Race.Thus, objet dart it is important to note that Zulu accounts of Shaka can and do differ great(p)ly from hailing him as a benevolent leader to decrying him as a violent killer it is evident that they tend to fundamentally acknowledge that Sh aka was an extra workaday man (Cele 2001, p.119). unlike factors, including a perpetual need to describe the achievements of a leader who stood up to light expansion (especially con perspectivering South Africas particular narrative), have resulted in Shakas uniqueness and extraordinariness existence prominent features in or so all Zulu oral histories (Cele 2001, p.121). magical spell not unanimously favourable towards him, Zulu oral histories most Shaka would never give him as being dependent on or subservient to the ashen man.As I am arguing that Shaka Zulu demonstrates how allegory can be stripped down and re-imagined, it is also necessary for the purposes of this essay, to illustrate how and why Shakas story in Zulu oral tale falls under the broad streamer of fable (as used in the scholarly sense). Obviously, the definition of falsehood is a contested one. Nevertheless, I would surround that the Shaka legend, as remembered in Zulu culture, is fabulous in almost e truly sense of the word. For instance, Mircea Eliade (cited Segal 2004, p.60) suggests that the mere ritualistic recitation of the highpoints in a characters biography (as demonstrated by the Zulu izibongo) posits that characters life as novel. The honest act of creating an oral biography for a famous historical figure like Shaka can trans strain them into near-gods and their sagas into fables (Eliade cited Segal 2004, p.53). Certainly, the Shaka story seems to comply with Levi-Strauss assertion that it is almost a prerequisite of novel that it starts out as an oral tradition (Leach 1974, p.56). In recording Shakas life in oral form, historical truths are transfigured, resulting in a novel genuineity with a highly fab character as chief protagonist (Mersham 1993). Hence, by the time the Shaka Zulu telly system aim was commissioned in 1986, Zulu culture had already transfigured Shakas history into something quite mythical.Various elements of the Shaka story also closel y resemble some of the telltale(prenominal) characteristics of myth as defined by theorists. For instance, Segal (2004, p.5) severalizes that it is a prerequisite of myths that the primary(prenominal) figures be personalities divine, human, or even animal. Shaka certainly fits this bill, as his presence tends to control Zulu folklore, where he is positioned somewhere in between divine and human (and he was even hailed as the great elephant by his praise singers) (Kunene 1979, p.13). Both Mersham (1993) and Cele (2001) go so far as to suggest that the man was (and is) for some Zulus a black Jesus Christ a symbol of deliverance from impertinent oppressors. Shakas story also evidences such highly mythic themes such as fratricide (Shaka was assassinated by his half brothers, Dingane and Mhlangana). This underrating of blood dealings is a key feature of myth in Levi-Strauss call (Leach 1974, p.76). Otto tell (cited Segal 2004, p.96), in The allegory of the Birth of the Hero, suggests that dislike of two brothers for each other is often traceable to the competition for the tender devotion and love of the mother. duration this isnt necessarily the case with Shakas story, his love for his mother, Nandi, is well-documented (and is a key element in the Shaka myth). Shakas life, as it is remembered in Zulu culture, essentially is, by Northrop Fryes definition (cited Segal 2004, 81), a quest-myth it is the myth of the life of the hero. His life story conforms closely to Fryes four stages of birth, triumph, isolation, and the heros defeat. As browse (cited Segal 2004, p.96) states, the mythological hero is heroic and triumphant be power he rises from relative obscurity to, typically, the throne. And usually, like Shaka, he is a victim of Fate.Further, the Shaka history is mythic in the way it operates within the connection which invests in it. Wylie (1997) entreats that Shakas life story has achieved the status of myth, solely by virtue of the fact that i t has garnered an dominance of its own which is unthinkingly followed and reiterate despite historical changes or the surfacing of contrary evidence. In being simplified and do innocent to its receivers, history has become myth, and myth is given up a natural and eternal neverthelessification (Barthes 1993, p.143). Mythic history is higher up questioning and bereft of factual detail. It is not so much an explanation of events as it is a statement of fact (Barthes 1993, p.143). This is a key stylemark of myth, allowing it to function as it does in modern society. Myth, says Levi-Strauss (cited Leach 1974, p.59) is powerful in that novices of the society who hear the myths for the first time are being indoctrinated by the bearers of the tradition a tradition, which in theory at any rate, has been transfer down from long dead ancestors. Through the recitation of this tradition and the transient of time, says Barthes (1993, p.142), things lose the memory that they were once do. In the case of the Shaka myth, this untouchability of a mythic characters life story has had very real social and political ramifications (as entrust be discussed later).Finally, I would suggest that myths that are successful in contemporary societies almost always go some way to explaining and commemorating the introduction of that society. The Shaka myth both in its original form and as it is recreated for the goggle box try out is a classic embodiment of the myth of a debut community an origin (Tomaselli Shepperson 2002, p.132). It is typically mythic in that it explains how one state of affairs became another how a plurality of tribes became a nation (and the reading of the myth in the television series ultimately served to legitimate KwaZulus leading rights to rule in 1986)(Mersham 1993). The man who played the central part in the establishment of the nation is the main figure. The cult of Shaka is mythological in that it recognise his role in the establishmen t of the Zulu nation (Segal 2004, p.59). But where the myth described by Zulu oral historians focuses on the creation of the nation under Shaka, the television level emphasises an equally mythic but quite different side to the kings rule his downfall. The myth as picture in Shaka Zulu closely matches the primordial American myths that so intrigued Levi-Strauss myths whereThe entire story aims at explaining why subsequently their first beginning, a given clan or lineage or group of lineages have overcome a great many ordeals, cognize periods of success and periods of failures, and have been progressively led towards a disastrous ending. It is an highly pessimistic story, really the history of a downfall.(Levi-Strauss 1989, p.38)I will argue that the filmmakers (and their SABC backers) adopted this approach to the myth as a doer of model over against violence in the pur pillow slip of power (Tomaselli Shepperson 2002, p.132). Thus, a highly mythic story element was used to s erve a very real function. A new myth, with a very different message, was manufactured to change the old.How filmmakers able make mythIt should now be evident how the Shaka myth developed and endured in Zulu oral histories. However, I will argue boost that the creators of the Shaka Zulu television show essentially took this and recreated their own, new mythology to suit their own purposes. agree to Barthes (1982 cited Wylie 1997), myth is an empty parasitical form, enabling it to be re decreeted and reconstituted in various(a) incarnations. While initially based in history, it is necessarily incomplete, accepted as truth but efficaciously divorced from the contingency of events (Wylie 1997). Thus, the line between history and mythology and I would argue, an original mythology and reinvented mythology as in the series is efficaciously blurred. Thus, there is room for new mythologies to effectively be invented which claim to be based on the same historical truths which inspir ed the original narratives. As Levi-Strauss (1989, p.38) asks, where does mythology end and where does history start?. The simple opposition between mythology and history which has traditionally been treated as a given is not at all a clear-cut one (Levi-Strauss 1989, p.40), and space is made for new mythologies to be created on essentially the same histories. In short, the creators of Shaka Zulu created a new mythology based on an old mythology originally linked to an almost two-hundred category old history.Hence, I argue that the Shaka Zulu television series adapted the Shaka Zulu myth for western sandwich eyes. For instance, grotesque witchdoctors were include in the show to serve the narrative function of magical creatures who aid or threaten the heros quest (Parks 1982 cited in Tomaselli 1992). While historically inaccurate and politically dubious, magical elements are included for television as they are integral to the western mythical formula (Tomaselli 1992). Tomaselli (199 2) goes so far as to suggest that the very fact that television is a Western form of expression doomed Shaka Zulu to being a white, Western interpretation of the myth from the start. I would not necessarily go that far, but I would bear that series was, either consciously or unconsciously, fashioned to conform to western notions of myth. Like the witchdoctors, the white crews sea tour into a dismal and dangerous land in Part i of the series hearkens back to some of the oldest myths in western culture. Likewise, the television show is laden with western notions of prophecy. Shakas rise to power is explained almost entirely in terms of the witchdoctor, Sitayis prophecy. Before the party leave for Zululand, Fynn talks of a precognitive child who it is said will bring with him an era in which the name amaZulu will signify terror and death. (Faure 1986). Similarly, with his birth, the narration talks of how the prophecy was about to begin its determined path (Faure 1986). The links with other approved western myths such as that of Oedipus are self-evident. Thus, Shaka Zulu, in its efforts to subscribe to the conventions of the mythic form familiar to western audiences, deviates notably from the mythology evidenced in Zulu oral accounts. Where Zulu mythologies about Shaka tended to cut through the bizarre to the essence of depictions, Shaka Zulu was obsessed with the surreal (Tomaselli 1992). The necessary result was an othering of the Zulu people in a show almost unrecognizably alongside the history it professed to drink.Actual analysis showContent in that location can be little doubt that much of the shows actual sate is, at best, dubious in its portrayal of the Zulu people and the history of Shakas rule. The Zulus portrayed are a bizarre and violent people (Tomaselli 1992). The first scenes in which Zululand are shown are typified by bloody warfare and crying infants. In fact, when we first encounter Shakas kingdom in Part One of the series, we do so t hrough the eyes of the bewildered white party surrounded by sweating masses speaking a strange language, mysterious drum beats and an almost constant procession of war parties caterpillar track nearly for no apparent reason (Faure 1986). Certainly, little effort has been made by the filmmakers to portray the everyday, mundane life of the Zulu people the emphasis is almost wholly on public, frequently violent rituals (Tomaselli 1992). The act of making the different a spectacle is principal characteristic of western, bourgeois myth, says Barthes (1993, p.152), and this is process is patent in Shaka Zulu. Like his subjects, Shaka is also othered as a barbarian megalomaniac with an obsessive proclivity for revenge (Mersham 1993). Failure to please him carries the penalty of him killing every member of the party (Faure 1986). And, like all the Zulus, he is dictated to by credulity and ritual Have the armies assembled by the next full moon is one of the first commands we hear (Fa ure 1986). And possibly the most startling subedition of history and myth comes in the form of the shows witchdoctors. What in truth were perfectly ordinary natural healers are depicted as superhuman, grotesque individuals (Tomaselli Shepperson 2002, p.135). Scary and monsterish, their comer in a scene is almost always accompanied by thunder and lightning and rain (Tomaselli Shepperson 2002, p.135). In truth, these izangoma were welcomed as an integral part of the community a far cry from the creatures with glowing eyes that command packs of hyenas and maintain dens of dwarfs (Hamilton 1998, p.179). Thus, Zulu ritual is presented as being disgusting and frightening. (Hamilton 1998, p.179). Tomaselli and Shepperson (2002, p.135) argue that such a typical white misinterpretation of Zulu cultural practice is legitimised by the show positing itself as a mythology not, I would argue, a mythology familiar to Zulu history, but one that has been manufactured by white producers for audi ences in 1986. It is a typically white version of a native myth (as evidenced by an almost Pocahontas-like scene of Nandi as a young Zulu maiden being watched as she washes at a misty waterfall) (Faure 1986). It is a myth reconfigured to make a modern-day impact.StyleThe series is also notable for the clear rhetorical decisions on how it was shot. There is a very obvious distinction made between those shots that depict the Zulu nation and those featuring the whites in the curtain Colony. The tribal Zulu scenes are mostly shot through a sepia filter, with an over-emphasis on yellows, browns and bloody reds. The only deviation from this formula comes during the night-time scenes cooling system blue, rife with thunder and lightning, and peeved with imagery of sorcery, magic and the supernatural (Tomaselli Shepperson 2002, p.134). Tomaselli and Shepperson (2002, p.134) argue that ethnographic detail is intentionally obscured by the hazy sepia lighting, the clouds of smoke made b y overcloud machines and the mass of shiny, sweaty (oiled) black skins. The end product is a smudge of objects and people, depicted as an incomprehensible writhing, pulsating and faceless dark mass as they throw about the landscape in a storm of dust. (Tomaselli Shepperson 2002, p.134). Again, I would argue there is something quite mythic about this hazy, blurry portrayal of a people. This is in stark contrast to the shots of white people in the Cape Colony, which are whiter, truer and do not contain the clashes between hot and chilling colours (Tom Shepperson, p.134). Thus, the binary oppositions that Levi-Strauss argues are so integral to myth are blatant white vs black light vs darkness civilisation vs ferociousness sageity vs magic normal behaviour vs ritual peace vs war and order vs chaos (Tomaselli Shepperson 2002, p.134). Again, conscious decisions from the filmmakers have resulted in a new, subverted mythology. And I would argue that this essentially racist version of Shakas story professes to audiences to be the canonical version of the myth.Intentions etcLike all stories, re-imagined mythologies such as that on show in Shaka Zulu are clouded by the conventions of narrative in terms of prevailing worldviews (Tomaselli 1992). In other words, the creators of Shaka Zulu were dictated to in their mythmaking by the establi draw ideologies of the time. The show is, thus, inextricably linked to the socio-political situation in South Africa at the time of its creation (Tomaselli 1992). Further, any author cannot help but give way something of his or her worldview on audiences when broadcasting a creation to the public domain. As van Jaarsveld (cited Mersham 1993) argues, as soon as an author (in this case, director William C Faure) presents an interpretation of the past, they are putting forward an arsenal of arguments for formulating decisions about the future. Thus, it was not by accident that the Shaka myth (and message) presented on screen differe d so greatly from that recounted by Zulu oral historians.Director William C Faures stated intentions for the series were hard-core to bring the story of Shaka Zulu home to the Zulu people (Faure 1986). He is quoted (cited Tomaselli 1992) as formulaShakas life was originally recorded by white historians who imposed upon their accounts bigoted and sensationalist values often labelling the Zulus as savage and barbaric. It is our intention with this series to change that view.However, as Barthes posits, all myths are founded on a blind of some meanings and the interested promotion of others (Rylance 1994, p.47) and there was more motivating Faure than just the desire to right historical wrongs. He also hoped that show would shed light on South Africa, correct misconceptions and change the system (Hamilton 1992, p.181). It appears to have been his deepest wish that the show would balance international perceptions about the conflict in 1980s South Africa, and thus whatever intentions he had to redress the injustices of history became distorted by his commitment to this objective (Tomaselli Shepperson 2002, p.131). Thus, Tomaselli and Shepperson (2002, p.133) argue that Faures project was couched, perhaps unintentionally, within apartheid discourse, and does no justice to either Shaka or history. This is just merely evidence that mythology as a story form is manufactured to suit prevailing worldviews.From the off, Faures creation was fraught with apparent political interference. The series writer, Joshua Sinclair, take away himself from the production when he was made aware of the directors links with South African Military Intelligence (Blignaut cited Tomaselli 1992). Faure was also convinced out of using Zulu poet, Mazisi Kunenes epic Emperor Shaka the Great as etymon material, as it was deemed to be to a fault critical of white people and because Kunene was an exiled member of the African National sex act (ANC) (Tomaselli Shepperson 2002, p.130). Howeve r, the relationship between the filmmaker and the SABC (and the state) was by no means a straightforward one. Faure liaised equally closely with not only the Zulu royal family (inviting the Zulu prince Gideon onto set as a cultural advisor) but also the Zulu organization (Tomaselli 1992). tho even with these efforts to seek Zulu approval, we shall see that the level of state involvement was tangible. The key to Shaka Zulus unique success was in that it was able to establish a myth that was acceptable to both those who already had their own version of Shakas story and those largely unfamiliar with it.The apartheid government saw Shaka Zulu as an opportunity to reformulate the myth in a way that would more closely suit their plans. ab initio a powerful tale of a hero resisting white oppression, the myth was transformed into something quite different. At the time of Shaka Zulus release, South Africa was in a state of violent political turmoil. The apartheid regime was fast coming ar ound to the idea that solutions to the violence in South African society had to be found. Thus, Faures proposed television series offered the state and the SABC a key opportunity to present all South Africans with a drama advocating interracial collaboration and word picture the dangers of its failure (Hamilton 1998, p.181). As Barthes (1993, p.156) states, mythology harmonises with the world, not as it is, but as it wants to create itself. The mythology of Shaka Zulu was, in effect, a reflection of how the government thought South Africa should be. Shaka Zulu represented an opportunity for the government to promote a resolution based on order (apparently best reflected by the capitalist Inkatha granting immunity Party) over turnover (basically, the socialist ANC freedom fighters) (Tomaselli 1992). To the apartheid government, order implied keeping nations separate according to tribal homeland, and Tomaselli (1992) argues that the series insistence on manufacturing a dichotomy b etween heinousness and civilisation only served to endorse apartheid discourse that black people should be allowed to develop in their own way in their own areas. The government also needed cooperative, authoritarian black leaders to implement their visions of unaggressive segregation. Someone, says Hamilton (1998, p.184) like Shaka Zulu. The closest match was the Inkatha Freedom Party (IFP) leader, Mangosuthu Buthelezi, whose links with Zulu royal house made him and his fellow party leaders the shows perfect target audience.Shaka Zulu effectively acted as a means for the government to communicate its reformist visions to Buthelezi and his leadership. For instance, the chaos of the Zulu kingdom portrayed in the final episode after Shakas rejection of white interaction came as a stern warning to black politicians such as Buthelezi of the consequences of trying to go it alone (Hamilton 1998, p.184) (as an interesting aside, it is worth noting how this all fits into Levi-Strauss ins istence that the chief moral implication of myth is that self-interest is the source of all evil) (cited Leach 1974, p.81). Refusal to cooperate with the apartheid state (just like Shakas refusal to establish a truce with the Cape Colony in the show) would only result in flames and chaos will prevail (Hamilton cited Tomaselli Shepperson 2002, p.32). Again the myth of the downfall on screen was used to warn against risking the Zulu nations downfall in the real, physical world. The message behind the new myth was clear.The project was not without its critics. The production was universally rejected by anti-apartheid who were fighting for non-racial democracy. Most white anti-apartheid historians were appalled by the series historical inaccuracies (Tomaselli 1992). Wright (cited Mersham 1993) slated the show for pandering to a whole range of compound and racist stereotypes about the Zulus a people reduced to singing, dancing, fighting. Hamilton states that the multitude of Unzulu unt raditional features had many critics baffled as to how the series gained royal approval (Hamilton 1998, p.185). Also, patch the series did show Shaka to be a leader of calibre and talent, Hamilton (1998) argues that it was guilt-ridden of repeating older stereotypes of his psychological imbalances and bloodthirstiness. Mazisi Kunene (cited Tomaselli 1992) lambasted the series as a unpleasant-smelling a propaganda tool aimed at aimed at projecting the Zulu people and their king as bloodthirsty savages and whites as their saviours. Yet for all the shows obvious failings, the show was an immense success evidence, in my opinion, of the power of the mythic form.UsesCuriously, the Shaka Zulu myth would prove to be as acceptable to the Zulu leadership as it was to the forces that influenced its creation. This has a make do to do with the anxieties within Zulu society at the time of the shows release. Ernst Cassirer wrote in The Myth of the State (1946 cited Segal 2004, p.39) that myt h resurfaces as a means of explanation when the rational forces that resist the rise of the old mythical conceptions are no long-lived sure of themselves. In these moments, he says, the time for myth has come again (1946 cited Segal 2004, p.39). Late apartheid South Africa was such a time. Myth is dangerous in that it is a social-psychological paradigm catering for a particular anxiety in society, yet still as in the case of Shaka Zulu presents itself as something natural out of historical truths (Wylie 1997). Thus, myth tends to give a natural plea to the worldviews it supports (Barthes 1993, p.142). Historical veracity becomes far less important than the ways in which the myth is appropriated and utilised. As Barthes (1993, p.144) states Men do not have with myth a relationship based on truth but on use. For Buthelezi and the IFP, the truthfulness of the myth was far less important than the socio-political purposes it could serve.The white version of the Shaka Zulu myth arriv ed on South African television screens at a time of great political strife in the Zulu homeland of KwaZulu. Buthelezis Inkatha Freedom Party was involved in a bloody conflict with the African National Congress for legitimate rule. Where the ANC sought multi-party democracy, the IFP stood for Zulu independence, and thus Shaka Zulus emphasis on ethnicity and equating it with nationhood proved to be more than acceptable fillip to Buthelezi (Tomaselli Shepperson 2002, p.133). Mangosuthu Buthelezi was very conscious of the power of the Shaka myth. At political rallies, the IFP leader would be seen tiring the same kind of Zulu royal regalia that Shaka is shown to wear in the series (Tomaselli 1992). In fact, the wearing of traditional, ceremonial skin garments became a marker of Zuluness for IFP politicians (causing many anti-IFP Zulu-speakers to take offence to the notion that they should become postcard Zulus) (Klopper 1996, p.55). Thus, I argue that it is no contradiction that Shaka Zulu could simultaneously portray the Zulu people as backward, groundless and tribal and be a vehicle for legitimating the IFP leadership (Mersham 1993). Tribalism helped the IFPs cause. Further, Buthelezi would explicitly par himself with the Zulu royalty of Shakas time throughout the 1980s as a means of gaining political credibility with the Zulu people. Thus, the fact that the Shaka Zulu myth was so fresh in the Zulu consciousness with the shows broadcast, became a means for the IFP to bestow its leadership with legitimate authority (Tomaselli 1992). Like Shaka once did, Buthelezi now became the man who would lead his nation against its colonial oppressors (Tomaselli 1992). Tomaselli (1992) even argues that Inkathas militia wing was mobilised as a reincarnation of Shakas impi (military), as a means of inspiring popular support for their (frequently violent) cause. Within the Zulu community, Buthelezis cause was strengthened by Inkathas close identification with the loyalty, di scipline and bowing and lucre for Shaka shown in the show (Mersham 1993). Obedience to the leader in the TV series myth was shown to be an innate aspect of Zulu culture questioning Buthelezi was implied to be unZulu. Despite its flaws both in terms of historical accuracy and prejudice portrayals the Shaka Zulu myth was lauded by the Inkatha leadership as being faithful to their king, and a positive mobilising force for Zulu nationalism (Tomaselli 1992). Thus the Shaka Zulu show became a mechanism for the IFP to portray itself as inheritor and protector of the historical pride of the Zulu nation (Tomaselli 1992). The unsavoury aspects of the shows portrayal of the Zulu people and the downfall of Shaka were superfluous. The myth of a great Zulu leader standing up to outside oppression and the implied suggestion that a new leader had it in him to do likewise were all that mattered. Buthelezi was able to ride on the dramatic success of the series, even if a sensed concession of the series objectionable features was the price to pay. (Hamilton 1998, p.186).GET OWN lyric poemWhat I have tried to show is that in certain display contexts, Shaka Zulu offered a legitimacy for both ruling government and anti-apartheid elements (eg. the Kwa Zulu legislature and Inkatha).Barthes, R., 1993. Mythologies. capital of the United Kingdom Vintage.Cele, TT., 2001. Qualities of King Shaka as Portrayed in Zulu Oral Testimony and in Izibongo. South African ledger of African Languages, 2, 118-131.Fernandez, JW., 1967. The Shaka Complex. Transition, 29, 11-14. Available from http//www.jstor.org/stable/2934231 Accessed 8 January 2010Hallencreutz, CF., 1989. Tradition and Theology in Mofolos Chaka. Journal of Religion in Africa, 19 (1), 71-85. Available from http//www.jstor.org/stable/1581183 Accessed 8 January 2010Hamilton, C., 1998. Terrific Majesty The Powers of Shaka Zulu and the Limits of Historical Invention. Cape Town David Philip Publishers.Hamilton, C., 1992. The Char acter and Objects of Chaka A Reconsideration of the Making of Shaka as Mfecane Motor. The Journal of African History, 33 (1), 37-63. Available from http//www.jstor.org/stable/182274 Accessed 15 December 2009Harries, P. 1993. Imagery, symbolization and Tradition in a South African Bantustan Mangosuthu Buthelezi, Inkatha, and Zulu History. History and Theory, 32 (4), 105-125. Available f