Literature of the Day: Bessie Head

Bessie Head

Bessie Head was a prominent African writer who explored themes of exile, community, and rural life. Born in South Africa, she spent most of her adult life in Botswana, where she wrote her most celebrated works. Her novels offer a detailed look at the social and environmental realities of postcolonial Africa.

The Author

Bessie Emery Head was born in 1937 in Pietermaritzburg, South Africa, during a time of strict racial segregation. Her parents' interracial relationship was illegal, and she experienced severe social alienation from an early age. In 1964, she left South Africa for Botswana, seeking refuge and a quieter life in the village of Serowe. Writing in English, she drew heavily on her experiences as a stateless person to explore the challenges of building a new home. Her work frequently addresses the contradictions of both precolonial and postcolonial African societies.

The Craft

Head’s writing is distinguished by its deep empathy for ordinary people and its close attention to the natural environment. She often grounds her characters' emotional journeys in the physical landscape, using the harsh realities of drought and agriculture to mirror internal struggles. Her sentences are straightforward but carry significant moral weight, avoiding overly complex structures in favor of clear, reflective observations. Critics note that her narratives frequently move from isolation toward harmony, emphasizing the possibility of social transformation. She portrays rural village life with a quiet dignity, focusing on the daily efforts required to survive and connect.

From the Page

There were always droughts. There had been many in each man’s lifetime, but never in the memory of man had the cattle dropped dead.

This brief passage from When Rain Clouds Gather (1969) demonstrates Head's ability to convey the severe environmental pressures facing her characters. By stating the historical frequency of droughts, she establishes the resilience of the local cattlemen and their traditional way of life. The sudden shift in the final clause introduces an unprecedented crisis, signaling that the community is facing a challenge beyond their collective memory. Literary scholars admire how she uses such plain, factual language to build tension and ground the novel's broader political themes in the immediate, material reality of survival. Because Head's work remains in copyright, this short extract serves to illustrate her direct, unadorned style.

Reading Guide

• When Rain Clouds Gather (1969): This debut novel introduces her recurring themes of exile and agricultural life, following a South African refugee who finds purpose in a rural Botswana village.
• Maru (1971): A focused examination of prejudice and acceptance, this novel tells the story of a marginalized woman navigating the social hierarchies of a small community.
• A Question of Power (1973): An intensely autobiographical work that details a protagonist's struggle with mental disorientation and her eventual recovery through sheer force of will.