Charles Darwin, die natuurwetenskappe en die verwondering in T T Cloete se poësie

• Main Author: Marais, Johannes Lodewyk
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: Afrikaans
• Published: Suid Afrikaanse Akademie vir Wetenskap & Kuns 2009
• Subjects: HMS Beagle; Wonderment; Paradysvoels; Verwondering; Darwin; Charles; 1809-1882. On the origin of species; Evolution in literature; Cloete; Theunis Theodorus > Criticism and interpretation; Afrikaans poetry; Darwin Island (Galapagos Islands); Galapagos; Darwin Island
• Online Access: http://hdl.handle.net/2263/12634

As a result of his keen (although lay) interest in natural science, Charles Darwin (1809-1882) agreed to serve as “unpaid gentleman’s companion” to the captain of the HMS Beagle during its voyage from 1831 to 1836. Darwin’s observations during the journey (especially those made on the Galápagos Islands across from the coast of Ecuador) inspired him to formulate a controversial theory on the evolution of species, which he published as The origin of species in 1859. Two hundred years after Darwin’s birth and a hundred and fifty years after the publication of his epoch-making work, Darwin is still being widely discussed, revered and denigrated. Evolution theory elicits divergent reactions world-wide. It has led to a major shift in scientific beliefs and it has impacted strongly on various aspects of scientific and religious thought, making a decisive contribution in the field of the natural sciences. The consequences of the application of evolution theory are felt to this day, even in fields as “unrelated” to natural science as the field of literature. This article will therefore relate how evolution theory came into being and subsequently investigate how it is reflected in a number of texts in Afrikaans literature. However, the poetry of an eminent Afrikaans poet, T T Cloete (1924-), who celebrated his eighty-fifth birthday in 2009, will be the main focus of this contribution. In Cloete’s poetry, nature and natural science are dominant themes. The poet is so well-read in these that a poet, Daniel Hugo, once remarked that “teveel van sy verse lyk na berymde artikels uit die National Geographic” [too much of his poetry looks like rhymed articles from the National Geographic]. However, a careful study of Cloete’s poetry shows how he skilfully uses the tools of poetry to establish surprising connections. Also striking is the way in which he introduces religious and specific Christian perspectives in his poetry, unashamedly confessing to his Christian beliefs and verbalising the “Godsopenbarende kwaliteit van die dinge ...