This paper opens the journal’s special section dedicated to Nelson Mandela’s memory on his centennial posthumous birthday (1918-2018). If receptive to the momentous tenets of the struggle for freedom and the steep walk to democracy, the present contribution investigates the ‘Madiba magic’ within a cultural sphere shot through with a 'fil vert'. That is to say, attention is paid to the material and discursive practices as well as the metaphorical meanings related to gardening, flowers and horticulture, botany and the scientific naming of plants (such as the “Nelson Mandela Rose” and the “Paravanda Nelson Mandela”). By treading a so-far largely unexplored path, this study delves into Mandela’s ecological views, a range of botanical specimens typical of (or developed in) South Africa, and a cluster of geopolitical allegories inspired by a set of features ingrained in flowers, plants and land stewardship. The ‘greening of Mandela’ can therefore be seen as a stimulating forum for a further discussion of the notions of care, nurturing and cooperative action, including the black leader’s horticultural interests and orchard-tending throughout his prison years.
L’articolo apre la sezione speciale che la rivista ha dedicato alla memoria di Nelson Mandela nel centenario della sua nascita (1918-2018). Pur dialogando con gli assunti imprescindibili della lotta per la libertà e il difficile percorso verso la democrazia nel contesto sudafricano, il presente contributo analizza la ‘Madiba magic’ nell’ambito di una sfera culturale contraddistinta da un ‘fil vert’. Oggetto di attenzione sono le pratiche materiali e discorsive e i significati metaforici legati al giardinaggio, ai fiori e all'orticoltura, alla botanica e alla nomenclatura delle piante (ad esempio, la “Nelson Mandela Rose” e la “Paravanda Nelson Mandela”). Percorrendo una strada finora poco battuta, questo studio si sofferma sul punto di vista ecologico di Mandela, su esemplari botanici autoctoni o comunque creati in Sudafrica e su allegorie geopolitiche ispirate a tratti connotativi di fiori, piante e tipologie di coltivazione. Il fenomeno connesso al ‘greening of Mandela’ offre dunque un’occasione ulteriore per riflettere sui concetti di cura, coltura e cooperazione, incluso il vivido interesse che lo stesso Mandela mostrò per l’orticoltura nei lunghi anni della prigionia.
“No Man is an Island”: Mandela, Flowers, and Gardening
LAURA GIOVANNELLI
2018-01-01
Abstract
This paper opens the journal’s special section dedicated to Nelson Mandela’s memory on his centennial posthumous birthday (1918-2018). If receptive to the momentous tenets of the struggle for freedom and the steep walk to democracy, the present contribution investigates the ‘Madiba magic’ within a cultural sphere shot through with a 'fil vert'. That is to say, attention is paid to the material and discursive practices as well as the metaphorical meanings related to gardening, flowers and horticulture, botany and the scientific naming of plants (such as the “Nelson Mandela Rose” and the “Paravanda Nelson Mandela”). By treading a so-far largely unexplored path, this study delves into Mandela’s ecological views, a range of botanical specimens typical of (or developed in) South Africa, and a cluster of geopolitical allegories inspired by a set of features ingrained in flowers, plants and land stewardship. The ‘greening of Mandela’ can therefore be seen as a stimulating forum for a further discussion of the notions of care, nurturing and cooperative action, including the black leader’s horticultural interests and orchard-tending throughout his prison years.I documenti in IRIS sono protetti da copyright e tutti i diritti sono riservati, salvo diversa indicazione.
