Literature & Ideas
Landmark
Es'kia Mphahlele
1919 – 2008
Down Second Avenue, and the founding of African Humanism
Landmark is level 2 of 4 in the South Africa Hall of Fame: a first that opened a door, or the pre-eminent figure of their generation in this country. See how the levels work.
Why they are here
Banned from teaching, he went into exile and published Down Second Avenue in London in 1959 — one of the founding books of modern African literature.
Es'kia Mphahlele was a South African writer, educationist, artist and activist, born on 17 December 1919.
Banned from teaching in South Africa, he went into exile and published his autobiography Down Second Avenue in London in 1959. He is celebrated as the father of African Humanism and among the founding figures of modern African literature. He died on 27 October 2008.
Banned from teaching in South Africa, he went into exile and published his autobiography Down Second Avenue in London in 1959. He is celebrated as the father of African Humanism and among the founding figures of modern African literature. He died on 27 October 2008.
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