The Prison Letters of Nelson Mandela

April 2, 2018
The value of this epistolary trove isn’t limited to scholars of the decades-long struggle against apartheid, though Venter’s diligent collection and annotation is certainly tailored for research purposes. Drawn from Mandela’s letters to family, friends, comrades, admirers, and even his own jailers, this dense and vivid archive goes from his 1962 incarceration on the infamous Robben Island to his 1990 release from Victor Verster Prison, paving the way for his election in 1994 as South Africa’s first black president. Throughout, his insistence on correct legal procedure and unflinching advocacy for his beliefs demonstrates the conviction that marked Mandela as a leading statesman, even while behind bars. More personal correspondence, such as those mourning the death of his oldest son in his absence, reveal the high price the South African government exacted from him. Always thoughtful, Mandela is particularly eloquent when engaging his oppressors directly, as in a 1971 letter (originally in Afrikaans) to the commander of Robben Island: “Only a person armed with love for his fellow human beings, and who cares about others, will succeed where force and power will be applied in vain.” Anyone seeking to understand one of the guiding lights of the antiapartheid fight will find these letters a vital resource.