The Sociology of South Africa: A Review Article¶
John Rex (1975). The Sociology of South Africa: A Review Article. Journal of Southern African Studies, Vol. 1, No. 2. Taylor & Francis.
| Type | journal article |
| Scope | Wider apartheid literature |
| Method | synthesis review |
| Period studied | 1900–1975 |
| Regions | South Africa, Southern Africa, Bantustans/reserves |
| Themes | comparative theory, business and state, politics ideology elections, bantustans removals influx, labour markets wages, sanctions divestment |
| Citation key | rex1975 |
Argument¶
Rex surveys sociological writing on South Africa and argues that its distinctive contribution is concern with the whole social structure. The central macro-level dispute is whether South Africa is a pre-capitalist, sub-capitalist or regressed capitalist society, or follows the inherent logic of capitalism. He holds that plural society theory (Furnivall, M. G. Smith) fits poorly where segments are dynamically tied to industrial capitalism, though a modified version might apply. He sides with Adam's view of a symbiosis between apartheid and capitalism: capitalism has more to gain than lose from apartheid, above all from cheap unskilled labour. Afrikaner nationalism must therefore adopt a new face (verligte vs verkrampte). The review is a sketch and not a comprehensive survey.
Evidence and method¶
A literature review of sociological, anthropological, historical and Marxist works on South Africa (Kuper, van den Berghe, Wolpe, Adam, Mayer, Horwitz, Davies, Legassick, Johnstone and others), with a closing bibliography. There is no original data.
Place in the debates¶
- Is South Africa capitalist, or pre-/sub-capitalist (archaic structures, plural society)? (see Liberal vs revisionist: was apartheid functional or dysfunctional for capitalist growth?). Rex rejects plural society theory as normally applied, because segments are dynamically tied to capitalist industrial development. He allows a revised version in which groups shaped by history play a functional role within a basically capitalist society.
- Liberal vs Marxist views on apartheid and capitalist growth (see Liberal vs revisionist: was apartheid functional or dysfunctional for capitalist growth?). Rex notes that both camps use the logic of industrial capitalism. He sides with Adam against the liberals: capitalism gains from apartheid, especially from cheap unskilled labour.
- Cause of rising black wages / crisis in the reserves (see Racial wage gaps, wage convergence and wage determination). Rex questions attributing wage changes to a reserve crisis, since the crisis was recorded from the late 1940s. He calls for analysis of what happened in the reserve economy after 1950.
- Role of Bantustans and border industries (see Homelands, separate development, decentralisation and removals). He sees the question of whether border industries are seriously pursued as an open and important argument. Political sociologists differ on how far the Bantustans threaten stability, and Rex leans pessimistic.
- Investment vs disinvestment as external strategy (see Sanctions, disinvestment and the anti-apartheid movement). He is sceptical that the policy studies can show which strategy is superior, given the lack of experimental control.
Findings¶
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The distinctive contribution of sociology is its concern with totality, even at the cost of generalisation. (p. 3)
it is a concern with totality which seems to be uniquely the contribution of sociology in the study of South Africa.
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The main macro-level dispute is whether South Africa is a non-capitalist society or follows the logic of capitalism. (p. 3)
whether South Africa is to be understood as a pre-capitalist, sub-capitalist or regressed capitalist society on the one hand, or as following the inherent logic of capitalism on the other.
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Plural society theory is poorly suited to South Africa because its segments are dynamically connected to capitalist development. (p. 4)
it ceases to make much sense to talk of separate areas, regions and cultures as though they were in no way connected with the larger society.
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Liberal and Marxist writers share the logic-of-capitalism premise but predict different outcomes. (p. 4)
From the liberal point of view the development of capitalist investment is bound to lead to the sweeping away of the apartheid system, while from the marxist point of view South Africa is likely to move to a situation in which class conflict increasingly replaces racial conflict.
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Rex doubts that studies of investment policy can establish whether free investment or withdrawal is the better strategy. (p. 5)
It is hard as yet to see how such studies can in fact achieve the condition of experimental control
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The attribution of black wage movements to a reserve-labour crisis is questioned, since the crisis was recorded decades earlier. (p. 5)
There has, however, been a crisis in the reserves which has been recorded since the late 1 940s
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Whether border industries will transform reserve economies is an open question, tied to the political and economic role of the Bantustans. (p. 5)
whether or not the South African Government is seriously carrying through a programme of developing border industries which would transform the economy of the reserves.
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Capitalism gains from apartheid, especially through cheap unskilled labour, despite liberal theory. (p. 6)
capitalism has more to gain than to lose from the existence of apartheid, especial- ly in terms of the continued availability of cheap unskilled labour.
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The verligte/verkrampte split is explained as Afrikaner nationalism adapting to maintain its alliance with industrialists. (p. 6)
in order to sustain the relationship with in- dustrialists Afrikaner nationalism has to show a new face.
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The Bantustans are seen as a potential threat to stability, and external military pressure is a growing field of study. (p. 6)
Possibly all political sociologists of South Africa would see the Bantustans as a potential threat to the stability of the social and political order
Evidence ledger¶
Sources used¶
| Source | Kind | Period | How used |
|---|---|---|---|
| Social and Economic Planning Council Report No. 9 | commission or official report | late 1940s | Cited as an early official record of a crisis in the reserves, used to question attributing recent black wage movements to a new reserve labour crisis. |
| Tomlinson Commission findings | commission or official report | 1950s | Cited as substantiating the earlier recorded reserve crisis. |
Inference¶
Quantification: None.
Review essay: the author surveys and classifies the sociological literature on South Africa by competing macro-models (plural society, liberal capitalist, Marxist, Adam's modernising racial domination) and assesses them by theoretical argument and brief reference to other studies. He generally offers no original data analysis.
Key claims¶
| Claim | Basis | Strength |
|---|---|---|
| The central sociological debate is whether South Africa is a pre-, sub- or regressed capitalist society or follows the inherent logic of capitalism. (p. 248) | Synthesis of the secondary literature (van den Berghe, Horwitz, Wolpe, Adam, etc.); no primary data. | Asserted |
| Plural society theory, developed for Indonesia and the Caribbean, fits South Africa poorly because its segments are dynamically tied to capitalist industrial development. (p. 249) | Theoretical argument and contrast with Furnivall and M. G. Smith cases; no data. | Asserted |
| The reserve crisis long predates recent black wage movements, so those movements cannot simply be explained by a new reserve labour crisis; the post-1950 reserve economy still needs to be examined. (p. 250) | SEPC Report No. 9 and Tomlinson Commission findings, cited in passing. | Partial data |
| Capitalism has more to gain than lose from apartheid, especially through a continued supply of cheap unskilled labour, despite some mining and industrial resistance to doctrinaire apartheid. (p. 251) | Author's judgment, drawing on Adam's book and his own essays; no evidence cited. | Asserted |
| Studies of whether foreign investment or disinvestment is the better strategy cannot achieve the experimental control needed to prove either position. (p. 250) | Methodological judgment on the African Publications Trust Study Project; no data. | Asserted |
| White workers benefit from the appropriation of surplus value from black workers, which complicates the class analysis of black and white workers. (p. 250) | Reported from Davies's New Left Review article; not evaluated with data. | Asserted |
The author's caveats¶
The author concedes the survey is not comprehensive and that macro-model sociology leads to large generalizations and historical inaccuracies. He notes that difficulties of access to locations hamper empirical urban research.
Gaps in the evidence¶
The argument about the reserve economy and wage trends needs systematic data on reserve agricultural output, migrant labour flows and black mine and industrial wages since 1950. Such series existed then in official statistics, census data and Chamber of Mines records. Claims about capitalism's interest in apartheid would need firm-level and employer-association evidence on labour policy, which is now available in archives.
Replicability: Not applicable.