Zimbabwe

Though it is rarely referenced within the world of the novel, Butterfly Burning is set in Zimbabwe between the years of 1945 and 1948, with an occasional reference to events of 1896. As such, readers may not be familiar with the historical events and context that shape this novel and that help to explain the special significance and resonance of the events that are contained in the novel. To start, 1896 in Zimbabwe’s history marks the Second Matabele War, a rebellion amongst the Matebele people against the British South Africa Company. This War eventually became known as the first Chimurenga, a Shona word for “revolutionary struggle.” (The Second Chimurenga, which is not detailed in this novel, took place in the 1960s and 1970s, as African nationalist guerrillas fought against the Rhodesian Army.) The opening scene of this novel, describing 17 men hanging in a tree, is an implicit reference to the violence...