Herman Charles Bosman

Herman Charles Bosman (3 February 1905 – 14 October 1951) is widely regarded as South Africa's greatest short-story writer.

He studied the works of Edgar Allan Poe and Mark Twain and developed a style emphasizing the use of satire.

His English-language works utilize primarily Afrikaner characters and highlight the many contradictions in Afrikaner society during the first half of the twentieth century.

Bosman was born at Kuils River, near Cape Town, in the Cape Colony, to an Afrikaner family.

He was raised with English as well as Afrikaans.

While Bosman was still young, his family travelled frequently, he spent a short time at Potchefstroom College which would later become Potchefstroom High School for Boys, he later moved to Johannesburg where he went to school at Jeppe High School for Boys in Kensington.

While there he contributed to the school magazine.

When Bosman was sixteen, he started writing short stories for the national Sunday newspaper (the Sunday Times).

Over the June school holidays in 1926, Bosman visited his family in Johannesburg.

During an argument, he shot and killed his stepbrother.

Bosman was sentenced to death for this crime and was sent to death row at the Pretoria Central Prison.

His sentence was later reduced to ten years with hard labour.

In 1930, Bosman was released on parole after serving half his sentence.

His prison experiences formed the basis for his semi-autobiographical book, Cold Stone Jug.

Bosman then started his own printing-press company and was part of a literary set in Johannesburg, associating with poets, journalists and writers, including Aegidius Jean Blignaut.

He toured overseas for nine years, spending most of his time in London.

The short stories that he wrote during this period formed the basis for another of his best-known books, Mafeking Road.

At the start of the Second World War, he returned to South Africa and worked as a journalist.

During this time he translated the Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam into Afrikaans.

Bosman lamented the fact that Johannesburg neglected its heritage.

In The Standard Theatre he complained that the city's residents:

"will pull down the Standard Theatre like they have pulled down all the old buildings, theatres, gin-palaces, dosshouses, temples, shops, arcades, cafes and joints that were intimately associated with the mining-camp days of Johannesburg. Because I know Johannesburg. And I am satisfied that there is no other city in the world that is so anxious to shake off the memories of its early origins."

Bosman's second wife was Ella Manson.

The couple were renowned for their bohemian lifestyle and parties, which featured witty conversation and usually ended well after midnight.

From 1948 to his death in 1951, Bosman was employed as proof editor at The Sunday Express.

In addition, he was contracted to write a weekly Voorkamer story for The Forum magazine.

His last wife was Helena Lake (née Stegmann).

After a housewarming party in October 1951, Bosman experienced severe chest pains and was taken to Edenvale Hospital.

On admission, he was asked for his birthplace.

He replied, "Born Kuilsrivier – Died Edenvale Hospital."

He was discharged and collapsed at home a few hours later.

Bosman died as he was being rushed to hospital.

In 1960, however, Helena sold some of his documents and 123 of his water colours and pencil sketches to the Harry Ransom Center in Texas.

Only three of his books were published during his lifetime: Mafeking Road published by Dassie, and Jacaranda in the Night and Cold Stone Jug published by APB.

He attended the Johannesburg College of Education (which in 2002 was incorporated into the University of the Witwatersrand) and submitted various pieces to student literary competitions.

After graduation, Bosman accepted a teaching position in the Groot Marico district in an Afrikaans-language school.

The area provided the backdrop for his best-known short stories, the Oom Schalk Lourens series (featuring an older character named Oom Schalk Lourens) and the Voorkamer sketches.

He is buried in Westpark Cemetery in Westdene under a triangular headstone that reads "Die Skrywer, The Writer, Herman Charles Bosman, b 3.2.1905, d 14.10.1951."

After his death, the rights to his works were auctioned.

They were purchased by his last wife, Helena, and upon her death, the rights were passed to her son, who retains them.