My name is Charlotte Georgia Marais and I am a fourth year English Literature Honours student at the University of Cape Town. I obtained my undergraduate at UCT in 2012 majoring in English Literature and Gender Studies and my main area of interest academically is gender and Sexuality studies and LGBTI communities in South Africa.
I am particularly interested in testimony and life-writing and my Honours research examined prison writing during the apartheid era, exploring how gender and sexuality were constructed, and how the prison became a space where LGBTI rights were eventually acknowledged and enshrined into our democratic constitution.
I love travelling and have been lucky enough to have explored Northern India, Thailand, Cambodia and a few places in Europe. One of my biggest dreams is to backpack from Mexico all the way down to Argentina and I hope to do this once I have obtained my Masters degree. I am an avid reader and my favourite book is ‘The Shadow of the Wind’ by Carols Ruiz Zafon which tells the haunting tale of a young boy living in 1930’s Barcelona. I also adore musicals, The Rocky Horror Picture Show’ being my personal favourite and despite my lack of coordination or wonderful singing ability, I have a secret dream to be in a stage production of the show.
I am passionate about social transformation, gender equality, education and community upliftment. I hope that my time at Sonke equipped me with skills that link to social research and a better understanding of how grassroots work within communities can link to policy advocacy and positive change for all.
