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LEGON JOURNALOF THE

HUMANITIES

LEGON JOURNAL OF THEHUMANITIES

Volume 30.1 (2019)

COLLEGE OF HUMANITIES UNI-VERSITY OF GHANA

ISSN: 0855-1502E-ISSN: 2458 – 746X

Legon Journal of the Humanities Vol. 30.1 (2019) iv

LEGON JOURNAL OF THE HUMANITIES

VOLUME 30.1 (2019)

EditorGordon Senanu Kwame Adika

Assistant EditorGladys Nyarko Ansah

COLLEGE OF HUMANITIESUNIVERSITY OF GHANA

ISSN: 0855-1502E-ISSN: 2458 – 746X

This issue was produced with financial support from the Carnegie Corporation of New York through the University of Ghana Building A New Generation of

Academics in Africa (BANGA-Africa) Project.

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Legon Journal of the Humanities is published by the College of Humanities, University of Ghana

Legon Journal of the Humanities Vol. 30.1 (2019) v

EDITORIAL BOARDNana Aba A. Amfo …………………………………………...........………....……ChairProfessor of LinguisticsDean, School of Languages, College of HumanitiesUniversity of Ghana, Legon, [email protected]

Gordon Senanu Kwame Adika ……………………............………………EditorAssociate Professor, Language Centre,College of HumanitiesUniversity of Ghana, Legon, [email protected]

Gladys Nyarko Ansah …………………………………..........…Assistant EditorSenior Lecturer, Department of EnglishSchool of Languages, College of HumanitiesUniversity of Ghana, Legon, [email protected]

Esi Sutherland-Addy ………………………………………...........…………MemberAssociate ProfessorInstitute of African Studies, College of HumanitiesUniversity of Ghana, Legon, [email protected]

Susanne Gehrmann ..........………………………………............………...Mem-berProfessor of African Literatures and CulturesDepartment of Asian and African StudiesHumboldt University, Berlin, [email protected]

Sabelo J. Ndlovu-Gatsheni …………………………………............…...MemberProfessor, Department of Development StudiesProfessor and Head, Archie Mafeje Research Institute (AMRI)University of South Africa, Pretoria, South [email protected]

Cas Wepener ………………………...........…………………………..…………MemberProfessor of Religions and HeadDepartment of Practical TheologyUniversity of Pretoria, South Africa

Legon Journal of the Humanities Vol. 30.1 (2019) vi

[email protected]

Joshua Amuah ……………………………………...........……………………..MemberSenior Lecturer and HeadDepartment of MusicSchool of Performing Arts, College of [email protected]

EDITORIAL ASSISTANTKofi Asante Twumasi

PAST EDITORS1974-1977: Lawrence A. Boadi1987-1994: John N. D. Dodoo1994-1999: Alex K. Dzameshie1999-2003: E. Kweku Osam2004-2009: Gordon S. K. Adika2009-2015: Helen A. Yitah2016-2018: Augustine Asaah

ADVISORY BOARDMoradewun Adejunmobi, Professor, African American and African Studies, University of California, Davis, USA.

Emmanuel K. Akyeampong, Professor of History; Professor of African and American Studies, Center for Government and International Studies, Harvard University, Cambridge-MA, USA.

Li Anshan, Professor of International Relations; Director, Institute of Afro-Asian Studies and Center for African Studies, Peking University; Vice-President, Chinese African Studies, China.

Hyun-Chin Lim, Professor Emeritus of Sociology, Founding Director of Asia Center, Seoul National University; President, Korean Social Science Re-search Council, Korea.

Dorothy Odartey-Wellington, Associate Professor of Spanish, School of Languages and Literatures, University of Guelph, Canada.

David Owusu-Ansah, Professor of History; Executive Director, Faculty Access and Inclusion, James Madison University, Harrisonburg-VA, USA.

Legon Journal of the Humanities Vol. 30.1 (2019) vii

Nicola Piper, Professor of International Migration, Department of Sociol-ogy and Social Policy, Director of Human Rights and Democratization (Asia Pacific), The University of Sidney; Convener, Sidney Asia Pacific Migration Network (SAPMIN), Australia.

Laud Ato Quayson, Professor and Director, Center for Transnational and Diaspora Studies, University of Toronto, Canada.

João José Reis, Professor, Department of History, Federal University of Bahia, Salvador, Brazil.

Maria Koptjevskaja Tamm, Professor of General Linguistics, Depart-ment of Linguistics, Stockholm University, Sweden.

Email: [email protected]; [email protected]

Legon Journal of the Humanities Vol. 30.1 (2019) viii

For further details, (e.g. guide for contributors, copyright, etc.), kindly go to the journal’s website: http://coh.ug.edu.gh/ljh

Legon Journal of the Humanities Vol. 30.1 (2019) ix

Table of Contents

African motherhood proverbs and worldview: A matriarchal perspective 3

Dominica Dipio

Proverbs in marriage: Counselling role and implications 26

Charles Owu-Ewie

Theorising pornogrammar in the Akan folktale tradition: The trickster’s rhetorical indirection and sexual indiscretion

57

J.B. Amissah-Arthur

The loudness of the “Unsaid”: Proverbs in selected African drama 86

Gbemisola Adeoti

Proverbs and naturalness in mother-tongue translation: the Dagaare New

Testament in perspective

110

Solomon Ali Dansieh

Use of proverbs as communicative tool in Ghanaian choral music compositions 140

Joshua Alfred AmuahHilarius Mawutor Wuaku

Towards a sociolinguistic analysis of the current relevance of androcentric proverbs in Peninsular Spanish

170

Benedicta Adokarley Lomotey

Race, taxonomies, and proverbs in Latin American and the Caribbean Discourse

189

Maimouna Sankhé

Ogya ne atuduro nna faako - Fire and gunpowder do not sleep together: Teaching and learning Materials Science and Engineering with African proverbs

207

Kwadwo Osseo-Asare

Legon Journal of the Humanities Vol. 30.1 (2019) 1

Introduction to Special IssueThis special issue is a collection of articles which cover a wide range of topics on proverbs. The papers, most of which emanate from a selection of high quality presentations from the Second School of Languages Colloquium (University of Ghana) have undergone rigorous double blind peer review.

Focusing mainly on African proverbs, the topics addressed by the authors span over several sub-disciplines of Linguistics, Literature, Music, and Education. The authors have probed and interrogated intensely the issues they address. Dominica Dipio’s article, African Motherhood Proverbs and Worldview: A Matriarchal Perspective, reflects on how life is organized around the mother in a predominantly patriarchal African society while Charles Owu-Ewie expounds on the use of proverbs to advise couples on virtues in marriage contractions in his paper, Proverbs in Marriage: Their counselling role and implications. Joseph Brookman Amissah-Arthur investigates the rhetorical strategies of the famous trickster ‘Ananse’ in Akan folktale in his article titled Theorising Pornogrammar in the Akan Folktale Tradition: The Trickster’s Rhetorical Indirection and Sexual Indiscretion. Gbemisola Adeoti reflects on the use of proverbs as a verbal resource for enriched communication in African drama in his article The Loudness of the ‘Unsaid’: Proverbs in Selected African Drama. Solomon Ali Dansieh investigates the effectiveness of the use of proverbs to achieve naturalness in Bible translation in his article Proverbs and Naturalness in Mother-Tongue Translation: The Dagaare New Testament in Perspective. In their paper Use of Proverbs as Communicative Tool in Ghanaian Choral Music Compositions Joshua Alfred Amuah and Hilarius Mawutor Wuaku analyse the use of proverbs as effective communicative tool in Ghanaian choral music composition. Benedicta Adokarley Lomotey embarks on an investigation into the existence and effects of sexist proverbs in Spanish communities. Maimouna Sankhé examines the use of proverbs and taxonomies in discourse to negotiate hegemony in Latin America and the Caribbean in Race, Taxonomies, and Proverbs in Latin American and the Caribbean Discourse. Lastly, touching on the didactic role of proverbs in formal education, Kwadwo Osseo-Asare’s Ogya ne atuduro nna faako - Fire and gunpowder do not sleep together: Teaching and learning Materials Science and Engineering with African proverbs advocates the use of proverbs in the teaching of Material Science and Engineering to enhance students’ cognitive understanding of the subject.


Evidently, each of the papers in this publication constitutes an immense contribution to knowledge and together they fill a significant gap in the study of proverbs from varied perspectives.

Guest EditorsJosephine Dzahene-QuarshieNana Ama Agyeman


DOI: https://dx.doi.org/10.4314/ljh.v30i1.1

African motherhood proverbs and worldview: A matriarchal perspective

Dominica DipioProfessor

Makerere UniversityKampala, Uganda

Email: [email protected]/[email protected]

Submitted: April 12, 2018 / Accepted: December 12, 2018 / Published: October 4, 2019

Abstract

The ‘mother’ is a distinct female category that is prevalent in African folklore and art forms. Her prominence is mostly related to her centrality in the family – the basic cell of society. Because of her

indelible connection to the children, she is consequently at the centre of the economy and spirituality of the family/community. The body and soul of the family rests in the mother’s hand. This large space she occupies is evident in proverbs and sayings about her role in African society. Using selected proverbs across Africa, this paper examines how life is organised around the mother even if Africa is, today, predominantly referred to as a patriarchal society. The theoretical thoughts of Africanist scholars like Cheik Anta Diop and Ifi Amadiume, whose scholarships show traces of Africa’s matriarchal and matrilineal pastbefore the force of patriarchy eroded them underpin my analysis. Folklore, and particularly proverbs are repositories of a community’s memory that bear traces of older cultures that may still be discernible in contemporary culture. My analysis of proverbs as pointers to the matriarchal traces of African communities draws from Heide Goettner-Abendroth’s research on matriarchal societies around the world. The research findings indicate that both from the perspective of proverbs, symbolic expressions of culture and observances from everyday lived experiences, Africa’s matriarchal origin is undeniable.


Keywords: motherhood, African proverbs, African worldview, matriarchy, patriarchy

IntroductionScholars have conducted fascinating researches on proverbs from diverse angles: linguistic (Beck, 2005); ethnographic (Arewa & Dundes, 1964); rhetorical, artistic and aesthetic (Yankah, 1986, 1989); gender and women perspectives (Kiyimba, 2005, Diabah & Appiah Amfo, 2005), and others. All these researches point to how the proverb genre is a rich and inexhaustible field of research. This is partly because proverbs yield meaning in specific contexts. As an art form, proverbs are particularly celebrated in Africa not just because Africa is predominantly a non-literate culture as theorists like Ong suggest (1982, p. 11). There are, as Yamaha observes, other non-literate communities like the Australian Aborigines and American Indians, where proverb use is not as diffused. In Africa proverbs are employed for their functionality as much as for aesthetic reasons (Yamaha, 1989, p. 326), making Chinua Achebe’s description of proverbs use among the Igbo as ‘the palm oil with which words are eaten’ an apt expression of this aesthetic function. In terms of definition, scholars are agreed about the essential qualities of proverbs being brevity and pithiness, wittiness and cleverness. But this, by no means, is a closed definition. Proverbs at times embed riddles, parables and anecdotes, although these genres exist in their own rights. Thus, proverbs are characteristically symbolic and allusive, making their contextual interpretation open-ended (Finnegan, 1970, 390 & 441; Yankah, 1989). Within the cultural contexts of their usage, proverbs have come to be associated with the ‘truth’ and the sagacious. The categories of proverbs that interest me in this paper are those related to the specific category of womanhood called ‘mother’. My selection is influenced by the thoughts of Africanist scholars who argue that Africa was a matriarchal and matrilineal society long before the force of patriarchy eroded it.

Folklore, and particularly proverbs are repositories of a community’s memory that may bear the traces of an older culture that may have changed today. As such, proverbs gain traction because they are generally accepted as affirming commonly held beliefs, although some of these truths may be contestable and ambiguous (Mieder 2003). Although cultures are diverse, it is intriguing how women and particularly mothers are described in similar


ways across culture (Schipper, 1991, p. 4). Scholars tend to emphasize how women, in folklore, are cast in negative light (Weinger et al, 2006; Kiyimba, 2005; Hussein, 2009). Others who use different lenses to challenge the binary and stereotypical interpretation of gender in African folktales came up with more ennobling conclusions about women’s position in African community. Wulemat (2013) analysed folktales for evidence of male superiority and female inferiority but he found none of such evidence. Other scholars like Kabaji (2005) wrote about the complex and non-essential way gender is played in folktales. In this paper, I use Goettner-Abendroth’s theory to explore the traces of matriarchy in the proverbs about women, particularly mothers. In its complexity, the category woman defies a single definition: she is a daughter, a sister, a wife, a mother, a mother-in-law, and a grandmother. In each of her diverse roles, she is positioned differently in the community, although there are some areas of overlap.

Theoretical FrameworkMy analysis of motherhood proverbs is situated in the theoretical thoughts of Afrocentric, gender and matriarchy scholars who question the application of ‘received’ and Eurocentric lenses in analysing African experiences. This is the perception that Africa is and has always been, en masse and un-problematically, under patriarchy. In his two-cradle theory, Diop argues that the world is divided into two cradles of civilisation: the patriarchal north whose origin is Greece (Europe) and the matriarchal south, source of human civilisation, originating from Africa (Egypt). Although most African communities are described as patriarchal today, traces and residues of the old matriarchy can be gleaned in African folklores like proverbs and other symbolic cultural practices. Scholars like Amaidume (1987), Oyewumi (1997) and Nzegwu (2006) have, using sociological and historical research, questioned the notion that patriarchy was the hegemonic order in the particular African communities they studied. Although the different genders have their roles, the relationship was not characterised by the dominance of one gender over the other, but rather mutuality. Their researches also point to the existence of a dual-sex system that emphasized complementarity rather than gender hierarchy. These observations form part of what Goettner-Abendroth (2012) describes as characteristic of matriarchal societies.

Goettner-Abendroth who has devoted the better of her scholarship in researching matriarchies around the world, provides the theoretical tools for


identifying matriarchies and their traces in contemporary cultures. Using these characteristics, I locate the residues of matriarchy in the proverbs about women, particularly mothers. Although matriarchal institutions are not homogeneous in their structures, Goettner-Abendroth in the introductory chapter identifies the following recurrent features of matriarchies that are affirmed by feminist and matriarchy scholars like Vaughan’s (2007) and Von Werlhof (2001).

1. A matriarchal structure is basically an extended family headed by a matriarch where lineage follows the mother’s line, right back to the great ancestress – the founding woman.1

2. Inheritance, identity, wealth and politics are determined through and around the matri-clan. To this effect, the Kongo (Congo) have a proverb: ‘A clan with female posterity cannot perish.’

3. The economic life of the community is in the hands of women, and the economy is largely agricultural; and property may also be passed from mother to children. Gardening, working the land to produce crops is central to matriarchal identity and spirituality.

4. Men, on behalf of the matriarch, engaged in external affairs – public relations or politics with outside communities. The man could be a son, a brother to the matriarch or a husband. This varies from one community to the other.2

5. As reproductive agents, women pay great attention to their sexuality, and the ritual initiation into womanhood is a significant transition for all females (see Tamale, 2005).

6. Generally, marriage is not institutionalised. This allows for flexible marriage arrangements where unsatisfactory relationships are easy to terminate. Bride-price payment is

1 Although in the Buganda foundational myth/legend the emphasis is put on Kintu as the founding father, and the Baganda refer to themselves as baana ba Kintu, and not as baana ba Nambi, my analysis of the key symbols in this narrative points to Nambi as the f ounding mother of matriarchal Buganda. The manner in which the marriage came about also corresponds with the principles laid out by Goettner-Abendroth.2 In the context of Buganda, ekisaakate cultural school that is promoted by the queen mother of Buganda to continue the specialised tradition of female education for adulthood is one such manifestation of the traces of matriarchal culture in contemporary society.


not part of matriarchal arrangement. Pride-price payment is typical of patriarchy with its emphasis on exchange value (Vaughan, 2007). In matri-local communities where children are raised in the mother’s household, they may take her name as the family name. A woman also has greater agency in choosing her husband who comes to live in the matri-clan. Fathers play minimum role in children upbringing, and at times a father’s identity may not even be known; and yet there is no stigma attached to this because life is organised around the mother.

7. In most matriarchies, women’s roles transcend their presidency over domestic and economic affairs: they also take charge of the spirituality of the community, especially officiating in rituals related to the fertility of Mother Earth (productivity of crops) and women’s re-productivity which are linked.

8. The children have strong connection and allegiance to the matri-line. The maternal uncle and aunt occupy special place in the life of the nieces and the nephews.

9. There is usually clear separation of non-hierarchical power between men and women: a kind of dual-sex gender roles that emphasize complementarity. (Goettner-Abendroth 2012, p. xxvi)

10. Where clan chiefs are always male, it is the women who select them, and they can also remove them if they fail to play their role well.3

Goettner-Abendroth (2012, p. xvi) emphasises that matriarchy is not the opposite of patriarchy: it is not a ‘rule by’ or ‘domination by mothers.’ Coming from the Greek word ‘arche’, which means ‘the beginning’, matriarchy refers to ‘the mothers from the beginning.’ This can be in reference to both the beginning of life, and to ‘the cultural fact that they also created the beginning of culture itself.’ In this sense the word has nothing to do with the association of patriarchy with domination and control of the other gender. This is an important point to note in reference to the representation of the mother 3 To date among the Baganda, for instance, the daughters are responsible for choosing an heir if a father failed to name one among his sons.


through proverbs. Goettner-Abendroth observes that, ‘[c]ontrary to this, by virtue of giving birth to the group, to the next generation, and therefore to society, mothers clearly are the beginning; in matriarchy they have no need to enforce it by domination.’ (p. xvi) In the current predominantly patriarchal cultures, what remains of matriarchy are fragments, ‘distorted by thick layers of historically recent interpretations.’ (p. xix) However, these misinterpretations have not totally erased the traces of the features of former matriarchies, let alone those that are still active in Africa.4The oral traditions of a people (e.g. folktales and proverbs) are as significant pointers to Africans’ matriarchy as historical and archaeological evidences. (p. xxi)

MethodologyI used qualitative methodology and matriarchal theoretical perspective to analyse about 300 proverbs from around Africa related to the images of women in proverbs. Cumulatively, the proverbs were the primary data I used to reach the conclusions in this research. Two hundred and twenty (220) of these were from secondary sources, mostly drawn from Schipper’s (1991) Sources of Evil: African Proverbs and Sayings on Women; and 57 were from interviews I conducted on my research topic, ‘Mother-centred Africa through the Lens of Folktales’.5 I clustered the proverbs into sub-themes to identify the connecting threads in the proverbs on womanhood in general and motherhood in particular. These were then subjected to close critical reading within specific cultural contexts to unearth new shades of meanings enshrouded in proverbs on motherhood as pointers to Africa’s now invisible matriarchal past. Most of the proverbs in Schipper’s collection show how women are as ‘sources of evil’.

Using Goettner-Abendroth’s tools of matriarchal analysis, the same proverbs yield fresh and empowering meanings about women and mothers who emerge to be at the centre of the society.6In my analysis, I searched for 4 The Bantu in Central West and North Africa are among the ancient matriarchies in the continent. Traces of matriarchal organisation still exist in these regions. There are existing matriarchal communities like the Bemba and the Luapula in Zambia, the Chewa in Malawi. (see Goettner-Abendroth, chapters 16, 17 and 18).5The data for this article is drawn from my Cambridge Africa Programme for Research Excellence (CAPREx) fellowship (2016-2017). I am grateful to CAPREx ALBORADA fund for the support.6 It was difficult to find proverbs on fatherhood that are equivalent to those on motherhood. The few proverbs about men relate to the community’s perception of them as courageous warriors, hunters, and players in diplomacy in the public sphere. This reflection reinforces Goettner-Abendroth’s definition of the identities of matriarchal societies outlined above.


traces of Africa’s foundational matriarchal structure, particularly claimed by scholars like Diop (1963) and Goettner-Abendroth (2012, chapters 16, 17, 18). The conclusions derived from close reading and textual analysis of the proverbs. My subjective interpretation of the proverbs is framed within matriarchal and feminist lenses. The analysis is grouped under the following proverb clusters: on womanhood in general, on wifehood, on motherhood, on grand-motherhood, on mothers-in-law, and on traces of matriarchal culture in proverbs and contemporary culture.

FindingsBelow are the findings of the research.

Womanhood CategoriesIn Africa, the expected destiny of every female is to become a mother. Proverbs on womanhood show that in patriarchy, characterised by the ‘exchange economy’, females are perceived differently in the various stages of their lives. In the patriarchal gender hierarchy, a female is ranked below a man; and in the hierarchical category of womanhood, a wife is on the lowest ladder. The wife is a marginal insider-outsider whose position improves with longevity in the marital home. She occupies the complex place of being both inside and outside in both the patri and marital clans (see Amadiume, 1987; Nzegwu 2006). Her allegiance is to both sides of her identity. Yet, a wife – an outsider – is also a potential mother. Her position and circumstances improve when she becomes a mother of grown sons (as the daughters, in many African communities, move out to become wives and mothers elsewhere). As a mother, especially of grown children the woman’s identity as ‘wife’ – associated with marginality – is diminished. She comes to be referred to as ‘the mother of’ so and so, as a respectful appellation. In this position and the one that follows – grandmother – she wields even greater respect. Often, proverbs on ‘plain’ womanhood are contradictory and mean, as they tend to separate the female from the mother. The following examples illustrate the point: ‘A woman has no safe abode’ (Lango/Uganda) is a proverb that points to her mobility and therefore non-dependability. But motherhood becomes a powerful tool for her to negotiate her stability in a home. Another example, ‘Two women cannot brew porridge well’ (Kigezi/Uganda) is a proverb that claims women rarely cooperate among themselves. But this


claim is contradicted by the frequent reference to women as collaborative team players. Thus, one proverb may represent woman as central to the wellbeing of a functional family or community; another may depict her as a simpleton to be dismissed or at best tolerated. For example: ‘A home that has a woman/wife can easily be identified/known’ (Bagisu/Uganda); versus ‘Women are like gourds: they cannot balance’ (Gikuyu/Kenya). These are examples that show that the complex story about the woman cannot be told in a linear, homogeneous manner. It also alludes to the patriarchal voice behind most of the proverbs that try to manipulate and control the agency of the woman.

While there are contradictions in society’s generic perception of women, the same society unanimously regards the mother as great. The category ‘girl or daughter’ is positively distinct from the general pool of woman-folk. Proverbs about a daughter express how patriarchal society with its exchange principle values her. She is linked to the mother, the noble role model she is expected to follow. Like the mother, she is portrayed as a donor to the community. She lives to serve others. She is valued and protected as a source of wealth both for the family she will marry into and the patri-clan she leaves behind. In the past, it was the resources girls fetched, through dowry (in terms of cows) that made clans and communities rich. A father (patriarchy) ensured that a daughter got married off well.7In Goettner-Abendroth’s (2012) structural definition of matriarchy, she makes a distinction between patriarchy and matriarchy in terms of economy. She refers to matriarchal economy as a balanced economy where women distribute goods. This economic relation ensures mutuality as it is ‘based on the circulation of gifts.’ (p. xxvi) This principle is expressed in Vaughan’s (2007) theory of matriarchy as ‘gift economy’. It contrasts with the ‘exchange economy’ aligned to patriarchy and capitalism; where the ‘gift principle’ is marginalised in the interest of profitmaking. ‘Mothering’, usually done by women, is a prime example of gift giving behaviour. ‘Mothering requires direct gift giving to children, however, and since mothering is usually socially assigned to women, many women practise the gift mode of distribution during the time they are caring for children, and continue to do so even when they are not (and often practise it even if they never have children).’ On the other hand, ‘Exchange competes with gift giving by capturing the abundance, channelling it into the hands of the few or wasting it, thus creating scarcity for the many. Gift giving, 7 African folktales are replete with tales of how fathers worry because a daughter refuses to get married and rejects all the suitors who present themselves. The father then sets a test to choose a suitor for her.


which is easy and delightful in abundance becomes difficult and even self-sacrificial in scarcity.’ (p. 371) These observations of Vaughan are reflected in proverbs about daughters and mothers.

The proverbs portray a daughter as greatly valued for her service and endowment functions. The challenge comes when there is no son in the family. This is understandable in patrilineal communities where the continuity of the family depends on the male issue. But this is not the case in matrilineal communities where descent follows the mother’s line – a female issue.8This proverb, from the Woyo from Congo, underscores this link between the girl child and the numerical growth of a community: ‘A girl is a peanut seed: she enlarges the clan.’ She is treasured as a potential mother. The multiplication of the clan, particularly in matrilineal communities, depends on the female stock. In the logic of patriarchy, she may be seen depreciatively, but patriarchy cannot deny that she ‘brings forth’ sons into the family, both as biological children and as sons-in-law. Some proverbs that show the community’s attitude towards girls are: ‘The girl child removes dirt/rubbish from eyes’ (Bagisu/ Uganda); ‘The mother of a daughter never lacks salt in the house’ (Rwanda); and the Buganda proverb that portrays the girl-child as a gift to the community: ‘A girl child is like a mutuba tree: those who profit did not plant it.’

The WifeI find the category of proverbs about the wife controversial and the male point of view is more evident in them. The tone ranges from playfulness to meanness. Embedded in this tone is the fear of being unable to control and dominate the wife all the time. The wife is portrayed as a source of trouble, and yet a man cannot do without her. The good wife is expected to be a continuation of one’s mother: serviceable and self-sacrificing. This is expressed in the Hausa proverb, ‘Lacking a mother, one takes a wife.’ Other examples are: ‘Better a bad wife than an empty house’ (Baule/Ivory Coast); ‘A wife is like a blanket: cover yourself, it irritates you; cast it aside, you feel the cold’ (Ashanti); ‘A wife is like an old cooking pot: you don’t let your 8 An example of matrilineal community is the Chewa, found in both Malawi and Zambia. The birth of a baby boy is announced by a female who ululates as she comes out of the hut; and that of a baby girl is announced as announcer enters the maternity hut. The gestures speak for themselves: the boy is an outsider, while the girl is an insider. In this structure, it is sad for a family not to give birth to females as this forebodes the death of the matriline (Interview with Edward Kanyike, 2017). This example shows that the supremacy of the male child is not a ‘universal’ standard in Africa.


friend keep it for you’ (Baganda); and ‘They marry a wife because of the child.’ (Mamprusi/Burkina Faso)

Some proverbs represent wives as challengers of the status quo who assert their individuality and agency. They show women are diverse: there are those who can endure a brutal marriage and there are those who cannot. In the theory and practice of matriarchy marriage is seen as a convenient institution that is not necessarily permanent (Goettner-Abendroth, 2012, p. 389). When it becomes unsatisfactory, the contract ends without bad feelings. The proverbs reveal how wives have always resisted bad marriages. Two Baganda proverbs highlight this: ‘She who says, “Oh misery!” will die in her married state; she who says, “I cannot bear it” will leave.’ It is desirable for marriages to be permanent, but they do not have to, particularly in matriarchal social structures. Two Baganda proverbs say: ‘Your wife may flee you but she does not die’; and ‘Your woman runs away, but she does not defame you’. In the African context, one of the most important values in marriage is the connections and relationships it creates beyond the two individuals involved. The above proverbs acknowledge that marriages do break. They also point to the woman as an autonomous individual, although it is often her membership to a family/clan that seems to be emphasized. A wife ‘does not die’ when she flees from a bad marriage. She could always return to her natal home. Also, marriage transcends the individuals directly involved in it. The revered relationship between in laws remains even when the marriage has ended. The woman who quits does not defame her ‘husband’ who may be the father of her children. The established connections cannot be ruined by the couple’s grievances. The value of relationship and connectivity is higher.

When it comes to proverbs about the co-wife, she is portrayed as the spanner in the works in the triangular relationship with the husband and the other wife/wives. At one level, the co-wives are like colleagues who share and are united by their common situation of shared husband. Other times they are cutthroat competitors for the man’s attention, and so may capitalise on their seniority and hierarchy as a form of privilege. Proverbs portray this position as sources of stress and insecurity in the family among the wives themselves, between the wives and their husbands, and among the children. Although the man is apparently the beneficiary in polygamous arrangements, the situation does not guarantee his own happiness. The cautionary proverbs on the stress of polygamy show how this practice was


not meant to be a common choice for men. I highlight some proverbs that refer to the privileges associated with hierarchy in polygamous marriages: ‘The first wife is like a mother’ (Swahili/East Africa); ‘The feet of the first wife do not walk in the dew of the morning grass.’ (Fang, Cameroon/Gabon); ‘You, first wife speak; you second, be silent.’ (Yaka/Congo) Some proverbs highlight the competition, lack of trust among the wives and the ‘divide-and-rule’ approach the husband may employ, such as: ‘Beat the bad wife with a new one’ (Nobiin/Sudan); ‘You measure some flour for your co-wife and this flour makes your husband spend the night with her’ (Rundi/Burundi); ‘If you dance with your co-wife, don’t close your eyelid’ (Rundi/Burundi).

Some proverbs show that at times the wives realise their common lot and cooperate among themselves in order to ‘survive’. Common proverbs in this regard are: ‘If a wife sees the stick that beats her co-wife, she throws it into the wilds’ (Yoruba, Mamprusi, Krio/Sierra Leone/Buganda); ‘A woman delivers a baby with the help of her co-wife’ (Lango/Uganda). The husband may bear the brunt of polygamy himself as seen in these cautionary proverbs: ‘If you marry two, you will die all the younger’ (Luba/Congo); ‘Two wives, two pots of poison’ (Gikuyu/Kenya); and ‘A man who married many wives can stay hungry.’ (Gikuyu) Despite these cautions, a man may still believe, ‘A man with one wife is chief among the unmarried’ (Baganda/Uganda); or ‘To have one wife is to be one-eyed.’ (Luba/Congo) Proverbs on the above categories of womanhood contrast dramatically with those on motherhood, as discussed below.

MotherhoodIn proverbs, motherhood is venerated and placed on the highest pedestal of society. As indicated in Goettner-Abendroth’s (2012) theory, the hoe and the garden are important symbols of women’s identity in matriarchies. There are several proverbs about motherhood that are related to farming and the earth as symbols of the mother’s reproductive agency. Writing particularly about the Bemba Bantu in Zambia, she observes:

The hoe is used exclusively by women, and features prominently in their dances, as a cult object, and is also represented as jewellery. In their ancient art of raising food, there is a tradition of using wooden mortars and old-fashioned stone grinders. Myths tell that women invented plant cultivation; indeed, it is they who have, ever since


the earliest imaginable times, been in charge of the production and processing of food, as well as distributing the finished product among the clan members. This makes them completely independent of men, who are, however, dependent upon them. (p. 368)

The connection between motherhood and food is evident in proverbs. In traditional Africa, for both females and males to qualify for parenthood, their ability to ensure food production for the family is crucial. Among the Baganda, the traces of matriarchy are evident in the foundational myth of Kintu (man) and Nambi (woman). Nambi, the daughter of God, lives in her patri-family in heaven (Ggulu) until on one of her recreational journeys to earth in the company of her brothers, she meets Kintu who lives with his only cow as a companion. She falls in love with him and desperately persuades her father to allow her come down to earth to marry Kintu. The reluctant father finally accepts her pleas on condition that Kintu, a mortal, passes a set of ‘impossible’ tests he sets for him to prove his worth before he can marry his daughter.

There are points in this story that correspond to the key issues Goettner-Abendroth identifies about matriarchies. It is Nambi who initiates and chooses her spouse, Kintu. (p. 456) As a principle agent, she relocates to Kintu’s home on earth with a number of items that improve Kintu’s quality of life: he had one cow and drunk its urine for water. Nambi comes with an agricultural civilisation characterised by the hoe.9 Nambi also comes with seeds/grains both for planting and feeding her chicken. In fact, millet is the foodstuff she forgets and goes back for. In the process, she meets her brother Walumbe – Death, whom she tries to evade on her earth-bound journey. This time, Walumbe grabs the opportunity to follow his sister down to earth, where he later becomes a menace to Nambi’s family. The subtle point in the story is how Nambi meets her brother ‘Death’ in the course of executing her responsibility as a woman and food provider. In its pithiness to capture the worldview of the community, this foundational myth functions as a mega proverb that enshrines the matriarchal institution of the Baganda. The centrality of agriculture, food production and the symbol of the hoe in the ritual and everyday life of the community are indicators of archaic matriarchal societies (Goettner-Adendroth pp. 388-389). The common Baganda proverb that has been adapted to a popular song: ‘I would 9To date, the hoe is a major symbol in a Muganda woman’s identity. It is one of the most important items a woman takes to her marital home. The hoe is a primary tool of food production, and the woman is at the centre of this activity.


rather marry an ugly woman who cultivates fields, produces children and welcomes visitors,’ summarises this ethic of matriarchy. It affirms an explanation given by one of my interviewees on how women, agriculture, food production, and family unity are all linked among the Bamasaba in Uganda. A woman’s productivity and industriousness is prized above her re-productivity. Particularly in the past, it was not easy for a lazy woman to find a husband:

Marriage was not just about love; it was about productivity. Productivity and re-productivity are intertwined in the logic of my culture. A woman cannot give birth to children whom she cannot feed…. We have a proverb that is often uttered when a stubborn child runs away from home, to emphasize the point that the woman, symbolised by food, is the uniting factor in a home. We say, ‘The black pot will bring you back’. This is the mother’s pot that has gotten black with cooking, serving and giving the family happiness. The mother is about food! (Interview with Wotsuna Khamalwa, 2016)

The central symbol of unity among the Bamasaba, a community founded by a matriarch but now operates on the principles of dominant patriarchy, has imbalu – the male circumcision ritual – as the most important symbol of identity and unity in the community. The symbol is around the common knife, inyembe, which‘crafts’ boys into men. In this male dominant performance culture, the position women, especially mothers, occupy is that of caregivers (Dipio, 2011). The mother’s way of bringing people together is through food and nurturing. In the midst of the dramatic masculine activities like war this proverb reminds the community not to forget the memory of the mother, associated with the essential and humanising values of care and love manifested through providing daily food for the family. Proverbs about motherhood and food abound in many African communities. The mother’s body – the breast – features copiously among ‘food’ proverbs as seen in the following examples:

‘The mother’s breast cannot get leprosy’ (Baganda); ‘A mother’s breast cannot be abandoned because of a wound’ (Mboshi/Congo); ‘The baby who refuses its mother’s breast will never be fully grown’ (Gikuyu); ‘The breast of your mother is not to be forgotten’ (Tonga/Zambia); ‘Mother’s breast’ (Ma’di/Uganda). Among the Ma’di, this is the warmest appellation siblings call each other. It is an appeal to the kind of solidarity that cannot


be matched with any other. Similarly, ‘Mother’s big eye’ (Ma’di/Uganda) is used in reference to a mother’s vision and wisdom in carefully rationing the family provisions to ensure that everyone is catered for according to their needs. It refers to that spare ‘food’ the mother keeps aside, and makes available to the family member most in need at a given time. The mother’s eye is like a god-eye that misses nothing, so that she can appropriately intervene. In the proverb, ‘Mother is millet bread,’ (Ma’di/Uganda) she is likened to a staple, nutritious iron-rich food like millet. Where food provision is concerned, the family looks up to her as a ‘wonder worker’ even in hard times, as expressed in the Zimbabwean proverb, ‘Things are to be tried, an old lady cooked stones and they produced soup.’ This proverb suggests that one cannot be an effective mother without being creative and sacrificial, and this is what it means to be on the side of life.

Mother as HomemakerThe proverbs in this category show that ‘home’ is around the mother. She is associated with industry and multi-tasks effortlessly. A proverb like, ‘A mother of twins does not lie on her side’(Mano, Liberia; Fulani/Wolof, Senegal), as she must feed both children simultaneously expresses this. Similarly, the Ivorian (Baule) proverb, ‘The mother declares she is lying down, but her feet are outside’ underlines the mother’s perceived ‘omnipresence’ and direction in attending to many situations at once. This kind of multiplicity of the mother demands sacrifice from her – another of her essential qualities. She may lay down to rest as her body demands, but her mind must rove to plan the next course of action, just as the mother of twins who feeds her children simultaneously cannot afford to adopt a posture of sleep that neglects the other. She is perceived as always available to give the best of herself to the family. These proverbs express the predominant reality of the ultimate, everyday sacrifice the mother makes for the family’s wellbeing.

I find it noteworthy that being a homemaker does not confine the mother to the domestic sphere. She is both at home and out in the market, engaged in businesses that support the family. Researches show the African woman as a breadwinner (see Clark, 2001; Schroeder, 2001; Lovett, 2001); just like the poetic description of the woman in the Book of Proverbs, (31:10-31) in a social context that appears to be matriarchal. She is an industrious


manufacturer of all that the family needs in fine linen and foods; she secures all the provisions for the family; she is a distributer of food for the family and beyond; she is a business woman who buys fields and earns from her vineyard; she is physically well-built and successful in business; as a hard worker, she represents the ‘gift economy’ of sharing with the needy and the poor; the education of her children is totally in her hands; her husband prospers in the city’s public sphere because of her industry; her husband and children’s job is to praise and honour her. In the world of this proverb, life in the community and the family is around the ‘good’ woman (mother). The man, in the anonymous location of the city is a beneficiary, just like the children. The economy of the family and the community is fully in the hand of the woman. Reading this proverb from the lens of matriarchy, the woman is the head of the family. Her story evokes the Yoruba proverb, ‘A mother is gold, a father is a mirror.’ The images of gold and mirror can be interpreted variously. Gold is a solid, incorruptible, and stable standard of wealth. All values are measured against its stability. This is mother, as the foundational base of society/family. Father is mirror. I don’t want to speak about the fragility of a mirror in relation to gold. A mirror is a reflector. The mirror – the father – is the reflector of the values of the community. He is relatively distant compared to the mother. He reflects the rule of the community; a symbol of the Lacanian principle of the Law – the ‘dos’ and ‘don’ts’ of society. A Buganda proverb, ‘An insolent child has only a mother’ implies the disciplinarian ‘law’ of the father that complements the compassion of the mother towards the child.10

Symbolic Traces of Matriarchy in CulturesSeveral proverbs affirm Anta Diop’s and Goettner-Abendroth’s argument that Africa was largely a matriarchal community. The paradigmatic structure of many communities still points to a matriarchal order where the mother and her brother play significant symbolic and ritual roles in the life of the children. An Arabic proverb, ‘The boy, if he turn out poorly, belongs two-thirds to his mother’s brother,’ is a pointer to the centrality of the matri-clan to the wellbeing of the children. This is typical of matriarchal societies where the mother’s brother plays an important role in the formation of his sister’s sons. Among the Baganda for instance, the people from the matri-10 That a mother’s presence enhances the flavour for life is further expressed in the following proverbs: ‘If your mother is not there, your bowels ache while eating’ (Buganda); and ‘When your mother dies, you will eat yam peels’ (Ngbaka Central African Republic).


clan are so honoured that a proverb says, ‘Where your mother is born, you cannot call anyone a child.’Every male – even the youngest in the family line – is referred to by the honorific title, kojja (maternal uncle).The same principle applies to the Nilotic Ma’di where the mother’s brother – adrwa– is referred to as ‘one’s god on earth’. As an extension of the mother, his authority over the children is binding, and nothing concerning the children happens without his knowledge and blessing. (Interview with Emilio Mondo, 2014) His dominant position is equivalent to the place occupied by the father’s sister – the Ssenga – in Buganda. She is particularly responsible for the formation of her brother’s daughters. The Arabic proverb, ‘Take girls from the breasts of their fathers’ sisters’ fits well into the role of the Ssenga. (Also see Tamale, 2005) She is the representative of the values of her community, and she instructs the daughters to carry the banner of their community wherever they get married to. A well brought up girl, therefore, should emulate her aunt just as the boy models after his (maternal) uncle or at times his paternal grandfather.

Transcendent/Sacred Nature of MotherFor her multifaceted role as life-giver and sustainer, comprehensive educator, food provider and scapegoat of the family, society, at least symbolically, reciprocates the mother’s sacrificial love by placing her memory on the highest pedestal. This high position of the mother is expressed in the matriarchal Chewa (Malawi) proverb, ‘Mother is God number two’; and the Igbo one, ‘Mother is supreme.’ Her responsibility to her children transcends death as the Bakonzo proverb says, ‘One who has given birth to children goes looking back,’ and the Mongo/Congo say, ‘A mother cannot die.’ These proverbs that express the desire to immortalise the mother is uttered at her funeral. It is an appeal to the mother not to forget the children she has left behind. She must continue her role beyond the grave.11

The person of the mother is regarded sacred. Out of love and respect, a child is expected not to capitalise on the mother’s shortcomings, as expressed in the Chewa proverb, ‘Your mother is your mother. Don’t look at your mother’s short legs.’ One must always come to her defence and prevent any harm threatening her. Two proverbs point to this: ‘The madman, who 11In many African folktales, like Njabala (Buganda), it is common for characters to invoke the spirit of a dead mother to intervene in their favour. In Nollywood Epic, sequences where a suffering daughter goes to the grave of her mother to cry for help are also recurrent. These express the perception of the mother as immortal and divine, just as the proverbs indicate.


throws a stone into a crowded market, forgets that his own mother could be hit by his madness’(Yoruba) and ‘As idiotic as a child who beats his/her mother.’ (Buganda) It is only an idiot who can dishonour sacred mother. The ideal mother-child relationship is characterised by mutuality of love and devotion. In her old age the child is expected to care for the mother as she did in the past. This reciprocity is expressed in the following proverbs: ‘The old woman looks after the child to grow its teeth and the young one in turn looks after the old woman when she loses her teeth;’ (Akan/Ghana, Ivory Coast) ‘An aged cow suckles (the udder of) its offspring;’ (Buganda)‘The hide that served the mother to carry the child will serve the child to carry the mother;’ (Mboshi/Congo) and ‘He who takes anything to his mother never says it is too heavy.’ (Buganda) A reverse behaviour from a child invites proverbs like, ‘The child who bites the back of his mother will find no other willing to carry him.’(Yoruba)And yet sacrificial mother ‘would [still]carry the child that bites’on her back (Yoruba, Ma’di); or even conceal the child’s ‘ugliness’ in public. To this effect, the Baganda say, ‘The mother of an ugly child keeps it on her back.’ She would shield that child from ridicule and public shame. However, a mother’s whip of tough love will not spare the child’s back if need be. And so the Yoruba say, ‘One without a mother should never get a sore on his back;’ and the Swahili say, ‘Who is not taught by his/her mother is taught by the world.’ It is the plight of the child who did not take counsel from the mother, to be taught by the world. However, ultimately, it is the mother who bears the shame of having a mal-educated child. It is a sign she ‘failed’ to bring it up. And so, Africans from diverse cultures say, ‘A misbehaved child shames his/her mother.’ (Bakonzo/Uganda)

In all these proverbs, the mother emerges as the symbol of the ‘gift economy’ scholars like Vaughan (2007), Von Werlhof (2001) and Goettner-Abendroth (2012) have consistently written about.It is her sacrifice and self-effacement that benefits the family. The proverbs present her as one who lives for others (the children), although there is no guarantee that her devotion will be reciprocated by her children (Lamb, 1997). Her self-effacement is expressed in the proverb, ‘The mother of the big he-goat has no horns.’ (Gikuyu/Akamba/Buganda)


Grandmother and Mother-in-LawIn the mother category, the grandmother is portrayed as a figure of uncontested authority in Africa. If the mother is venerated, the place of the grandmother, as ‘mother of mothers’ is at the pinnacle of the pedestal. The mother, in the centre of the family, remains comparatively marginal in relation to the grandmother and the public sphere. The grandma attains greater respect both in the family and the community. Among the Baganda, she is simply referred to as jajja (elder/wise one). This honorific title is gender neutral. It refers to seniority and wisdom. It is the grandmother’s authority, informed by wisdom garnered over the years that makes her uncontested and sought after. This same sagacity is celebrated in proverbs like the following: ‘Everyone knows the old woman’s name, yet everyone calls her great-grandmother;’ (Mamprusi/Burkina Faso) ‘Your grandmother has taught you this and you want to ask your mother?’(Baule/Ivory Coast) At this stage, her gender is no longer important. Indeed, in the public sphere, she is comparable to a wise man and she participates in the rituals of the sages of the community. As the Mamprusi say, ‘The toothless old woman still chews kola nut;’ and the Baganda add, ‘A woman with withered breasts drinks beer like a man.’ Portraying the old woman as one who should be in the public space discoursing wisdom, the Minyanka of Mali say, ‘The old woman who must grind and cook cannot join in the evening chat.’ It is not expected that an old woman should engage in domestic chores like grinding and cooking. At her age, she would have children, grandchildren, and daughters in law to relieve her of such chores. Her place would be at the chat around the evening fire or among the elder solving societal problems. The proverb points to the occurrence of such unfortunate situations where an old woman may not have had children, or her children may have left her.

The category ‘mother-in-law’ presents intriguing proverbs. Unlike the relationship of familiarity with one’s mother or the grandmother, the rapport with one’s mother-in-law is often like walking a tight rope. This is a sensitively regulated relationship for the parties. It is characterized not just by respect, but also fear. There is something unpredictable, like a looming danger about it. It is as if the mother-in-law is there to fault the son- or daughter-in-law. The Bemba from Congo cautions a son-in-law thus: ‘The mother-in-law shows you her buttock without shame; the shame is yours.’ One is advised never to respond to an offensive provocation from a mother-in-law in a like manner, although the propensity to respond is real, as


she is not one’s mother!12 A mother-in-law is among the most respected personalities in African culture. In some communities, especially among the Bantu, a certain respectful physical distance must be established between her and a son-in-law. The two are not supposed to share space in a face-to-face conversation or physical contact. They may speak to each other through an intermediary or behind a curtain. It is a relationship riddled with taboos. She is represented as a difficult person to please. Thus it becomes an achievement to attain the right relationship with a mother-in-law. Such persons would gladly announce: ‘I have a wonderful relationship with my mother-in-law’ as an exceptional experience. The careful line one must toe in relation to the mother in law is expressed thus: ‘If you get along with your mother in law but not with your father in law, you have forgotten your being a son in law’ (Minyanka/Mali); ‘Better the glares of a foreigner than those of a mother in law’ (Rundi/Burundi); ‘The son in law who showed too much respect one day ran away with the fish’ (Chewa, Malawi/Mozambique); and ‘This can only be said in secrecy, when your mother in law is a witch’ (Buganda). The proverbs show that the relationship with the mother in law is a controversial one. She can either be a ‘helper’ or an ‘antagonist.’

Conclusion: Implications for the FutureOverall there are many proverbs that focus on women than on men. In the proverbs on motherhood one can glean the traces of matriarchy and the existing matrifocal nature of African societies. Life and culture are organised around the mother who is prized highest of the categories of womanhood. She represents the ‘gift economy.’ The proverbs portray her as a gift to the family and to community at large. She is associated with all things that enhance and add quality to life. Close analyses of the proverbs show the traces of matriarchy that Diop and Goettner-Adendroth have theorized.

In matriarchal society, women were in charge of the agricultural based economy. Many proverbs associate motherhood with food and wellbeing. In traditional Africa, the father was rarely in the family, as his services may be needed outside the home. Proverbs about men often refer to their public relations and diplomatic abilities as emissaries, or courageous warriors and 12 In African folktales, it is Hare the Trickster who dares offend his mother-in-law by sneaking into her kitchen against the rules of hospitality, and reachingout to help himself with the food that was not meant for visitors.


hunters. This leaves the cultural sphere of the home as women’s space. This corresponds with Goettner-Abendroth’s theory of matriarchies outlined in this paper.

What are the implications of this for gender relations in contemporary society? In the first place, women’s ‘traditional’ hold and supremacy in agriculture and food distribution needs to be acknowledged and supported. Women need to have full access to land as their ventures and activities are linked to the wellbeing of the family and community. Going by the memories of Africa’s non-hierarchical matriarchal past under the dual-sex arrangement, it could be easier to attain gender parity because this was Africa’s past. As Amadiume notes, ‘[a]t no period in the history of the patriarchal cultures of Europe has motherhood been accorded the same status as the reverence it has had in African cultures.’ (1987,p. 3) Some of the values from the past need to be activated to inform contemporary and future gender relations and policies. This also requires deep research into the past to know, in Chinua Achebe’s words, ‘where the rains began to beat us.’


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Proverbs in marriage: Counselling role and implications

A great marriage is not when the perfect couple comes together. It is when an imperfect couple learns to enjoy their differences (Meurer,

2000)

Charles Owu-EwieAssociate Professor

University of Education, WinnebaCollege of Languages Education, Ajumako

Faculty of Ghanaian Languages Education, AjumakoEmail: [email protected]

Submitted: April 16, 2018 / Accepted: December 4, 2018 / Published: October 4, 2019

Abstract

The Akans of Ghana perceive marriage as an important ritual and an aspect of their socio-cultural life. Because of the importance attached to marriage and due to the fact that it is a preserve for the matured

in society, the language used for its contraction is sophisticated and infused with proverbs. In recent times, the role of proverbs as a marriage-counselling tool has been overlooked in contemporary counselling. This paper, from a Pragmatic and Relevance Theory (RT) perspective, looked at the counselling role Akan proverbs play in marriage contraction. This descriptive qualitative study purposively selected proverbs in three episodes in different contexts of marriage contraction to see how they were used as counselling tools. The analysis of the data indicated that proverbs play a major counselling role in marriage. The counselling roles concentrated on themes like patience, co-operation, respect, sex, self-denial, hard work, faithfulness, loyalty, humility, child bearing and caring, and love. The implication is that contemporary


professional marriage counsellors and priests should employ proverbs in their counselling sessions because proverbs portray what the Akan cherish as their worldview and an embodiment of their soul. This will ensure a clear understanding of the complexities of marriage.

Keywords: Proverbs, counselling, Akan, marriage

IntroductionA proverb is a communicating tool used to describe and express social, cultural, natural and other events or practices (Odebunmi, 2008). It is rare to communicate effectively in the African context without using proverbs, especially if the speaker is dealing with issues that border on the values, norms, institutions and on the whole gamut of the people’s experience. Proverbs are indispensable in African communication. They are tied to the philosophy, experience and cognitive abilities of people (Agyekum, 2012). Among the Akans of Ghana, proverbs permeate in any communication process. Their use makes a conversation very highly regarded. One’s ability to use proverbs appropriately in speech indicates one’s communicative competence (Agyekum, 2012). This implies that the use of appropriate proverbs strengthen and support significant traditional value or belief. Among the Akans, any elaborate social activity, including marriage is characterized by the profuse use of proverbs.

Marriage is a beautiful but serious customary ritual, which the Akans of Ghana revere. The language used in marriage ceremonies, sometimes is shrouded in secrecy to indicate that it is for serious minded people. On such occasions, speakers usually embellish their language with proverbs to indicate their communicative competence and add beauty to the ceremony. Participants, especially the elderly shroud their language in proverbs to counsel the couple to make their utterance provoke them to think critically and then take lessons from it. As Wierzbicka (1988) succinctly indicates, culturally important objects and concepts have rich vocabulary or expressions to describe them. In traditional marriages, the Akan use proverbs to counsel couples. However, professional counsellors have not exploited this phenomenon fully in contemporary marriage counselling. Contemporary professional marriage counsellors use scripted, learned information and biblical verses, where necessary to counsel their clients to the neglect of using traditional proverbs, which are grounded on the values and shared


beliefs held by the speech community (van Heerden, 2013). There is the need, therefore to bring to the fore the specific counseling roles of proverbs in marriage contraction among the Akans and how contemporary marriage counsellors can exploit them to the benefit of their young and inexperienced clients.

Literature ReviewThis section of the paper deals with the definition, characteristics and importance of proverbs. It also examines some empirical studies on Akan proverbs in marriage.

The concept and importance of proverbsThe concept proverb, also known as paremy has numerous definitions posited by different authors depending on their focus. Since authors have defined proverbs differently, Barajas (2010: 49) indicates that “determining when an utterance may be understood as a proverb has been elusive because structural variation bounds among proverbial utterances”. In the view of Villers (2016), many conflicting definitions exist, mainly because proverbs are at the crossroads of several disciplines: folklore, semantics, stylistics, sociolinguistics, and narrative studies. This has resulted in difficulty in providing easier definitions for a proverb bringing about the proliferation of names given to utterances that are proverbial in nature like apothegm, aphorism, adage, maxim, saying and wellerism. This notwithstanding, attempts have been made at defining the concept.

A proverb is a philosophical and moral exposition shrunk to a few words, and forms a mnemonic device in societies in which everything worth knowing and relevant to the day-to-day life has to be (Obiechina, 1975). In a slightly complicated way, a proverb is a popular set phrase having no author, known mostly in different languages, expressing in one sentence a principle, advice, a genuine or assumed truth in a general, concise form, its basic idea being of general validity, or at least its user considers it as such (Nagy, 1979: 645).

Yusuf (1998) also perceives a proverb as a short repeated witty statement of experience, which is used to further a social end. In the same vein, Akporoboro (2008) sees a proverb as a short popular saying usually in the form of a moral advice or truth expressed in a concise form. As a face-saving


device, proverbs are cleverly constructed belief statements, which are used to help users to say unpleasant things in an ameliorated way (Alimi, 2012).

From a pragmatic perspective, proverbs are interesting pieces of popular wisdom and tradition belonging to any culture, which help people to foreground their values and shared beliefs (Ramirez, 2015). Besides these definitions, Agyekum (2012) provides another dimension to the definition of proverbs by indicating that it is a time tested, belief and witty saying, which usually symbolizes and expresses a truth or recognized observation about practical lines, based on traditional experiences. According to Agyekum, proverbs are transmitted from generation to generation. From the definitions above, a proverb can be encapsulated to mean a time tested, short, witty and cultural oriented statement with moral underpinning, which has been handed over from generation to generation in a particular culture with no particular author.

The various definitions above show that proverbs possess some unique characteristics. In the first place, they are short wise sayings, which are pithy and terse (Yankah, 1989). This means they communicate a lot of information in a few words. They are brief and to the point; a single statement that is infused in speech. Proverbs pertain to imagery and mnemonics, which implies that the choice and arrangement of words in proverbs are carefully considered. Additionally, proverbs are crystals of language and culture, loaded with accumulated wisdom and strong ethnic characteristics and distinct cultural implications (Aboh, 2013). Besides, proverbs are readily available in recurrent situations and are available as performed utterances, which meet the speaker’s need for formulating an original utterance of her/his own (Shariati & Tayebi, 2012). Proverbs are also seen as inventorized units, which signal group membership (Hain, 1951, cited in Norrick, 1985) and as quoted traditional material, which reinforces their apartness from their context (Abraham, 1968). Lastly, proverbs are perceived as indirect speech acts, which do not make the speaker explicit (Searle, 1975a; Agyekum, 2012). This makes proverbs invoke higher order thinking in their listeners (Norrick, 1985).

Proverbs play an important role in African societies in general and in Ghana in particular. The importance of proverbs, or proverbial sayings in the Akan society is captured in this proverb, which is well known to the Akan people of Ghana; “A wise person is spoken to in proverbs, not in prose.” The point


is that a wise person does not always need a lengthy discourse in order to be convinced of the right thing to do. This implies that a fitting proverb stimulates thinking, impacts understanding, and can motivate one to do what is right. In the words of Agyekum (2012: 9),

Proverbs are an indispensable aspect of Ghanaian life and are tied up to the philosophy, experience and the cognitive abilities of the people. They are one of the mechanisms for the education and socialization of children.

According to Alimi (2012), proverbs are highly regarded in African traditional societies because they are used to portray certain actions or events in a picturesque manner. They make events come live and vivid to the listener. In addition, proverbs are used as a means of transmitting the code of conduct, sense of humor and wisdom of people from one generation to another. For example, the Akans have a proverb which says “wo werɛ fir wo kurom hen abɛntsia a, eyew eguabɔ ase” (if you forget the meaning of your village chief’s horn message, you get lost during celebrations). In another perspective, proverbs are seen as the repository of native intelligence, code of moral laws and philosophy of both life and social justice (Alimi, 2012). Proverbs are used to foreground the values and shared beliefs of a speech community. In the view of Wunderlich (1972, cited in Norrick, 1985), proverbs allow the speakers to disguise their true feelings, to leave themselves an escape route to offer their hearers choices and to indicate real or imagined consensus. Finally, the use of proverbs in communication enables the speaker to avoid personal commitment and refutation (Taylor, 1962, cited in Basgoz, 1993; Arewa & Dundes, 1964 and Barley, 1970).

Studies on Akan proverbsThe study of proverbs has attracted many scholars to delve into the various aspects of the concept. There have been pragmatic, socio-cultural, semantic, syntactic and socio-linguistic studies of proverbs. The study of proverbs has also been applied to other areas like literary works (Odebunmi, 2008; Rezaei, 2012; Alimi, 2012; Devi, 2015), administration (Simon, 1946), gender construction (Dogbevi, 2011), gender and power relations (Rasul, 2015; Agbemabiese, 2016; Aku-Sika, 2016), and conflict management and resolution (Aden, 2010; Ademowo & Balogun, 2014).

In recent times, studies on proverbs have shifted from simple compilation of proverbs to applying them to other disciplines. Two authors who have done


massive compilation of Akan proverbs are Christaller (1879) and Appiah, et. al. (2007). These two works provide a corpus of Akan proverbs, which other authors draw from to enhance their empirical studies. Yankah (2012), in his book, The proverb in the context of Akan rhetoric notes that just documenting African proverbs in general and Akan proverbs in particular is not enough. In his book, the author portrays the use of proverbs as dynamic communicative strategy in which form, meaning and logic are in constant interaction. He stipulates that proverbs are in the heart of real discourse interactions and that they have rhetorical importance based on indigenous aesthetics.

In an empirical study on Akan proverbs, Quan-Baffour (2011) analyzed some Akan proverbs to examine their educational importance for the contemporary generation. Quan-Baffour noted that Akan proverbs are crucial in developing the social skills and emotional intelligence of the youth. He also noted the encouragement of hard work and detest for laziness, self-reliance, unity, support, love and co-operation, warning against discrimination and communal life as aspects of the importance of proverbs.

Agyemang, Asumeng, and Amponsah (2015) also explored the uses of Akan proverbs in contemporary human resource principles and corporate values. The authors identified that Akan proverbs portray themes like teamwork, training and development, retirement planning, organizational ethics and synergy and collaboration in contemporary human resource. Other themes identified were delegation of functions, risk-taking, collective responsibility and accountability, feedback seeking and business planning.

Agyekum (2012) looked at the concept of marriage and analyzed proverbs and aphorisms about marriage. His aim was to examine how the Akans conceptualize marriage and all its values. The author analyzed proverbs used for marriage generally, those for pre-marriage, during the marriage contraction, and post-marriage. He noted that such proverbs have both positive and negative implications for marriage. These studies and others by Adu Gyamfi (1999), Opoku (1997), Kquofi, Amate and Tabi-Agyei (2013) indicate how proverbs in Akan can be applied to other areas of study. The current study expands the frontiers of these studies by examining how Akan proverbs are applied to contemporary marriage counselling issues.


Purpose and Research QuestionsThis study sought to investigate the use of proverbs as a counselling tool in marriage contraction among the Akans of Ghana. The study also examined the major themes that were frequently expressed with proverbs in marriage contraction to counsel couples and the implications of the use of Akan proverbs as counselling tool in contemporary professional marriage counselling. The study answered the following research questions:

1. What specific counselling themes do the Akans of Ghana use proverbs for in marriage contraction?

2. What themes are frequently expressed with proverbs to counsel couples during marriage contraction among the Akans?

3. What are the implications of the present study to the professional counsellor’s use of Akan proverbs in their day-to-day marriage counselling of their clients?

Methodology and Conceptual FrameworkThis section of the paper presents the methodology and discusses the conceptual framework.

MethodologyThe study employed a qualitative ethnographic research design. The researcher used complete observation to gather data at various ethnographic situations that related to marriage contraction. This means the researcher was not a participant observer. The researcher purposively selected proverbs in three episodes in different contexts of marriage contraction with ten optional speeches. The study was conducted in three different communities in the Shama District of the Western Region of Ghana. The selected proverbs were from the optional speeches of participants on the day the marriage ceremony was performed. The marriages were conducted using the local language (Fante) but in this research, the researcher has provided the English translation of each episode (see appendix). To ensure credibility and observance of ethical issues, the researcher sought permission from participants before proceedings were recorded. In all, forty-four (44) proverbs from ten optional speeches of three marriage contraction episodes


were analyzed. In the marriage contractions under discussion, only males spoke during the optional speeches. The ages of those who gave the optional speeches were between forty-five and seventy. There were a few women present but none of them spoke during the optional speeches. The data analysis for the counselling role of proverbs in marriage contraction was done using content analysis approach where there was categorization and coding. First, all the proverbs in the various episodes were identified, categorized into themes and then coded under the various themes. The frequency of themes expressed with proverbs in each marriage contraction was done by first doing a simple tally of the proverbs against the themes, converting the frequency to percentages and later presenting it on a bar chart.

Conceptual FrameworkThis paper is underpinned by the Pragmatic Approach (PA) to the use and interpretation of proverbs proposed by Sperber and Wilson in 1986 and revised in 1995. The pragmatic approach deals with how thoughts are communicated from one person to another. By the use of coding and encoding, speakers encode their thoughts; that is, the listener receives the message and interprets it to arrive at the intended meaning envisaged by the speaker. A sub-strand of the pragmatic approach used in this study is the Relevance Theory (RT), which posits that receiving communication is a process of sifting through the available input to find the communication, which is of most relevance. In the fields of pragmatics and semantics, RT holds the principle that the communication process involves not only encoding, transfer, and decoding of messages, but numerous other elements, including inference and context (Clark, 2013). The core of the theory is the communicative principle of relevance, which states that by the act of making an utterance the speaker is conveying that, what has been said is worth listening to. In RT, implicit messages (i.e. proverbs) are relevant enough to be worth bothering to possess. In such instances, the speaker will be economical as possible but makes the utterance stand out clearly. Relevance theory argues that the thing that causes an input to stand out from others is its relevance to the receiver. Wilson and Sperber (1986: 252) indicate as a rule that “other things being equal, the greater the positive cognitive effects achieved by processing an input, the greater the relevance of the input to the individual at that time”. This theory was used as an underpinning for this study because in counselling during marriage


contraction, the proverbs used stand out from all other structures and this makes the couple (listeners) think critically to process and get the meaning of the utterance, which are of importance to them. This makes it relevant to them as the theory posits. In the current study, the utterances (proverbs) in the optional speeches of participants were selected to see how relevant they were to the couple (listeners).

Data Analysis and Discussion of FindingsThe data analysis and discussion were done based on the research questions posed earlier in the study.

Research Question 1: What specific counselling themes do the Akans of Ghana use proverbs for in marriage contraction?

In this section, the analysis and discussions are done based on the optional speeches made by participants during the marriage contraction processes. In Akan marriage contraction, there is a section where willing participants give optional speeches to advise or counsel the couple. This is done when all the important marriage rituals have been performed and the ceremony is about to end. This is where participants exhibit their eloquence by using proverbs and other communicative devices to attract the attention of the couple and make them think critically about the marriage journey they are about to embark on. It is a counselling period. Speakers at this time use sophisticated language to talk about themes essential to successful marriage. The use of such communicative devices signifies that marriage is for the serious minded and the mature individual. The researcher first presented the speeches in Fante and later translated them to English. The proverbs in each optional speech are italicized and assigned a code number. For the flow of analysis, the marriage contraction episodes are placed at the appendix but references are made to them as the analysis proceeds. Themes that emerged from the proverbs used in the optional speeches in the study as means of counselling the couple in the marriage contractions are examined below:

Co-operation Co-operation is key to any successful marriage because marriage involves two different people coming together. These two individuals sometimes have different philosophies, attitudes, values, perceptions, ethnic, cultural


and social-economic backgrounds who have come together as one entity. They need to work co-operatively to ensure the success of their marriage. Co-operation makes a marriage great, especially when the couple are quite different. As Meurer (2000) indicates, a great marriage is not when the perfect couple comes together but it is when an imperfect couple learns to enjoy their differences.

In the study, participants emphasized more on co-operation than any other theme. The proverbs used in this category concentrated on the need for the couple to shoulder the burden of marriage together and that one person cannot withstand the tribulations in marriage hence the proverb ‘dua kor gye ehum a, obu’ (if one tree stands in the way of the storm, it breaks) (episode 1, optional speech 1, proverb 3). In this category of proverbs, it became clear that the couple should do things together and that when the two commence a project they should see it to a successful completion together. Hence the proverb wɔnam beenu sua efir a, wɔnam beenu sera (When two people set a trap/snare the two people check it (episode 1, speaker 2, proverb 6). Some proverbs in the category also indicated that the couple should take decisions and confer together. The proverbs Tsir kor mmpam (9) (One head does not take decision) and Tsir kor so nnkɔ egyina (10) (One head does not confer) (episode 1, speaker 2). Some of the proverbs signified that co-operation and working together brings about victory in marriage, as in the proverb koryɛ ma nkoyimdzi (14) (unity brings about victory) (episode 1, speaker 3). In addition to the above, some proverbs were used to depict the importance of co-operation in marriage. The couple were admonished that doing things together helps them to accomplish any task, no matter how daunting it might be, as in the proverb Nkura yɛɛ kor no, wodzii mbɔrkutu (17) (When the mice united they ate a full pot of dough) (episode 2, speaker 1). Besides, some of the proverbs used for co-operation as a means of advising the couple hinged on security, strength in doing things together and helping each other. These were expressed in the following proverbs: Huw m’enyi do ma me ntsi na atwe nam beenu beenu (18) (antelopes walk in pairs because of the idea of removing the peck from one’s eye) (episode 2, speaker 1), Nyansa nnyi baakofo tsir mu (19) (Wisdom does not reside in one person’s head) (episode 2 speaker 1), Nyimpa kor nsa nnso Nyame enyim kata (20) (One person’s hand cannot cover the face of God)(episode 2, speaker 2), nsa nyimfa guar benkum na benkum so guar nyimfa (27) (the right hand washes the left and the left also washes the right hand)


(episode 2, speaker 4), sɛ nyin annwen na ber wen a, wɔda mu (28). (If the man does not weave/build and the woman builds, they sleep in it) (episode 2, speaker 4) and Pardze kunkumfi ne bu yɛbuna (44) (A huge broom is difficult to break)(episode 3, speaker 2)

PatienceOne attribute crucial to a healthy, happy and successful marriage is patience. Anger and frustration is unavoidable in marriage and for one to tolerate or restrain one’s self from reacting to such situations, patience is essential. Patience allows the couple to think before they speak and react to each other. Having patience with each other in marriage, helps to reduce fights and unnecessary arguments, results in calm discussions and encourages good communication in marriage. Next to cooperation was the theme of patience which was also considered crucial by the optional speakers. The proverbs used in this category admonished the couple to be cautious and not to act hastily in whatever they do, hence the proverb ɔbra wɔtɔ bo bɔ (7) (No haste in life) (episode 1, speaker 2). Additionally, the couple were advised that patience brings about victory in marriage. These were evident in the proverbs abotar ma nkonyimdzi (15) (Patience results in victory) (episode 1, speaker 4). Anger is seen as a destructive element in marriage. The couple were therefore advised to desist from anger because where there is love in marriage, anger has no place hence the proverb beebiara dɔ wɔ no, ebufuw nnyi hɔ (16) (Where there is love, there is no anger) (episode 1, speaker 4). Again, patience is seen as having the potential of doing great things in marriage beyond the imagination of the couple and that when the couple are patient, they discover hidden things that will normally damage or cause the marriage to break down. These were expressed in the proverbs abotar tutu nkwokwaa (33) (Patience moves mountains) (episode 3, speaker 1) and isie abotar gua ntsɛtsea a, ihu n’ayamudze (34) (If you take time to dissect the ant, you see its intestines) (episode 3, speaker 1).

Respect for In-lawsIn the data analysis, respect for in-laws was also seen as an important theme in counselling the couple. In-laws are seen in most cases as problems (controlling, interfering, cause of inconvenience and clash of values and traditions) in marriage (Chapman, 2015). So participants in their optional speeches used proverbs to indicate how couples should guard against this phenomenon and learn to live with their in-laws peacefully to ensure


successful marriage. The success and failure of a marriage greatly depends on in-laws as indicated by these proverbs awargu na awarsɔ gyina nsewnom do (25) (the success or failure of marriage depends on in-laws) (episode 2, speaker 3) and awar wͻwar no ekyir (26/42) (marriage thrives on people behind it/in-laws) (episode2, speaker 3 and episode 3, speaker 2).

Hard workHard work is also an important variable in successful marriage. Among the Akans, a marriage can be dissolved because the man is lazy. The Akans want a hardworking man, who can put food on the table, pay the family dues of the wife, provide shelter for the family, educate and cloth his children. The Akans believe that hard work does not kill but makes a family wealthy, hence the proverb edwumadzen nnku nyimpa (hard work does not kill (human being) (episode 3, speaker 1). This is collaborated by an article in the The Telegraph (March 31, 2018) and Howarth (Jan. 27, 2017) that the key to a happy and successful marriage is having a hardworking man. The data also revealed that women should work hard to support their husbands; hence the proverb sɛ nyin annwen na ber wen a, wɔda mu (If the man does not weave (build) and the woman does, we sleep in it) (28) (episode 2, speaker 4). In the analysis, it was found that if the man or the woman does not go out and work, the family will go hungry and things like shelter and clothing will elude them, hence the advice from the proverb Anoma enntu a, obua da (5) (If a bird does not fly, it goes hungry (episode 1, speaker 1). In the same way, the optional speakers advised the couple to work hard since staying at one point or home will not bring any good result and progress to the family. Such a behavior stifles the growth of the family and makes them poor. This advice was concealed in the proverb etse fakor a, etse w’adze do (21). (If you stay at one point, you stifle your progress)(episode 2, speaker 2). A proverb in this category also stressed the need for the couple not to stay aloof and complain of being hungry. The proverb akwadwer no nua nye menya medzi (the brother of laziness is, if I get, I will eat) (episode 1, speaker 1). This in reality means a lazy man will always complain of hunger and wish he could get something to eat and feed his family. The optional speakers emphasized hard work in the episodes because it makes a marriage have strong roots, harnesses hidden resources, makes the family rich and wealthy and makes them achieve results.


Respect for each otherRespect is one of the most important determinants of a successful and healthy marriage. According to Dashnaw (2018), the notion of respect in marriage cuts across both scientific and spiritual conceptions of marital intimacy. In the view of Dashnaw, marital satisfaction and a sense of “we-ness” are contingent upon the respect that spouses show toward one another. The key factors in ensuring respect in marriage are mutuality, reciprocity, accommodation and acceptance. In most cases, there is the perception that women should respect their husbands and this was reinforced in the proverbs used to counsel the couple in the study. The woman was advised to respect and be humble to the husband with no proverb on mutual respect and humility directed to the man. The woman, according to the proverbs used, should look up to the man in terms of decision-making, if she even knows more than the man does. The proverbs akokͻber nyim adzekyee naaso ͻhwɛ akokͻnyin ano (The hen knows daybreak but it always looks up to the cock to crow) (24) (episode 2, speaker 3) and ͻbaa a ͻdͻ no kun, daa ͻse morohwɛ woara (A woman who loves the husband, will always say l am looking up to you) (29) (episode 2, speaker 4) attest to this assertion. However, as Dashnaw (2018) indicates, respect must be reciprocal in marriage and not only from the woman. This phenomenon prevailed in the proverbs because the Akan society is more patrilineal.

Sexual DenialBased on the data, sex denial was also seen by the participants as a crucial factor in the collapse of marriages. The data revealed that sex in marriage was regarded as one of the key variables to marriage sustenance and that its denial can result in marriage breakdown. Sex is very much the ‘glue’ in a marriage, which makes the couple get closer. It consolidates the bond, which keeps the couple together and that, its denial can make the man polygamous and the woman adulterous. The proverb atopa na ɔma awar sɔ (sex makes marriage blossom) (proverb 39) in optional speech 2 of episode 3 testifies to this. In this same category, some of the proverbs advised the woman not to push the man away when its time for sex. When this happens, the man is likely to be “snatched” by another woman or will become polygamous. Hence, the proverb akokͻ yɛne ba sͻesͻe a, akrͻma kyer no (if the fowl drives its chicken away, it is snatched by a hawk) (episode 2, speaker 4, proverb 32).


Faithfulness/truthfulnessProverbs were used to counsel the couple on the need for them to be faithful and truthful to each other. Faithfulness in marriage makes the couple focus and this ensures peaceful coexistence. There is no love in marriage without faithfulness. In the proverbs used in counselling the couple, faithfulness was seen as the light, victory and the foundation rock for any successful marriage. The proverbs “nokwardzi ma nkonyim” (truthfulness/faithfulness results victory) (episode 2, speaker 4, proverb 30), nokwardzi (so) yɛ awar mu kandzea (truthfulness is the light in marriage) (episode 2, speaker 4, proverb 31) and nokwardzi nye awar no kutuwdobo (truthfulness is the bedrock of marriage) (episode 3, speaker 2, proverb 43) in the data, attest to the Akan thinking that faithfulness/truthfulness is key to a successful marriage.

Against PolygamyThe Akans practise polygamy. This means that the traditional system permits a man to marry two or more women. In view of this, one would have expected that there will be proverbs in favor of polygamy but in this study, speakers used proverbs to advise the man against polygamy. The proverbs used indicated that when a man gets involved in polygamy, he sometimes goes hungry. He also becomes a liar as expressed in the following proverbs: awar dodow ma kɔm dze banyin (having many wives makes a man go hungry) (episode 1, speaker 3, proverb 13) and awar dodow ma banyin n’ano yɛ nta (having many wives makes a man have double tongue) (episode 3, speaker 2, proverb 41). Traditionally, an Akan who has two or more wives was regarded as wealthy and as having good standing in the society. Such a man is highly respected in the society. However, in this study, the proverbs used went against this perception. The couple were advised against polygamy because as educated people, it was envisaged that they would have contemporary wedding in the church leading to signing a matrimonial certificate, which does not allow the man to marry another woman. Additionally, the current economic situation calls for a man to stay with a single wife so that he will be able to take good care of the family as expected.


Excessive FriendshipThe proverbs used by the optional speakers in the study advised the couple, especially the woman against having excessive friends. The proverbs used indicated that having numerous friends could lead to losing your wife or husband. According to the Akans, in particular and other ethnic groups in general, some friends do more harm than good in marriage. Duenwald (2002) writes that some friends can be intrusive and invasive in marriage. Such friends can destroy a peaceful marriage. Truly, we need friends we can confide in but if that drives us away from our spouse, we are likely to destroy our marriage. It is this, which speakers (participants) spoke against by using the following proverb: anyɛnko dodow ntsi na kͻtͻ ennya tsir (excessive friendship made the crab headless) (episode 1, speaker 1, proverb 2). The proverbs used also advised the couple to take good care of themselves to live long and to be able to protect their marriage for a longer time. The proverb nwaba kora noho na ͻyɛ pe (the snail that takes good care of itself becomes the giant snail) (episode 3, speaker 1, proverb 36) proves such assertion.

Provision of securityIndividuals have particular needs, which they are unable to meet on their own. They need support from others to help them meet such needs. A woman’s greatest need in marriage is security. In marriage, men are to protect their family physically, especially the wife. Men are uniquely equipped to protect their families because of the greater physical strength they have. Men have the desire to be protectors than women. In the Akan society, men are supposed to provide security for their wives or sisters. The Akans believe that a man will beat a woman and bluff when the woman has no husband or brother to retaliate the assault. In counselling the couple, the man was advised to provide the needed security to the wife. This was evident in the proverb, basia onnyi kun na yɛbor no yi akyia. (A woman who has no husband is the one who is beaten and followed with bluff) (episode 1, speaker 3, proverb 11). The implication is that the husband should physically protect his wife from other men physically assaulting her.

Heeding to adviceHeeding to advice in marriage is very crucial, especially if it is well intended. In Akan marriage contraction performances, participants advise the couple to listen to advice from each other and from well-meaning members of the family or community. Failure to listen to advice can lead to taking a wrong


decision or landing into trouble. Most of the time, the woman is advised to listen to advice or counsel from the man. In the study, there was only one proverb meant for the woman on the need to heed to advice from the husband. The proverb warns the woman that failure to listen to advice from the man can result in unforeseen and indelible consequences. From the data, the proverb seanntse nye ɔwam etsikɔ pɔw (Not heeding advice is why the horn-blower bird has a protruding head) (episode 1, speaker 2, proverb 8) is used to warn the woman of hardship in life, if she fails to heed to advice. Though this proverb was meant specifically for the woman, it also goes for the man, since each will have to heed to advice from the other.

Against ViolenceMost ethnic groups, including the Akans of Ghana abhor violence in marriage. Violence in marriage includes partner abuse, wife assault, maltreatment, and many more. In Akan marriage contraction, the man is cautioned to desist from stretching the finger against the woman. This implies that the man should not physically assault the woman and that any such behaviour will result in a stiff and unparalleled retaliation from the woman’s family (especially, brothers). The proverb edze kokrobetsir kɔ eyi a, wɔdze asotɔr gya wo kwan (If you attend a funeral with a raised thumb you are seen off with a slap) (episode 1, speaker 3, proverb 12) confirms this assertion. Physical violence against a wife in the Akan context, can result in marriage breakdown so couples are counselled with such proverb to desist from such an act.

Emulating good behaviourIn the data analysis, it was identified that the couple were advised to be of good behaviour to ensure success of the marriage. In the optional speeches, the woman was asked to exhibit the good things and attributes that she had learned from her mother. It is believed that the woman displays good things like cooking, child caring and housekeeping she acquired from her mother in her marriage. The Akans hold the view that women go to their marriage with their mothers because what their mothers have taught them are what they exhibit in their everyday marriage life. Hence the proverb ɔbaa kɔ awar a, ɔnye ne na kɔ (1) (If a woman enters into marriage, she goes with her mother) (episode 1, speaker 1, proverb 1). Again, the couple were advised to emulate good things each of them does and the good things that other people have done to make their marriage successful. The proverbs used in


this category also indicated that the couple should emulate people who do good things in the society. This proverb nyia ɔyɛ adze pa na yetu n’ekyir gya (37) (The one who does good things is the one we emulate) used in counselling the couple attests to this.

Child bearingThe Akans believe that the bedrock of any marriage is children. Some marriages break down because the couple are unable to have children. Among the Akans, having children in marriage is cherished because when the man dies it is his children who will bury him. The absence of children in marriage means that when the man dies his family will bear all the expenses. Such people are buried in a different way from those who had children. The respect a man or a woman gets from marriage diminishes when there are no children in the marriage. In marriage contraction, the couple is advised to have children to ensure that the law of procreation and the survival of the extended family is upheld. The proverb awar mu enyimnyam nye mba (children brings reputation in marriage) (episode 3, speaker 1, proverb 35) used to counsel the couple means that having children in marriage elevates reputation in marriage.

Research Question 2: What themes are frequently expressed with proverbs as counseling tools in marriage contraction among the Akans?

From the data analysis, the following were identified: The counselling theme with the highest frequency of proverbs was co-operation. In all, there were 12 proverbs (27.4%) on co-operation out of the 44 proverbs used in the optional speeches. Patience followed with six (6) proverbs (13.6%) and hard work with four (4) (9.1%) proverbs. Respect for in-laws, against polygamy, faithfulness, and sexual denial had three (3) (6.8%) proverbs each. In addition, there were three themes (excessive friendship, respect for each other, and emulating good behavior) with two (2) (4.5%) proverbs each. The least expressed themes in the optional speeches as means of counselling the couple were providing security, heeding advice, violence and child bearing. These themes had one (1) (2.3%) each. The frequency of the proverbs and the themes they portray are represented graphically on the table and bar chart below:


Table 1: Frequency of Akan proverbs and the themes they portray in marriage contraction

THEME NO. OF PROVERBS PERCENTAGECooperation 12 27.4Respect for each other 2 4.5Patience 6 13.6Hard work 4 9.1Excessive friendship 2 4.5Respect for in-laws 3 6.8Against polygamy 3 6.8Faithfulness/truthfulness 3 6.8Providing security 1 2.3Heeding advice 1 2.3Against violence 1 2.3Sexual denial 3 6.8Emulating good behaviour 2 4.5Child bearing 1 2.3Total 44 100

Figure 1: Bar chart of frequency of Akan proverbs and the themes they portray in marriage contraction

It is clear from the data that none of the optional speakers concentrated on one theme in their speeches. Almost all speakers touched on two or more themes. For example, speaker 2 in episode 3 lay emphasis on about five themes (child bearing, criticism of polygamy, relationship with in-laws, faithfulness and co-operation), while a speaker of episode 1 concentrated on two themes (truthfulness/faithfulness and co-operation). The data indicates that the Akans place emphasis on co-operation, patience, hard work, and sex as important things that ensure a successful marriage. Co-operation was very much emphasized in the optional speeches because it has serious repercussion on any successful marriage. The key to a strong long-term marriage that people aim for is co-operation. Co-operation underpins any successful marriage because all other themes expressed in the optional speeches hinge on it. The speakers essentially stressed on co-operation because the I-want-my-needs-met attitude in marriage without considering


the other breaks down the spirit of cooperation in marriage. Proverbs on co-operation should, therefore be highlighted in marriage counselling. Patience was also stressed in advising the couples because co-operation and respect for the other can be achieved when there is patience between the couple. These two elements are crucial to any successful marriage, hence the need for their emphasis in counselling the couples during the optional speeches.

Research Question 3: What are the implications of the study to the professional counsellor’s use of Akan proverbs in their day-to-day marriage counselling of their clients?

Proverbs reveal profound thoughts of a people and they are deeply rooted in their souls. They constitute the true index of what a people hold dear. Proverbs encapsulate the form of interpretation of the principles of life and mode of conduct upheld by a people (Kanu, 2015 citing Anozie, 1999). They deal with practical and realistic ideas and real life situations (Isidienu, 2016). Proverbs touch on important issues that are dear to the individual. The accumulated knowledge, wisdom, cultural beliefs and experiences of the Akans are embedded in their proverbs. Proverbs therefore have values and are veritable sources of wisdom that are crucial to counselling people entering into marriage. This ensures that they have a clear understanding of the complexities of marriage. Akan proverbs portray what the Akan cherishes as their worldview and an embodiment of their soul. The implications of this study to contemporary marriage counselling therefore cannot be underestimated. The following are some implications:

• That the professional contemporary marriage counsellor should employ traditional proverbs in their marriage counseling sessions because proverbs portray what the Akan cherishes as their worldview and an embodiment of their soul. It is a built-in or an innate mechanism of the Akan, which needs activation for it to work and help shape their marriage lives.

• That the professional counsellor should know what the Akan society cherishes in marriage and should therefore stress on in their counseling sessions using proverbs. Such proverbs will let the would-be couple think critically on important things that ensure successful marriage and practise them.


• That the contemporary counselor should be acquainted with the culture in general and proverbs in particular of the Akans so that they can use them effectively in their marriage counselling sessions.

• That they should know proverbs, their meanings and implications to help them use such proverbs effectively in their marriage counseling sessions to touch on the inner soul of their counsellees.

ConclusionThis paper sought to examine how proverbs can be used as counselling tool in marriage in contemporary times. The study used forty-four proverbs from ten optional speeches in three marriage episodes as the corpus. The themes that were commonly exploited by the speakers through their use of proverbs to advise the couples were cooperation, patience, hard work, respect for in-laws, polygamy, faithfulness and sex. Other themes expressed include excessive friendship, emulating good behaviour, respect for each other, child bearing, providing security, and heeding advice. The most frequently expressed themes were cooperation and patience. The study noted that contemporary marriage counsellors should tap into proverbs in the counselling of their clients because proverbs are at the soul of the Akan and tapping into them makes the couple think critically of what is presented to them and apply them in their marriage life and beyond.


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AppendixMarriage Contraction Episodes

Episode 1Ethnographic Background

Venue: Aboso in the Shama District of the Western Region of Ghana

Date: 25/4/16

Participants: Bride’s Family (Eshun Family) and Groom’s Family (Ako Family)

Context: (The two families have met at Opanyin Eshun’s house to perform the marriage rites for Akua Menanowa and John Ako. The marriage ceremony is about to end and participants have been given the chance to advise the couple)

Optional Speaker1: (Opanyin Ansa, elder brother of the bride’s father)

…. ɔyɛ me enyigye dɛ ndɛ wɔabɛtsew wo rokɔ. Mpanyin se, ɔbaa kɔ awar a, ɔnye ne na kɔ (1) ntsi ndzepa biara wo na dze akyerɛ wo no fa yɛ edwuma. …. Odzi kan, anyɛnko dodow ntsi na kɔtɔ ennya tsir (2). Hwɛ w’anyɛnkosɛm yie …. Bio, hu dɛ aber biara ebɛyɛ biribi aboa wo kun osiandɛ dua kor gye ehum a, obu (3). Odzi ewiei, akwadwer no nua nye menya medzi (4) na hu dɛ anoma enntu a, obua da (5) ….

English Translation

(… I am happy that today somebody has come to marry you. The elders say, if a girl (woman) goes to marriage, she goes with her mother so any good thing your mother has taught you practice it. … First, excessive friendship deprived the crab of a head. Be careful with your friends. … Again, make sure you will do something to assist your husband every time because if one tree stands in the way of the storm, it breaks. Lastly, the brother of laziness is if I get, I will eat and note that if a bird does not fly, it goes hungry. …..)

Optional Speaker 2 (Bride’s uncle)


…. Akua Menanowa, ndɛ na wo mber aso ntsi yɛ w’adze dɛ ɔwarfo. …. Mmfa wo kun ekyir nnyɛ biribiara. Mpanyin se, wɔnam beenu sua efir a, wɔnam beenu sera (6). Bio ma abotar ndzi wo kan. Mmper wo ho wɔ abrabɔ mu osiandɛ ɔbra wɔtɔ bo bɔ (7). Aber biara tsie afotu …. Seanntse nye ɔwam etsikɔ pɔw (8). …. Aber biara nnye wo kun ndwen osiandɛ tsir kor mmpam (9) na tsir kor so nnkɔ egyina (10) ……

English Translation

(… Akua Menanowa, today is your time for marriage so do things like a married woman. ….Do not do anything behind your husband. The elders say, when two people set a trap the two watch it together. Again, let patience be your guiding principle. Do not rush in life because life is executed with patience. Pay heed to your husband’s advice every time … the hornblower bird has a protruding back head because it did not listen to advice. Think together with your husband all the time because one head does not confer and one head does not deliberate on a case…)

Optional speaker 3 (Opanyin Kofi Asɛmpa, groom’s uncle)

Awar nye banyin na basia enyimnyam. Aber biara bɔ wo yer ho ban. Mpanyin se, basia onnyi kun na yɛbor no yi akyea (11). … Hwɛ yie na ammfa wo nsa annka wo yer. Hu dɛ edze kokrobetsir kɔ eyi a, wɔdze asotɔr gya wo kwan (12). Hwɛ yie na annyɛ asosɔmbaa osiandɛ awar dodow ma kɔm dze banyin (13) ….

English translation

(… Marriage is the dignity of every man and woman. Protect your wife all the time. The elders say, we beat a woman and bluff when she has no husband. … Be careful you do not raise your hand against your wife. Know that when you attend a funeral with your thumb raised, you are seen off with a slap. Be careful you do not marry more women because a polygamous man goes hungry …)

Optional Speaker 4 (groom’s senior father)


….. Awarsɔ. Awar mu wɔ nkukuhwease pii naaso hom nhu dɛ koryɛ ma nkonyimdzi (14) ntsi daa hom nyɛ kor. Hom nnya abotar wɔ biribiara mu osiandɛ abotar ma nkonyimdzi (15) ….. Ekyir koraa no, hom nnhu dɛ beebiara dɔ wɔ no, ebufuw nnyi hɔ (16) ….

English translation

(Happy marriage! There are so many ups and downs in marriage but you should know that togetherness results in victory so do things together every time. You should have patience because patience moves mountains. …. Finally, you should note that where there is love, there is no anger. …)


Venue: Kumasi in the Shama District of the Western Region of Ghana

Date: 10/4/16

Participants: Bride’s Family (Nsia Family) and Groom’s Family (Boakye Family)

Context: (The two families have met at Opanyin Ansa’s house to perform the marriage rites between Abena Nsia and Yaw Mensa. The marriage ceremony is about to end and participants have been given the chance to advise the couple)

Optional Speech 1 (the bride’s father – Opanyin. Kwan Ansa)

…. Agoo, enuanom ndɛ yɛ enyigye da. … Awar mu wɔ ntokwa ntsi ntokwa ba a hom nsiesie no dzinn. Bio hom nyɛ kor osiandɛ nkura yɛ kor no wodzi mbɔrkutu (17) dɛmara so huw m’enyi do ma me ntsi na atwe nam beenu beenu (18). Biribiara mu no, hom nsusu ho. Mpanyin se, nyansa nnyi baakofo tsir mu. (19) dɛmara nyimpa kor nsa nnso Nyame enyim kata (20) …..

English Translation

(Agoo! Brothers and sisters, today is a happy day. …. There are misunderstandings in marriage so when there are misunderstandings solve it peacefully. Again, be united because when a group of mice unite they eat a pot full of dough. In the same way, antelopes walk in pairs because of the idea


of removing the peck from one’s eye. In all things, dialogue together. The elders say, wisdom does not reside in one person’s head. In the same way, one person’s hand cannot cover the face of God)

Optional speaker 2 (Bride’s grandfather)

Me nananom, mepɛ dɛ mutu hom fo fa edwumadzen na setie ho. Sɛ hom bedzi yie wɔ hom awar mu a, ogyina edwumadzen do. Mpanyin se, etse fakor a, etse w’adze do (21). ….. Afei, me ba brɛ wo ho ase ma wo kun na enya awar mu agyapadze. Abowa kɔkɔsekyi dze ne kwasea gye ne nyinkyɛr (22). Tsie wo kun n’asɛm aber biara… Me babaa, hu dɛ nnyɛ dza ɔhyerɛn nyina nye sika (23) ntsi ma w’enyi nka wo kun ho. …..

English translation

(My brothers and sisters, I want to advice you about hard work and obedience. If you will succeed in your marriage, it hinges on hard work. Our elders say, if you sit at one point, you sit on your wealth. ….. Now, my daughter, be humble before your husband and get all the good things in marriage. The vulture uses its stupidity to have long life. Listen to your husband all the time. …. My daughter, not all that glitters is gold so just stay with your husband.)

Optional Speaker 3 (Opanyin Kwaw, an observer)

… Awarfo mema hom tsir nkwa. Egya ndom hom awar mu mba. Hom nhwɛ hom anyɛnkosɛm yie. … Afei m’awɔfase wo so brɛ woho ase na aber biara tsie dza wo kun bɛka. Mpanyin se, akokɔber nyim adzekyee naaso ɔhwɛ akokɔnyin ano (24). Bio, hom ndzi nsewnom nyi osiandɛ awar wɔwar no ekyir (25) na awarsɔ na awargu gyina nsewnom do (26) ntsi hom nhwɛ hɔn yie……

English translation

(…. Couple, I give you happy marriage/congratulations. May the Father provide you with children in your marriage. Be careful with excessive friendship. … Now, my niece, you must be humble and listen to what your husband will say. Our elders say, the fowl knows it is daybreak but it looks at the cock. Again, respect your in-laws because marriage thrives on those behind the marriage (in-laws) and the success or collapse of a marriage depends on in-laws so take good care of them …..)


Optional Speaker 4 (Op. Kofi Abora from groom’s family)

Mema hom ayekoo! Awar yɛ akwantu a ɔyɛ dzen. Hom ntsinntsim. Hom mboaboa hom ho. Hom nhu dɛ nsa nyimfa guar benkum na benkum so guar nyimfa (27). … M’awɔfaase, mpanyin se, sɛ nyin annwen na ber wen a, wɔda mu (28). Me babaa,dɔ wo kun na tsie n’asɛm, … ɔbaa ɔdɔ no kun ɔse morohwɛ wo ara (29). …. Hom ndzi nokwar mma hom osiandɛ nokwardzi ma nkonyim (30). Bio, nokwardzi (so) yɛ awar mu kandzea (31). Odzi ewiei, mmfa wo ho nnkam wo kun; mpanyin se, akokɔ yɛ ne ba sɔesɔe a, akorɔma kyer no (32). Hom ntsena asomdwee mu….

English translation

(I bid you greetings! Marriage is a difficult journey. Be careful. You should help each other. You should recognize that the right hand washes the left and the left washes the right. My nephew, the elders say, if the man does not weave and the woman weaves, we sleep in it. My daughter, love your husband and listen to him … A woman who loves the husband, say I am looking at you. …. Be truthful to each other because truthfulness brings success. Again, truthfulness is the light in marriage. Finally, do not deprive your husband of sex; the elders say that if the fowl drives its chicks away, the hawk snatches them. Stay together in peace …)


Venue: Aboso in the Shama District of the Western Region of Ghana

Date: 17/5/16

Time: 10:00 am

Participants: Bride’s Family (Amissa Family) and Groom’s Family (Bekoe Fam-

ily)

Context: (The two families have met at Opanyin Amissa’s family house to perform

the marriage rites between Akua Wobirba and Kwame Beesi. The marriage cer-

emony is about to end and participants have been given the chance to advise the


couple)Optional Speaker 1: (Bride’s uncle – Opanyin Kwesi Bɛyɛɛdɛn)

… Awarfo, mema hom tsir nkwa. Twerammpɔn Kwame nhyira hom. M’afotu ara nye dɛ hom nhu dɛ awar no kwan war ara yie ntsi hom nnya abotar osiandɛ abotar tutu nkokwaa (33) na isie abotar kum ntsɛtsɛɛ a, ihu no nson (34). Hom nhu dɛ awar mu enyimnyan nye mba (35) ntsi mma hom nnkyɛr na hom ama me nana. Iyi ekyir no, hom nhwɛ hom ho yie wɔ anyɛnkofo ho. Nwaba kora noho na ɔyɛ pe (36) ntsi hom nkora hom ho yie. Bio, nyia ɔyɛ adzepa na yetu n’kyir gya (37). Ekyir koraa no hom nyɛ edwumadzen nhwɛ hom mba na awofo. Mpanyin se, edwumadzen nnku nyimpa (38).

English translation:

(… Couple, happy marriage! May the Almighty God bless you. My advice is that know that marriage is a very long journey so you should have patience because patience move mountains. If you dissect the ant with a lot of patience, you see the intestines. Note that reputation in marriage is children so do not hesitate in giving ma a grandchild. Besides, be careful about friendship. The snail that takes care of itself becomes a giant one so take very good care of yourself. Again, we emulate someone who does good things. Finally, work hard to take care of your children and your parents. The elders say, hard work does not kill anyone.)

Optional Speaker 2: (Chief’s spokesperson who was at the ceremony as a witness - ɔkyeame Kwaw Bentum)

Agoo! Enuanom na adɔfo medze nkyia fi Nana na ne mpanyimfo hɔ brɛ hom. Nana ma hom akye; ɔse wɔgye no ahenewa. Awarfo, afotu a Nana se me mfa mma hom ara nye ɔdɔ, koryɛ na abotar. …… Maame Wobirba, mpanyimfo se, atopa na ɔma awar sɔ (39) ntsi mmfa woho nkam wo kun ara da. Dɛmara so na me Nana Beesi wo so hu no dɛ sɛ edwanse fakor a, otwa ehur (40); ma w’enyi nka wo yer ho osiandɛ awar dodow so ma banyin ano yɛ nta(41). Afei hom nsan nhu dɛ awar wɔwar no ekyir (42) ntsi obiara mmbu ne nsewnon na ebusuafo annyɛ dɛm a daakye ɔdze asɛm bɛba. Bio, hom nhu dɛ nokwardzi nye awar no kutuwdobo (43) ntsi hom


ndzi nokwar mma hom ho dɛ mbrɛ ɔfata. Odzi ekyir koraa no, mepɛ dɛ hom hu dɛ nkabɔm hia wɔ awar mu. Hom nka hom ho mbɔ mu dɛ pradze. Mpanyin se, pradze kunkumfi no bu yɛ buna (44). Mpanyimfo a hom ehyia wɔ ha nyina meda hom ase. Awarfo mema hom tsir nkwa.

English translation

(Agoo! Brothers and sisters and all loved ones, I send you greetings from the chief and his elders to you all. He says his greeting response is Ahenewa. Couple, the advice to you from Nana is love, togetherness and patience …. Maame Wobiriba, the elders say, sex makes marriage thrive so never deprive your husband of sex. In the same vein, Nana Beesi you must also know that if you urinate at one spot, it gives more foam. Let your eye be on your wife because polygamy makes a man have double tongue. After this, you must also note that a marriage thrives better based on the people behind the marriage so everybody should respect his/her in-laws else it will bring problem one day. Again, note that truthfulness is the bedrock of marriage so be truthful to each other. Finally, I want you to


know that unity and cooperation is key in marriage. You must come together like a broom. The elders say, if you take a broom stick, it is easy to break but it is not easy to break them, if they are together. All elders gathered here, I thank you. Couple, I say congratulations!)


Theorising pornogrammar in the Akan folktale tradition: The trickster’s rhetorical indirection and

sexual indiscretion

J.B. Amissah-ArthurLecturer

Department of EnglishUniversity of Ghana, Legon, Ghana

Email: [email protected]

Submitted: April 16, 2018 / Accepted: February 25, 2019 / Published: October 4, 2019

Abstract

In the oral and written folktale tradition of the Akan people of Ghana, Kweku Ananse is the archetypal trickster. Simultaneously, he is divinity and mortal, anthropomorphic and zoomorphic, mind and matter,

culture hero and comical villain. Though the phenomenon of Ananse has been widely studied, the question of Ananse’s sexually-oriented verbal traps has received very little or no attention. The present essay attempts to contribute towards filling this gap by raising fundamental questions about Ananse’s language. What linguistic stratagem informs the apparent ease with which he appropriates other people’s wives? We find that as the quintessential linguist, Ananse’s mastery of rhetorical indirection is fundamental to his success as a libertine. The essay examines the forms of rhetorical indirection and linguistic stratagem by which Ananse negotiates


sex, whether he is taking advantage of a friend’s wife, seducing the king’s daughter or appropriating Nana Nyakopon the Supreme God’s spouse.

Keywords: Akan, Ananse, phallus, pornogrammar, trickster

IntroductionAnanse, the archetypal trickster of the Akan folktale tradition, has been long documented as the quintessential linguist. The centrality of language to Ananse’s role as trickster has roots in Akan cosmology. The Akan proverb, Ananse annton kasa – Spider did not sell language – attests to the aboriginal Akan belief that Ananse owned language, and gave it freely to humankind as a cultural gift. Ananse’s ownership of language is reinforced by three tales in the Anansesem (Ananse tale) tradition: ‘How It Came about that the Sky-God’s Stories Came to be Known as “Spider-Stories”’ (Rattray, 1930, p. 55), ‘How It Came about that Men Commit Evil by Night’ (p. 72) and ‘How Toothache and Birds Came into the Tribe’ (p. 178). In the first of the three tales, Ananse acquires Nyankonsem (God’s tales) from Nyankopon (God) by performing the seemingly impossible tasks of capturing very dangerous animals including, the python, hornets and fairies, and presenting them to God. After acquiring the tales, Ananse names them after himself as Anansesem, and shares them with humankind. The second tale is a version of the earlier one. In the present tale, God is unable to decide which of his three sons – Night, Moon and Sun – he should enthrone as king over the universe. Ananse manages to convince God to choose Sun, the youngest child, over the older children. As a reward for his good counsel, God gives Ananse his (God’s) tales which the trickster shares with humankind. In the third tale, a mysterious bird strips the people of their jaws so that nobody is able to speak. The bird comes every day, at noon, to gloat about his success in rendering the people dumb. Ananse uses his wits to trick and kill the bird, and give back to the people their lost jaws. A common thread binds all the three tales cited: Ananse’s ability to recover language in the form of story and speech, and giving it freely to humanity. It is important to stress that story, in the Akan tradition, is closely linked with speech. In fact, the former implies the latter in the Akan context, since the Akan storytelling tradition is a vibrant performance tradition involving, speech, music, dance and drama. All the tales cited above provide a legitimate basis for the Akan belief that Ananse owns language. The tales represent, however, a few of the


many instances of Ananse’s boundless culture heroism. In other instances: he furnishes humanity with wisdom when he shatters the pot containing the resource (Rattray, p. 4); he spreads agricultural technology by making the hoe available to humankind (p. 42); he struggles with God over women, and in the process spreads diseases such as syphilis and gonorrhoea (p. 76); he establishes the Akan ethical practice regarding the sanctity of secrets and personal confidences (p. 129). Indeed, it is Ananse who brings the Akan society into existence. To buttress our argument regarding the centrality of Ananse to Akan cosmology, we cite below a sacred Akan myth of origin (Odomankomasem), which is also an ancient Akan drum text:

Henako se13,

Henako se,

Henako se,

Hena na oko se ’Te,

Ma ’Teko se Ananse,

Ma Ananse ko see Odomankoma,

Ma Odomankoma

Boo Adee?

Who gave word,

Who gave word,

Who gave word?

Who gave word to Hearing,

For Hearing to have told Ananse,

For Ananse to have told Odomankoma,

For Odomankoma

To have made the Thing [or the world]?

From the text above, Ananse’s role in the creation of the world is clarified. Two points are important here: first, it is Ananse who hears from Te (‘Te’ understood as a demiurge); and second, it is Ananse who tells Odomankoma (the creative energy of God) to create the world. ‘Te’ or ‘Hearing’ suggests 13J.B. Danquah, The Akan Doctrine of God, ([1944], 1968).


the act of being spoken to, and, therefore, implies language. In the myth, Te/Hearing/Language first speaks to Ananse, indicating that Ananse is the first recipient of primordial speech. Second, it is Ananse who utilises the latent agency of language to get the world created: he tells God what to create, canonising Ananse as master of both language and creation, a bona fide Akan culture hero.As owner of language Ananse expertly manipulates language to serve his purpose. He constantly resorts to linguistic indirection – puns, ambiguities, tropes – and rhetorical gimmicks, including incantations, nsabran (appellations) and songs as strategic tools to execute his tricks. Often, he overcomes his victims by means of verbal traps. Yankah (1995) draws our attention to the importance of indirection in Akan rhetoric. He suggests that to the Akan, ‘the perceived power of the spoken word…calls for the deployment of various strategies of speaking that may obviate crises. These include avoidance or discretionary use of verbal taboos, apologizing for their use, using euphemisms, or resorting to indirection’ (p. 51). In the view of Claudia V. Camp (2000), ‘Ananse…presides over and authorizes a tradition that is terribly concerned with language and its proper use’ (p. 81). The fact is that Ananse knows all the rhetorical protocols of the Akan, and applies them so cleverly that he escapes censure even when he is undermining social norms. We can postulate, then, that Ananse practises ‘verbal hygiene’ (Cameron 1995/2012). The ‘term [verbal hygiene] is intended to encompass a diverse set of activities linked by the idea that some ways of using language are functionally, aesthetically, or morally preferable to others’ (Cameron, 1994, p. 383). In the present essay, we intend to discuss Ananse’s language in the context of a specific body of folktales that have curiously evaded critical interest: the erotic Ananse tale. In providing the analysis, we are aware of the distinguished scholarship on the West African trickster done by, for instance, Alan Dundes (1971), Lee Haring (1972), Robert Pelton (1980), Kwesi Yankah (1983/1989/1999), Kwadwo Opoku-Agyemang (1995) and Naana J. Opoku-Agyemang (1999). While Dundes and Haring study the structural paradigms of the trickster tales, Pelton discusses the trickster’s role as a mythical figure. He also delves into the trickster’s sexuality and language. Yankah concerns himself variously with questions regarding the origin, sacrality and ethics of the trickster. Kwadwo Opoku-Agyeman projects Ananse as the paradigm of behaviour that enables the enslaved African to outwit and escape enslavement, while Naana Opoku-Agyemang outlines the gender-role perspectives involved in the social structure and narrating practices of Ananse tales. With the exception of Pelton’s, none of


the studies reviewed takes as its burden the subject of Ananse’s sexuality and language. Pelton’s study does not link Ananse’s sexuality with his language, however. It merely discusses the two topics as disparate subjects. In view of the identified gap in the scholarship, the present essay examines the impact of Ananse’s sexuality on his language; precisely, the study analyses how Ananse’s linguistic craftiness enables him to succeed as a libertine. The essay shall also attempt to theorise the cultural function of the Akan trickster’s phallocentricity.

Theoretical frameworkIn providing the analysis, we intend to apply Roland Barthes’s (1971) theory, pornogrammar, which derives from his study of the erotic novels of Donatien Alphonse Francois (Marquis de Sade), an eighteenth century French philosopher and writer. Sade’s works are saturated with illicit sexuality, torture, pain, debauchery and orgiastic pleasure, leading to words such as ‘sadism’, ‘sadistic’ and ‘sadomasochism’ being derived from his name. In developing his theory of Sade, Barthes delineates reduplicative patterns of criminal sexuality in Sadian novels such as: Justine, or the Misfortune of Virtue (1791); Juliette (1787-1801); and The120 Days of Sodom, or the School of Libertinage (1785, [1904]). Barthes argues that there exists a pornogrammar when, first, recurring acts of eroticism can be subjected to a discursive, oratorical rendition; and, second, when those acts can be delineated and combined, in the manner of linguistics, to form the social structure of the story.

For…there is no eroticism unless the crime [sexual passions, debauchery, illicit liaisons, sadism] is “reasoned”; [and] to reason means to philosophize, to dissertate, to harangue, in short, to subject crime [understood as sexual crime] to a system of articulated language, but it also means to combine according to precise rules the specific action of vice, so as to make from these series and groups of actions a new “language,” no longer spoken but acted; a “language” of…love (Barthes, 1989, p. 27)

From the above, there are two levels of pornogrammar: first, the verbal, rhetorical level, which is the discursive, naturally-linguistic level; and, second, the level of action, which derives from the linguistic principle of contiguity, and, therefore, represents a pseudo-grammatical structure. In other words, the second level of pornogrammar is a metonymic


representation of language, an artificial language based on the simulacrum of linguistic combination. In sum, pornogrammar represents ‘a grammar of the erotic – with its erotemes and rules of combination’ (Barthes, p. 165) – producing a language upon language.Critical responses to Barthes’ theory have been varied. Philippe Roger, restating Barthes himself, conceptualizes pornogrammar as language turned on itself in a sort of harmless linguistic game whose effect is felt by language itself. In his view, though the monstrosity and criminality which represent the basis of pornogrammar seems, at first, to be directed at a referent, it soon becomes clear ‘that the real victim is language’ (qtd in Frappier-Manzur, 1996, p.95). Lucienne Frappier-Manzur rejects Roger’s stance, and insists that the works of Sade, and therefore, pornogrammar, represents “actualization of desire” (Frappier-Manzur, p. 93); in other words, pornogrammar encourages people to practise their base fantasies and desires, a charge which Barthes denies. According to Frappier-Manzur, the theory captures ‘the programmatic discourse of the orgy between phantasy and its execution’ and ‘assimilate[s] the question of the gap between desire and its realization’ (p. 94). In rejecting views such as Frappier-Manzur’s, Barthes reiterates the linguistic position, and insists that the theory turns ‘the impossibilities of the referent…into possibilities of discourse, it is on the level of meaning, not of the referent, that we should read [it]’ (p. 95). In this sense, pornogrammar becomes a playful linguistic paradigm whose focus rests purely on the creative use to which an author or character uses sexual innuendos. In borrowing Barthes’ theory for the study of the erotic Ananse tale, we recognize the limitation involved in submitting a traditional African folk-genre and its hero to an European intellectual, theoretical paradigm. This shortcoming is minimised, however, if we realise that both Ananse and the prototypical Sadian libertine have much in common, and, in fact, do reflect each other in many fundamental respects. But they do deflect from each other also in other aspects of character. For instance, unlike Ananse, the sexuality, bestiality and criminality of the Sadian libertine are decidedly exaggerated and exponentially perverted beyond the limits of human sanity. In spite of the divergences, there are clear points of convergence, such as: sex, food, site of action, population, money and language. For example, Sadian debauchery reflects Ananse’s lecherousness and desire for illicit sex. The Sadian boast about virility and phallic size (Barthes, 1989, p. 18) mimics Ananse’s claims about his phallus. Sadian food which represents the fulcrum of all social and libertine interactions in the Sadian novel (p. 18) parallels Ananse’s food, which is


the central theme of almost all Ananse tales; and just as Sadian food is variously utilised as a bait and poison for the libertine’s victim, Ananse’s food works similarly in the sexual arena as a bait and poison for his victims and rivals. In terms of site of action, Sadian site is remarkably identical to Ananse’s: both sites are ‘hermetically isolated from the world’ so that ‘one travels only to shut oneself away’ in an otherworldly, liminal environment (p. 15). As regards population, Sadian society is stratified, but such social classifications become blurred in the context of libertinage, where master becomes victim, and victim master (p. 30). Similarly, Ananse does not discriminate in his choice of libidinal interest: he takes advantage of his friends’ wives, impregnates married women in their own matrimonial beds, tricks the village chief for his daughter, marries all the women in one village, and even travels to the cosmic realms to seduce Nyankopon’s (God’s) wife. Ananse disregards all social distinctions when sexuality is concerned, just as his Sadian counterpart does. Sadian money is not merely used to acquire sex, it is also a sign of social class (p. 23). Ananse, on the other hand, is not wealthy at all; indeed, Ananse is a poverty-stricken character. In spite of his very weak financial status, he schemes to get ‘property’ to further his libertine life. For instance, he tricks Nyankopon for his goat which he uses as a bait to lure his victims, claiming he is God’s servant. Being God’s messenger obviously suggests social and divine pedigree. At another time, he manages to acquire honey, and provides the delicacy as a symbol to claim divine status, since honey is traditionally seen as food for the gods. Using his “status,” he seduces and elopes with the king’s daughter. Lastly, the Sadian protagonist and Ananse are both eloquent, and demonstrate mastery of language. Indeed, both pornogrammar and the Anansesem (Ananse tale) genre are highly linguistic phenomena. The wide-range of convergences between the Sadian protagonist and Ananse discussed above justifies our use of Barthes’ theory as the appropriate framework for analysis in the present study.In using Barthes’ framework, our focus is not on the action of the trickster in itself. We do not intend to interrogate the social structure of the story, or how the units of sexual action have been combined to form a superordinate structure of sexuality. Our focus is on the first level of pornogrammar, the naturally-linguistic, rhetorical basis of the tale – what Barthes calls the libertine’s ‘dissertation,’ ‘philosophizing’ or ‘harangue’ (1989, p.27). Barthes emphasises that: ‘The dissertation “seduces,” “animates,” “misleads,” “electrifies,” [and] “inflames”; ….[D]uring the dissertation, erotic energy is renewed’ (p. 146). It is this seductive, inflammatory and, ultimately,


misleading character of language we intend to examine in the present study. It is our considered view, however, that Sadian discourse – the ‘dissertation’ – is not as misleading as Barthes claims, and that it represents a rather graphic speech. We decline to cite a direct example of Sadian discourse because of its impropriety in the present context14. Ananse’s language, on the other hand, represents a more polished, nuanced and ‘verbally hygienic’ (Cameron. 1994, p. 383) discourse aimed at achieving the same libidinal effect as Sadian language. Ananse uses language that is decidedly deceptive and ludicrous; and taking advantage of the protean nature of language, he sets sexual traps to lure the desirable women in his world. Accordingly, we extend the definition of ‘pornogrammar’ to include Ananse’s subtle art of seduction. We conceptualise pornogrammar, therefore, as: a rhetoric of the erotic based on linguistic indirection and aimed at procuring the pudenda through illicit means without attracting censure.

Data and justificationWe shall examine a select set of oral and written tales for the analysis. The former set of tales shall be taken from the present writer’s own repertoire of Akan tales as well as R.S. Rattray’s Akan-Ashanti Folktales (1930). As an indigenous Fanti-Akan, the present writer has been involved in the performance of Ananse tales since childhood, and, therefore, boasts not merely a specialist knowledge of the tradition, but also a comprehensive repertoire of the tales. His instinctive understanding of the dynamics of form and nuances of language of the tradition justifies the selection of tales from his collection. R.S. Rattray’s Akan-Ashanti Folktale, on the other hand, represents, perhaps, the first scientific collection and study of the Akan folktale. Rattray lived among the Asante of Ghana people for eight years – from 1920 to 1928 – as the colonial government’s first official anthropologist in Asante. Prior to the appointment, he had lived in Ghana (then Gold Coast) intermittently since 1906. He had a good command of the Twi language, and collected the tales from ‘uneducated’ Akan people whose use of language reflected the aboriginal, precolonial Akan linguistic situation (Rattray, 1930). His Akan-Ashanti Folktales, therefore, represents the most authentic ethnographic collection of Akan tales. The two sources of oral tales discussed above provide a rich lode of social, cultural and linguistic material

14For an example of Sadian language, see Marquis de Sade, The 120 Days of Sodom ([1785], 2002), trans. Richard Seaver and Austryn Wainhouse, https://supervert.com/elibrary/marquis-de-sade/


which will form the basis of analysis of the present paper. The latter set of tales – the written tales – shall include Efua Sutherland’s The Marriage of Anansewa (1975) and Yaw Asare’s Ananse in the Land of Idiots (2006). Since Sutherland and Asare appropriate the oral folktale tradition for the purpose of literary writing, their works provide a comparative body of texts which enables us to examine the divergences and convergences that occur between the oral and written folktale traditions.

Ananse’s sexuality and indirection in the oral folktalesWe begin our analysis by first providing brief summaries of the tales being examined. We start with the tale, “We Are All Ananse’s Children,” a tale told to the present writer by his octogenarian father in 2017. In the tale:

Nyankopon (God) sanctions a match of atentam – a traditional form of wrestling – between Ananse and Pataku (Wolf) to determine who wins the hand of Araba Ansaba, the most beautiful woman in the world. She is said to be so tall and huge that her breasts nearly touch the ground when she walks. Ananse is so captivated by Araba’s phenomenal torso that he fantasises about her the entire day. All night, he plays on his flute serenading Araba’s breasts and pudenda. On the day of the wrestling match, Ananse hides many pots of water and gongs in a thicket near the venue of the fight. Just when the fight is about to start, Ananse excuses himself, and goes into the thicket to prepare. He spills the water in the pots so that there is a deluge comparable to Bosompo (the Sea deity15). When Mawere (Turkey), the go-between, asks Ananse what is causing the flood, Ananse responds: ‘Mere gunsu’ – [‘I am urinating.’] On hearing this, Pataku, Ananse’s opponent, becomes very frightened and disturbed. He thinks that if his opponent’s urine can cause such a devastating flood, then he (Pataku) stands no chance in the impending fight. After a long period of ‘urinating’, the entire place is so flooded that there is hardly any dry land left for the fight. Then, suddenly, Ananse starts beating the hidden gongs, and making a lot of cacophonous noise. When Mawere enquires about the ringing, Ananse replies, ‘Me benyin rebo ne dewur’ – [‘my manhood is ringing its bells.’] He implies that the swinging of his phallus against his gonads produces the deafening sounds. At this point, Pataku concludes that, if Ananse’s phallus is so huge as to cause a flood, and so tough as to produce such an awful noise, then Ananse must be a gigantic and invincible warrior. Pataku decides he

15The coastal Akan regard the sea as a god called Bosompo or Nana Bosompo.


cannot fight Ananse; he flees from the battlefield. Ananse, therefore, wins Araba’s hand in marriage without throwing a punch. Ananse impregnates Araba every night when she comes to sleepover. In the morning, when Araba is going to her own house, which is located at the end of the world, she will give birth on the way. The next night, she will get pregnant again by Ananse, and will give birth the following day at a different location on her way home. Through this repeated procreative act, Ananse and Araba populate the whole world with children. That is why the elders say we are all Ananse’s children irrespective of where we live in the world.

The following tale, “Why it is the Elders Say we should not Repeat Sleeping-Mat Confidences,” taken from Rattray’s collection, is another version of “We Are All Ananse’s Children.” In the tale:

Nyankopon (God) makes a vegetable farm. He plants okras, onions, beans, garden-eggs, peppers and pumpkins. Unfortunately, weeds and nettles grow in the farm choking the vegetables. Nyankopon throws a challenge to the effect that any man who successfully clears the farm without scratching himself will be given Abena Nkroma, Nyankopon’s daughter, as wife. All the men who try to weed the farm fail in the attempt because the nettles cause them to itch so badly that they scratch themselves. Ananse accepts the challenge to weed the farm. When a passer-by asks why he is weeding a farm that nobody has been able to weed, he says it is for the love of a beautiful girl whose arm is like this. He will pretend to show how slender the girl’s hand is, but will use the opportunity to scratch his own itching arm. When another passer-by enquires why he is burdening himself with the impossible task, he will say it is for the sake of a beautiful girl whose thigh is like this. He will, again, use the opportunity to scratch his own itching thighs. This way, Ananse manages to clear the farm ‘without’ scratching himself. He is then given the hand of Abena Nkroma in marriage. (Rattray, 1930, pp. 129-133)

“How Ananse Got Aso in Marriage,” our final oral tale under consideration, is also a modified version of the earlier two tales. In the tale:

Akwasi Ninkunfuo is unable to impregnate his wife, Aso. Unhappy with the situation, Nyankopon (God) challenges the young men in the town to woo Aso, but on the condition that whoever succeeds in impregnating her marry her. Kweku Ananse joins the contest. He visits the couple with a gift of meat, and asks for lodging for the night. He claims: “It’s the Sky-god who is sending me, I am


weary, and I am coming to sleep here” (135). He asks Aso to cook for him. As she prepares the meal, he asks if she is cooking fufuo or eto. When she says it is fufuo, he says: “Then it is too little; go and fetch a big pot [and] [c]ome get meat. […] [I]f you had a pot big enough, I would give you enough meat…” (135). He then gives Aso forty hind-quarters of great beasts. During the meal, Ananse poisons the food with a purgative, and quits eating. Not knowing what Ananse has done, Akwasi eats the rest of the food. Before the couple retire to bed for the night, they enquire from Ananse what his name is. Ananse says he is called Sore-ko-di-Aso (Rise-up-and-make-love-to-Aso). When the couple sleeps at night, Ananse locks them in from the outside. In the middle of the night Akwasi develops a stomach ache because of the purgative Ananse puts in his food. Akwasi tries to go to the washroom, but he is unable to open the bedroom door. Ananse has locked it from the outside. Desperate, Akwasi calls Sore-ko-di-Aso (Rise-up-and-make-love-to-Aso) to open the door. Ananse immediately opens the door. While Akwasi is away, Ananse goes to Aso to demand sex. He asks: “Did you hear what your husband said? He said I must rise up and make love to you” (137). Aso cannot deny what her husband said, so Ananse appropriates her. In the course of the night, Akwasi calls Sore-ko-di-Aso nine times. On each occasion, Ananse goes into Aso’s bed to take advantage of her. He impregnates her in the process. When Akwasi finds out about the pregnancy, he divorces her. Ananse then marries her. That is how Ananse got Aso in marriage. (Rattray, 1930, pp. 133-137)

The next segment of tales we shall consider are the written folktales. These are literary works based on the Akan oral folktale tradition, and therefore, demonstrate simultaneous convergence with and divergence from the oral tradition, demonstrating the dynamism of Anansesem as a cultural and literary tradition. The first tale in this category of texts is Efua Sutherland’s The Marriage of Anansewa. In the drama, Ananse promises his daughter, Anansewa, in marriage to four chiefs: Chief of Sapa, Togbe Klu IV, Chief of the Mines and Chief-Who-Is-Chief. Ostensibly, he generates a tense libidinal competition around Anansewa for economic expediency. He intends to give the girl to the one who pays the highest dowry and demonstrates largess. In order to extricate himself and his daughter from the potentially dangerous and embarrassing nuptial entanglements, Ananse employs nsabran – Akan praise poetry– as rhetorical indirection. In the Akan tradition, nsabran or appellation is a verbal art-form performed for


chiefs by court-poets. The artistry of the poet is judged by his or her ability to recite the heroic achievements of the chief and his predecessors, or to coin high-sounding ancestral names, titles and honorifics in praise of the chief. The performance of appellations, therefore, provides Ananse with the platform to demonstrate his only known strengths: verbal artistry and guile. We provide below the relevant sections of Ananse’s appellation for each of the four chiefs. The following extract represents a section of the appellations for the Chief of Sapa:

O Mighty-Tree-Of-Ancient-Origin!/Mighty-Tree-Of-Ancient-Origin,/Rooted in the shrine of deity. (Act 1)

The appellation for Togbe Klu includes the following lines:

Prickly-pear/Cactus…/Thanks to your prickles/The enemy bleeds/Thanks to yourcapacious leaves/Those you love will always find within them/Water to refreshthem. (Act 1)

For Chief of the Mines, Ananse produces the following appellation:

You are coming again/Aren’t you?/You are coming?/Oh where shall we sit?/Whendriver ants/Are astir/All over our ground? (Act 1)

The last appellation meant for Chief-Who-Is-Chief goes as follows:

Oh! Fire-extinguisher!/Fire-extinguisher/You have caused flame flashes to darken Blazing-Column-Of-Fire-Who-Says-I-Will-Not-Be-Halted/Has come to a full stop. Masculine-One-Destined-To-Contend-To-Victory!/You consume fire. (Act 1)

Yaw Asare’s Ananse in the Land of Idiots provides the last written tale for the study. In the drama, Ananse, again, employs a remarkable range of verbal resources in his attempt to outwit another royalty, Dosey, King of Dim-Nyim-Lira. We provide the bare outline of the plot below:

Ananse desecrates the puberty rites of the maidens of Dim-Nyim-Lira. He is supposed to die for his action, but pleads for his life by offering to weave a Kente cloth for Sodziisa, the king’s daughter. To facilitate his work, he asks Sodziisa and her female friends to come to his craft shop and sing. When he hears the women approaching, he says: “O come, pretty…maidens, come! Come sing and dance, so the melodies of your voices and the contours of your bodies will smoothen the passage of my needle as I weave.” (2nd Movement, my emphasis)


In all the tales cited above, Ananse consistently employs rhetorical indirection or kasakoa (Yankah, 1991, p. 52) to veil his sexual intentions. “We Are All Ananse’s Children,” for instance, represents a highly mythical aetiological tale that provides the Akan view on creation. The complexity of the tale finds reflection in the complicated rhetoric employed by the trickster. To start with, Ananse turns an ordinary battleground into a complex and tricky linguistic space where rhetorical gimmicks operate. He redirects the discourse from the combat context to the genital arena, from the martial to the marital, and from fisticuffs to fecundity. What is originally a straightforward wrestling match is rhetorically transformed into a phallic contest. In this transformed space, Pataku’s muscular stature is rendered redundant since virility, and not brute physique, becomes the yardstick. Ananse is clearly the stronger man here because he boasts a phenomenal phallus. For instance, his urine provides so much liquid that it turns into a sea-like deluge; also, the swinging of his phallus and gonads makes a deafening cacophony. By projecting ithyphallus, Ananse rejects the traditional Akan martial criterion by which a woman may select a useful husband. For Ananse, the ability to procreate rather than to provide sustenance for one’s family should be the benchmark for selecting a good husband. By shifting the context from the martial to the marital through subtle linguistic indirection, Ananse demonstrates his mastery of language. Again, by redirecting the discourse from the original fight context to the phallic context, Ananse pursues a rhetorical style that is lost on everyone but Pataku, the intended recipient of the discourse. Nobody present at the fight venue seems to understand Ananse’s nonsensical pranks. Mawere, the referee, keeps asking Ananse to tell him what is going on. In our view, Mawere does not realise that he is in a highly sophisticated linguistic context, and that Ananse’s supposed nonsensical joke is actually a coded message targeted at Pataku, his opponent. By brandishing a huge phallus, Ananse does not merely draw attention to Pataku’s standard phallus, he conspicuously inscribes his own superior masculinity. Ananse’s euphemistic expression – ‘me benyin rebo ne dewur,’ – [‘my manhood is ringing its bells’] – produces a metaphoric meaning that elicits a phobic reaction from Pataku. The supposed phallus makes noise, and it is heard far and near. The fact of the size of Ananse’s supposed member is figuratively established for Pataku, his opponent. The discourse and its implication produces the psychological phenomenon of phallophobia in Pataku. Phallophobia is defined as fear of the phallus, especially the erect phallus (Subba, 2014, p.


346). Pataku’s phobia and flight from the battlefield can be explained in Freudian and Fanonian terms. According to the former, ‘phobias do not occur at all when the vita sexualis [or the sexual energy] is normal’ (Freud, 2004, p. 102). Evidently, Ananse’s demonstration of sheer phallic power reduces Pataku’s vita sexualis. In other words, Ananse induces phallic diminution (Fanon, 1967, p. 159) or psychological castration of Pataku by a mere linguistic trick.Viewed from another perspective, Ananse’s rhetoric produces a feminising effect on his opponent. If ‘phallophobia is a neurotic symptom shared by all women’ in patriarchal societies (Wang, 1990, p. 56), then it follows that Pataku’s flight from Ananse’s phallus represents feminisation. Pataku’s feminisation involves a psychological dwindling of his phallus until it has transmuted into the pudendic phallus: the clitoris, making him ‘female’. In this sense, the flight of the feminised Pataku from Ananse’s phallus represents an inversion: a simultaneous repulsion of and desire for the phallus. Fanon describes the act as the trick of the feminine sexual ego to defend itself (1967, p. 156). In the context, Ananse’s phallus becomes repulsive to Pataku because it threatens his/her transmutative pudenda, yet (s)he desires the self-same phallus because it provides empowerment. In this sense, phallophobia signifies as a sadomasochistic phenomenon in Pataku’s split consciousness: his male self wants to appropriate the organ while his female alter-ego rejects it. From the analysis above, it is evident that by a seemingly simple and irrational choice of words and action, Ananse produces a plurality of meaning whose impact reflects not only his mastery of indirection, but also delivers deep, effective, powerful and nuanced communication.In the second oral tale, “How It Is the Elders Say We Should not Repeat Sleeping-Mat Confidences,” Ananse employs a unique form of indirection with deeply psychological implications: autoerotic speech-acts. When he points to his own hands and loins and says, he weeds for the love of “a beautiful girl whose arm is like this” and “whose thigh is like this,” Ananse pretends to be describing the girl’s slender hands and attractive thighs, but, in fact, he is relieving himself of the discomforts of the itching caused by the nettles. On the psychological level, however, Ananse’s speech-act projects Ananse as performing an unconscious erotic act on himself. Freud defines the autoerotic act as a sexual gratification obtained from stimulating one’s own body (2004, p. 11). Though, Ananse’s ploy is intended to merely obtain some relief from the itching, it also projects Ananse’s unconscious mind: his psychosexual desire for the body of the king’s daughter. Unconsciously, Ananse sees his own body merely as a


surrogate for the body of the king’s daughter. He constructs a psychological diffusion between his own body and the woman’s, so that his autoerotic act should be read as a sexual indirection influenced by his fixation on the woman for whose body he toils to acquire.We shall look at Ananse’s indirection in another oral tale. In “How Ananse Got Aso in Marriage,” Ananse’s adopted name, ‘Sore-ko-di-Aso’ – [‘Rise-up-and-make-love-to-Aso’] – is decidedly ambiguous. In one sense, the name makes a very offensive proposition; in another sense, it is the name of Nyankopon’s emissary, a sacred being. In the tale, it is Nyankopon who sanctions Ananse’s seduction of Aso. The strange coincidence of profanity and divinity in the name makes interpretation of the name impossible. The couple, Akwasi and Aso, are unable to decode the real message and intention behind the name, and thus fall victim to Ananse’s verbal trap. The fact is that the name is a carefully-crafted double entendre, a clever diffusion of sexuality and sacrality, which enables Ananse to lure Aso into a sexual relationship without resistance from the woman. A closer examination of ‘Sore-ko-di-Aso’ reveals that the name encodes a plurality of semantic possibilities that conduce to Ananse’s sexual aims. In the Akan language, the verb, ‘So’, means, ‘to taste’. For instance, ‘M’aso’ means ‘I have tasted it.” Thus, the name, Aso, translates loosely as ‘it has been tasted’, which generates semantic associations such as ‘tasty woman’, ‘sweet woman’, ‘she who has been tasted’ – connotations that immediately resonate with Ananse’s depraved imagination. The verb, ‘so’, again means ‘to spark a light’. This second meaning of the verb produces ‘fire’ as a sexual symbol. In the context, the name, ‘Aso’, might be taken to mean ‘hot woman’, ‘woman on heat’, ‘woman burning with desire’. The polysemic manipulation of the verb ‘so’ therefore produces meanings ranging from the food metaphor to the fire metaphor. The food symbol inscribes woman as provider of both culinary and sexual libido for man; the fire symbol sees woman represented as the warmer of man’s bed, and by extension, the provider of the life-sustaining heat. The warm bed analogy is a representation of the warm womb. All the above connotations of the verb, ‘so’, reinforce and composite themselves into a semantic compound to project the trickster’s unique vision of woman. Ananse’s attitude to language in the Aso episode is another classic example of linguistic ‘gamesmanship’. He exploits ‘the secret life of words, etymologies true and false, onomatopoeias and tropes of all descriptions’ (Lercecle, 1990, p. 57) in pursuit of an illicit liaison with a woman who is already married.In the same tale, Ananse executes even more complex forms of


indirection based on metonymic representation. For instance, Ananse does not only ask Aso to pound fufuo, he also asks her to ‘Come get meat’ insisting that ‘[I]f you had a pot big enough, I would give you enough meat…’ (Rattray, 135). In our view, the act of asking Aso to pound fufuo is an implicit negotiation for sex; we recognise in fufuo-pounding a metaphor for the sexual act, where the pestle, a phallic symbol, thrusts into a mortar representing the pudenda. Still in the tale, ‘meat’ may be a metonymic representation of the phallus while ‘big pot’ may assume pudendic significance. Thus, the utterances: ‘Come get meat’ and ‘[I]f you had a pot big enough, I would give you enough meat’ reads as a veiled request for sexual relations. The paradigmatic schematisation and interpenetration of the sexual symbols in the tale can be formulated as follows:

Schema 1: Structural level of symbolism: Phallic symbol + Pudendic symbol = Coitus

Schema 2: Social level of symbolismAnanse + Aso = Coitus

Pestle + Mortar = Coitus

Meat + Pot = Coitus

From the schemata above, the denotative meaning of the nouns in the tale (Schema 2) are conditioned by Ananse’s libidinal vision (Schema 1) to assume the meaning of sexuality. In other words, Schema 1 provides the symbolic and structural bases for the interpretation of Schema 2, which represents the ‘events’ and ‘existents’ (Chatman, 1978, p. 96) in the social domain of the tale. Ananse selects the appropriate culinary motifs and combines them to represent his unique vision of sex. The subtle conceptualisation of sex is an instance of indirection: the trickster bargains for sex with a married woman in the full presence of her husband without exposing himself or attracting censure.In another example of rhetorical deftness in the same tale, the homestead of Akwasi and Aso is transformed into a pornodramatic proscenium the moment Ananse steps into the couple’s compound with his basket of meat. One of Ananse’s first acts on entering the couple’s house is to drop a piece of meat on the floor. We have already identified “meat” as a metonym for the phallus. When Aso draws Ananse’s attention to the dropped piece of meat, he says, ‘Oh if you happen to have a dog let him go and take it’ (Rattray, p. 135). Aso takes the meat and gives it to her husband,


Akwasi. In our view, the act of dropping the piece of meat is a deliberate dramatisation of the perceived contamination and rejection of Akwasi’s phallus. It is an intentional act devised to inscribe Akwasi’s impotence. Having Aso apportion the rejected meat to Akwasi reflects Aso’s rejection of Akwasi’s ‘contaminated’ and dysfunctional phallus. In this regard, Ananse’s reference to the dog of the house is an indirection for Akwasi. That Aso gives the contaminated meat to Akwasi implies, again, that she, like the trickster, sees her impotent husband as the dog of the house. This seeming complicity of Aso in degrading her husband might explain why she does not mount any resistance when Ananse approaches her for the illicit liaison. In the tale, Akwasi calls Ananse to open the door so that he can go out. Ananse’s pseudonym, ‘Sore-ko-di-Aso’, means [‘Rise-up-and-make-love-to-Aso’]. On hearing his name, the trickster goes to the woman to demand sex. He asks her: ‘Aso, w’ate dee wo kunu kaye?...Osee me nsore mmedi wo’ (Rattray, p. 136) meaning ‘Aso, did you…hear what your husband said?... He said I must rise up and make love to you’ (p. 137). Aso’s response to the proposition betrays her complicity. She says: ‘Wo mmoa’ (p. 136), literally, ‘You don’t lie (p. 137). Though Ananse’s trick is executed through a combination of verbal and psychological ploys, Aso’s response demonstrates her willingness to be tricked. Her ready acquiescence is quite strange, though, for an Akan woman in the traditional context which upholds very high moral codes.

Ananse’s sexuality and indirection in the written folktales

The literary writers whose work is shaped by the material and logic of the Akan oral folktale tradition maintain not only the trickster’s linguistic deftness in the written text, but, also, his libidinal facility, as happens in the original tradition. We examine two written texts in this section: Yaw Asare’s Ananse in the Land of Idiots and Efua Sutherland’s The Marriage of Anansewa. In Asare’s drama, Ananse invites Princess Sodziisa and her friends to his ‘craft shop’ to have the princess’s measurement taken for a Kente cloth he intends to weave for her. He also wants the girls to: ‘Come sing and dance, so the melodies of your voices and the contours of your bodies will smoothen the passage of my needle as I weave.’ He provides a reason for inviting the girls: ‘[The singing] is …a part of my creative formula. The delicacy of the motifs and designs [of the Kente], the balanced


blending of the hues [,] will be determined by the dancing and melodious singing of these pretty maidens. It is a matter of artistic expediency….’ (1st Movement). What King Dosey and Elder, his chief courtier, do not realise is the indirection involved in Ananse’s discourse. It does not occur to them that they are inadvertently engaged in a negotiation with Ananse over the princess’s sexuality. While the king’s court understands the phrase, “delicacy of the motifs and designs,” merely in textile terms, the trickster uses the jargon in sexual terms. In the context, the ‘motif’ represents the primary libidinal idea, the notion to woo the girl; the ‘design’ implies the execution of the idea; and ‘delicacy,’ the weakness and hazards inherent in the idea. Thus, by the phrase, ‘delicacy of the motifs and designs,’ the trickster plainly concedes to the dangers involved in his plans to seduce the King’s danger. Significantly, he says this directly to the king and his courtiers, yet none of them is able to decipher Ananse’s coded language. Similarly, the phrase, ‘craft shop,’ means much more than the place where Ananse sets up his loom to weave; it implies the phallic space, the libidinal context where he intends to deflower the innocent princess.

In the same vein, the sentence, ‘Come sing and dance, so the melodies of your voices and the contours of your bodies will smoothen the passage of my needle as I weave,’ can be understood as a double utterance. If ordinarily, ‘Language…is a…double-voiced…construct whose signifiers are constantly redefined in social and historical contexts’ (Benhayoun, 2006, p. 94), Ananse’s language is deliberately devised to achieve the double voice, what Mikhail Bakhtin calls a hybrid discourse (1981, p. 304). Thus, in another sense, ‘[the singing] voices’ in Ananse’s utterance implies the orgiastic cry in the girls’ innocent song: ‘Aya…aya…aya!’(2nd Movement). Similarly, the phrase, ‘the passage of my needle,’ and the noun, ‘bodies,’ are closely connected in the context. ‘Needle’ becomes the phallic symbolic; its incessant thrusting into the body of the cloth that is being woven represents the exploitation of the princess’s body. Neither the king nor princess is able to decode Ananse’s indirection so that when Ananse asks the princess to ‘pose in your favourite position as I …take [your] measurements,’ she understands it only on the literal level. She therefore falls victim to the trickster’s seduction.In Sutherland’s The Marriage of Anansewa, Ananse’s appellation to each of the four chiefs is a brilliant indirection. On the surface, the utterances seem extol the chiefs’ political greatness, as is the norm in the Akan tradition, but on a deeper semantic level the symbols evoked project


the phallic powers of the chiefs. Chief of Sapa, for instance, is described as: ‘Mighty-Tree/Rooted in the shrine of deity.’ The metaphors lend themselves to the following interpretations:

• ‘Mighty-Tree’ = potent phallus;

• ‘Root’ = penetration = insemination;

• ‘Deity’ = The Akan Mother Earth as a deity (Asaase Efua) = Anansewa;

• ‘Shrine = womb of Mother Earth = Anansewa’s womb.

From the above, the ithyphallic image of the chief and deified sexuality of Anansewa are indirectly presented. The trickster employs the guises of the nsabran – Akan court poetry – tradition and Akan cosmology to inscribe his rhetoric of the erotic. It is a verbal ploy intended to boast the ego of the chief and inscribe the quintessential value of Anansewa. In the letter to the chief, Ananse writes: ‘Since forwardness has never been one of my faults, I will not even dare to drop a hint that the way is open for you now to begin oiling the wheels of custom’ (Act 1, my emphasis). The utterance above should be understood as a veiled eliciting of gifts from the chief. The gifts are intended to represent the chief’s goodwill towards the marriage, and to convince Ananse to approve the marriage proposal. By being indirect about asking for the gifts, Ananse protects his ‘face’ (Yankah, 1995, p. 11) from the embarrassing phenomenon of financial solicitation. But lying beneath the surface of the utterance is a sexual image which reinforces the ‘Tree and Shrine’ symbol. ‘[T]he way is open’ is a reference to the chief’s accessibility to ‘the shrine of deity,’ or the womb of Anansewa. In other words, Anansewa’s ‘shrine’/womb is ready to receive the ‘Tree’/chief. ‘[O]iling the wheels of custom’ completes the sense of insemination, where ‘oil’ symbolises the chief’s semen. The ‘wheels of custom’ that need to be ‘oiled’ obviously refers to autochthonous elements, therefore, they point to the legs, and by extension, the loins of Anansewa. The utterance is another classic example of pornogrammar.The second appellation, addressed to Togbe Klu, also boasts the phallic tree imagery. Togbe Klu is referred to as: ‘Prickly-pear/Cactus.’ We recognise in the image two types of cactus joined together: the ‘prick cactus’ and ‘pear cactus’, symbolising the male genitalia. The attributes given to the ‘prickly-pear cactus’ reinforces its sexual representation. Eulogising the cactus, Ananse says: ‘Thanks to your


prickles/The enemy bleeds,/Thanks to your capacious leaves/Those whom you love/Will always find within them/Water to refresh them’ (Act 1). The linkage between the cactus and liquids is very suggestive. ‘Blood’ represents virginal blood, and ‘water,’ semen. Again, ‘blood’ and ‘water’ represent the ‘pain/pleasure’ dyad that is associated with sex. By these sexual symbols, Ananse projects the second chief also as ithyphallic, and proclaims his hallucinating procreative powers.The appellation for Chief of the Mines, the third chief, is rendered as rhetorical questions:

You are coming again, / Aren’t you? / You are coming again? Oh where shall wesit… / When driver ants / Are astir / All over our ground?

The furtive sexuality of the panegyric is impressive. Though the phallic object is not explicitly mentioned, virility is implied in the word, ‘come,’ a euphemism for orgasm and semen. In the context, the repeated ‘comings’ dramatise the unbridled libido and overwhelming fertility of the Chief of the Mines. In the same sense, the multitude of ‘driver ants’ is a metaphor for increased sperm count or ‘polyzoospermia’. In polyzoospermic situations, a millilitre of semen contains between 350 million and 650 million spermatozoa (Jequier, 2011, p. 46) reflecting the multitude of driver ants. The resemblance between swarms of swimming spermatozoa and an army of driver ants is consistent with our reading of Ananse’s symbols. Also consistent with the Akan notion of fertility is Ananse’s repeated evocation of autochthony. ‘Our ground,’ in the utterance, ‘driver ants/Are astir/All over our ground,’ resonates with Anansewa’s womb which is invaded by the multitudinous spermatozoa of the chief. As an instance of rhetorical indirection, the appellation veils the trickster’s confidence in the chief’s virility, and his own desire for a large family for Anansewa. Clearly, Ananse envisions Anansewa also as extremely fecund. The vision Ananse projects in this appellation coincides with his own procreative over-enthusiasm in ‘We Are All Ananse’s Children.’ In this sense, he casts Anansewa in the mould of Ananse’s own primordial wife, Araba Ansaba, whom he impregnates every day, and with whom he populates the world.The appellation to the last royalty, Chief-Who-Is-Chief, opens thus:

Oh Fire-extinguisher/You have caused flame flashes to darken…/Blazing-Column-Of-Fire-Who-Says-I-Will-Not-Be-Halted/Has come to a full stop…/Masculine-One-Destined-To-Contend-To-Victory!/You consume fire… (Act 1).


The image of a ‘fire-extinguisher,’ a cylindrical metallic tube spewing whitish substance is classically phallic. In the context, the ‘blazing fire’ that should be extinguished is the burning feminine sexual desire. The evocation of fire as a symbol for feminine sexuality, again, recalls the ‘Aso’, the sparkling fire of Ananse’s wife. Such a reading consolidates the image of the whitish emission of the fire-extinguisher as semen. Thus, ‘You consume fire’ refers to the ‘Masculine-One’s conquest of female sexuality, the dousing of Anansewa’s desire by inseminating her body.

Ananse’s verbal artistry and psychosexual fixation

A review of all the tropes employed by Ananse in the oral and written tales examined provides a reading which projects the trickster’s mastery of indirection and, also, his phallocentricity. Table 1 and Table 2 below provide the taxonomy of phallic and pudendic imagery used by Ananse in the respective tales. The schemata derived from the trickster’s nuanced expressiveness represent what Barthes calls ‘dissertation’ or ‘philosophizing (1989, p.27);’ it is the desperate search for the appropriate language to express the inexpressible – a taboo desire – without attracting censure. In the Akan tradition, speaking in the royal context is a burden, even for the most eloquent speaker, because of the many linguistic protocols involved (Yankah, 1995). When a speaker succeeds in selecting the appropriate vocabulary to deliver a delicate message, he or she is often hailed: ‘W’anohuom’, literally,


‘your mouth smells sweet’ indicating the speaker’s linguistic competence. Ananse employs the art of royal oratory to veil his sexual overtures to the chiefs. The metaphors he uses to represent the delicate subject of the chiefs’ sexuality are seen in Table 1 and Table 2 below.

Table 1: Phallic imagery

TALE TYPE OF TALE

OBJECTS SYMBOL

We Are All An-anse’s Children

Oral A gongA flood

Phallus Semen (Phal-lus)

How Ananse Got Aso in Marriage

Oral Meat (hind-quar-ters)Pestle

PhallusPhallus

The Marriage of Anansewa

Written OilTreeErect + Pear Cac-tusDriver antsFire-extinguisherWhitish content of fire-extinguisher

Semen (Phallus)PhallusPhallus + TesticlesSperm (Phallus)PhallusSemen (Phallus)

Ananse in the Land of Idiots

Written Needle Phallus

Table 2: Pudendic imagery

TALE TYPE OF TALE

OBJECT SYMBOL

We Are All An-anse’s Children

Oral Female breasts Womb surrogate

Sleeping-Mat Confidences

Oral Female thighs/loins Womb

How Ananse Got Aso in Marriage

Oral MortarPot

WombWomb


The Marriage of Anansewa

Written Shrine of deityWheel (female loins)Soil – where the Mighty Tree & Prickly Pear Cac-tus growGround - where driver ants are astirGround – where the Blazing-Column-Of-Fire’ is planted

Autochthonous wombAutochthonous wombAutochthonous wombAutochthonous wombAutochthonous womb

The trickster’s masterly handling and schematisation of erotic images as seen in the taxonomy reflect his deep-seated phallocentricity and psychosexual fixation. To reinforce our view of Ananse’s sex-saturated psychology, we provide a brief anatomisation of the trickster. In ‘We Are All Ananse’s Children,’ the trickster defeats Pataku by ‘demonstrating’ the sheer power and size of his phallus. In ‘How Contradiction Came among the Tribe,’ we learn that Ananse’s phallus is longer than seventy-seven poles hooked together. In the tale, Ananse has an okra farm whose trees are so high that he is unable to harvest the okras even with seventy-seven poles joined together. Curiously, when ‘I lie on my back … [I] am able to use my penis to pluck’ the okras (Rattray, p. 107). In the same tale, he accidentally breaks his phallus into seven pieces. It takes a blacksmith two full working days to fit the broken pieces together (p. 109). In another tale, ‘How It Came That Many Diseases Came among the Tribe,’ Ananse goes to a village ‘where there [is] not a single male; all [a]re women. [He] marrie[s] them all’ (Rattray, p. 77). Clearly, the trickster’s thoughts are dominated by the part of his anatomy that seems inexplicably disproportionate to the size of his entire body. His anomalous phallus seems to dictate his thought patterns.

Ananse has received a lot of negative criticism for his sexual fixations. Ruth Finnegan, for instance, suggests Ananse represents traits people fear (1976, p. 352); Robin Horton is emphatic Ananse is a “psychopath…[who poses] a universal threat to fabric of the community” (1967, p. 237). Ruth Minott Egglestone believes the trickster should “never…be taken seriously as a legitimate point of reference for establishing social values” (2001, p. 8). We find the above views a misrepresentation of the essence of the trickster. Finnegan and like-minded critics seem to miss the ambivalent cultural role of the trickster. We attempt to provide a hermeneutic defence of Ananse’s seemingly unbridled sexuality from the perspectives of psychology and Akan cosmology.


First, we suggest that Ananse’s phallocentricity represents the primal mind in its search for libido – libido in the present sense being the human desire for nutrition, growth, fulfilment and pleasure. According to Carl Gustav Jung (1916, p. 148-49), this generic sense of libido, starting from childhood, defines human development, and reaches its acme in the sexual, procreative function. The search for libido is, therefore, a natural and normal human phenomenon. Ananse’s role as the archetypal mind means that he dramatizes innate human desires, his anomalous phallus representing long-repressed impulses hidden in the psyche of every human. He merely projects the inner life of humans outwardly so that people can identify and laugh at their own primitivity. It follows, therefore, that Ananse’s sexual fixations do not emanate from a warped psychology; he is neither a psychopath nor a threat to the fabric of society, but merely a mirror of the repressed psychology of humans.

Second, we contend that Ananse’s inflated sexual ego is merely a metaphor for the cosmic phallus, the principle underlying all creation in the universe. Jung provides a useful insight in this direction. In his words, ‘[W]hen I speak of libido, I associate with it the genetic conception which contains not only the immediate sexual but also an amount of desexualized primal libido’ (1916, p. 151), which is channelled into higher forms of social and cultural reality (1916, p. 150). Following Jung, therefore, we conceptualise Ananse’s sexuality not only in terms of the mundane procreative activity, but also, in terms of the desexualised creative function or ‘sublimation’ (Jung, p. 150); for instance, the creation of cultural and social phenomena for human use. Our contention is that all these creative processes are possible only through the transformation of the procreative libido into a sublime desexualised form of the impulse. The ithyphallic representation of Ananse must therefore be understood in the dual sense: sexual/desexual, mundane/sublime. Both senses are crucial for the creation of the world and survival of the human race in the Akan worldview.

ConclusionSummarising, we have attempted to theorise Ananse’s sexuality in relation to his language. In the process, we have made significant discoveries regarding Ananse’s verbal artistry. First, we have come to recognise that Ananse commands a pornogrammar; that is, he boasts a substantial rhetoric of the


erotic, which is carefully systematised by the principles of combination and differentiation, and with subtlety and finesse, to construct veiled, indirect meaning. We notice, for instance, that in spite of its wide-ranging imagery and expressiveness, Ananse’s sexual rhetoric is structured around two key images: the ithyphallus and pudenda. The various images Ananse conjures to project his hallucinating sexuality are compounded and formulated as follows: Pot 1: /gong, fire-extinguisher, needle, knife/ = /+erect, +metallic, +strong, +hard/ Pot 2:/tree, cactus, pestle/ = /+erect, +wooden, +strong, +hard/ Pot 3:/meat, driver-ants/ = /+flesh, +soft/ Pot 4:/sea, oil, foam/ = /+ liquid, +soft/

From the scheme of four pots above, the structured, programmatic eloquence of Ananse becomes evident. He uses a comprehensive range of synonymously- and antonymously-related items, individually, and in combination, to canonise his phallus. Each of the four pots represents a semantic crucible in which disparate phallic symbols can be composited into a semantic/phallic compound. In Pot 1, the common semantic and phallic features are: /+erect, +metallic, +strong, +hard/, projecting the image of virility. Pot 2 produces: /+erect, +wooden, +strong, +hard/ as the common semantic and phallic features, re-inscribing the motif of potency. Pot 3 projects: /+flesh, +soft/ as the common features, while Pot 4 suggests /+liquid, +soft/, both pots emphasising gentility. The data above represents a linguistic system operating on the paradigmatic and syntagmatic principles to produce meaning. For instance, the elements of each of the four pots are paradigms; they can replace themselves through vertical substitution. On the other hand, the same elements lend themselves to the principle of contiguity to create semantic compounds, as we have just demonstrated. Here, they abide by the syntagmatic mechanism. These two linguistic principles justify Ananse’s sexual rhetoric as a (porno)grammar.

Second, we detect from the data that Ananse’s rhetoric is not merely erotic; it is also emotional. His use of some many different images in reference to his organ signals an automated discourse: an unrelenting, almost frantic search for an expression to capture his elusive feeling about his phallus. It is this linguistic phenomenon – the battle with language for the most appropriate expression for his indirection – that constitutes his dissertation, harangue or philosophising. Emotional rhetoric is, therefore, an integral part of Ananse’s pornogrammar. It is what produces the variability of the imagery and complexity of his discourse.


Third, a closer look at Pot 1, Pot 2, Pot 3 and Pot 4 reveals another remarkable feature of Ananse’s discourse: homological ideation or antithetical pairing. From the data, Pot 1 and Pot 2 represent a compound with the common semantic and phallic feature: /+hard/ while Pot 3 and Pot 4 share the common feature:/+soft/. What this means is that Pot 1 and Pot 2 are synonymously-related, like-wise Pot 3 and Pot 4. However, the combined Pot 1/Pot 2 are antonymously-related to the combined Pot 3/Pot 4 producing a homological ordering of language. The antithetical pairing reflects Ananse’s complex imagination and conceptualisation of his own phallus. If the grammatical system of the semantic compounding is achieved by the principles of substitution and combination, that of the homological system is realised by the principle of differentiation. What is intriguing about Ananse’s grammar is that even the dialectical aspects of his discourse, for instance, the antithetical pairing – Pot1/Pot2 and Pot 3/Pot 4 – are ultimately diffusive. This is because the homology represents the two dynamic parts of the same single phenomenon: Ananse’s phallus. This complex schematisation of images is a reflection of the complexity of Ananse’s sexual rhetoric.

Finally, we discover that though Ananse’s pudendic representation does not quite match the intense expressiveness that characterise his phallic dissertation, he still demonstrates prolific imagination with regard to female sexuality. Here, the images he employs constitute two semantic crucibles: Pot 1: /mortar, pot/ = / + food, + receptacle/ Pot 2: /shrine, soil, ground/ = /+ autochthonous, +fertile/

From the data above, Ananse conceptualises the pudenda in agricultural terms. For instance, he projects the agrarian progression from ‘autochthony’ to ‘fertility’ to ‘food’ and to ‘consumption’ (which is the sense inherent in ‘receptacle’). The agricultural metaphor and characterisation of female sexuality as a life-giving/life-sustaining phenomenon represent a mature indirection for discussing a subject which is normally regarded by the Akan as a taboo.

We have attempted to establish that Ananse produces a pornogrammar. We have tried to discuss the inner mechanisms – the rules of substitution


and combination, categories of differentiation and finer details of language use – that justify Ananse’s language as a grammar of the erotic. We have argued that Ananse’s discourse represents a cultivated and acceptable way of speaking in the Akan traditional context which puts a high premium on decorous speech. The present study, which is, perhaps, the first to investigate the subject of Ananse’s sexual innuendos through a systematic, structural approach, seeks to make a substantial contribution to the vibrant fields of linguistics, folklore studies, interrelation of folklore and literature, and Ananse studies in general.

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The loudness of the “Unsaid”: Proverbs in selected African drama

Gbemisola AdeotiProfessor

Department of EnglishFaculty of Arts

Obafemi Awolowo UniversityIle Ife, Nigeria.

Email: [email protected], [email protected]


Abstract

The paper reflects on the use of proverbs as communicative constituents of African drama, how they are used by playwrights to establish themes, build context, enrich dialogue and develop characterisation.

Many African paremiology scholars have studied proverbs as expressions of social realities and cultural practices as well as markers of identities (Amali,


2001; Akinyemi, 2007; Yankah, 2012; and Appiah-Adjei, 2014). The paper observes that in the bid to represent socio-cultural realities on stage, proverbs constitute a significant part of verbal resources in the dialogue of selected African plays. There is, therefore, the need to probe further the use of proverbs in African drama to reveal the “unsaid” elements of discourse and socio-cultural situations couched in proverbs with a view to enriching our understanding of the plays. To this end, textual illustrations are drawn from Soyinka’s Death and the King’s Horseman, Ola Rotimi’s Kurunmi, Ama Ata Aidoo’s Anowa and Mohammed ben-Abdallah’s The Trial of Mallam Ilya.

Keywords: Proverbs, paremiology, African drama, meaning, “Unsaid”

IntroductionProverbs in many cultures across the world are developed in humans’ attempt to come to terms with the complexity and dynamism of their existence. Proverbs are indexes of a people’s language, history, literature and culture. They are associated with “elders” who are deemed to be wise with age and not expected to speak in “plain” terms. Wolfgang Mieder, a foremost paremiologist, recognises this when he says that proverbs are “the wisdom of ages gone by”, though they are also meaningful and relevant in the modern era. They are based on “observations and generalisations about basic human behaviour and the trials and trepidation of human life” (2012:143). In an earlier publication, Meider defines a proverb as a “short, generally known sentence of the folk which contains wisdom, truth, morals and traditional views in a metaphorical, fixed and memorisable form and which is handed down from generation to generation” (1985: 113).

In a similar manner, Kwesi Yankah (2012) sees proverbs not only as locutionary act, but also as products of paradigmatic performance, and they are never fixed in context and content. Using the example of the Akan people of Ghana, he acknowledges proverbs as compact means of preserving tradition through their dynamic re-usage, speakers after speakers; generations after generations. He also notes that each new socio-cultural milieu or context affects the performance of proverbs; showing that context wields a considerable influence in paremiology. Interestingly, there is no aspect of life that escapes the sharp eye of the proverbial, whether private or public.


In his seminal study of traditional motifs in making contemporary statements in contemporary African drama, Appiah-Adjei (2014) adopts Sankofa, the archetypal proverbial bird in Akan cosmology. The bird stands for the timeless and limitless value of tradition in interpreting contemporary events and coming to terms with present day realities. He submits that African dramatists are united in their reaching out to traditional motifs, symbols and rhetorical resources in their efforts to produce plays that are topical and relevant to people’s socio-political experience in the contemporary era. As part of the traditional motifs, Appiah –Adjei considers the use of proverbs by the playwrights in his analysis of selected Ghanaian plays (such as Efo Kojo Mawugbe’s In the Chest of a Woman, Efua Sutherland’s Edufa, Martin Owusu’s The Legend of Aku Sika and Ama Ata Aidoo’s Dilemma of a Ghost). To him, proverbs are:

short pithy statements or pieces of traditional wisdom, philosophy, or advice which have passed into general use from generation to generation. They are often expressed in metaphor, rhyme or alliteration, and refer to some common human experience. They are often satirical or mocking in intention. Almost ninety-five percent of traditional proverbs are written in verse. Some of them are contradictory and, in order to better understand them, one should bear in mind that they express the outlook prevailing some centuries ago. (21-22)

The paper is anchored on the paradox of the modern finding explanation for its present reality in the voices of “the ancestors” couched in proverbs. It reflects on the role of proverbs in African drama with a view to understanding the import of the proverbial in representing the challenges of life and living in contemporary Africa. The aim is to put in proper perspective, the role of proverbs as communicative resources deployed by some African dramatists in the building of characterisation and development of conflicts in order to elicit certain emotional responses from the stage and the auditorium. It is our contention that by its very nature, proverbs out-think the unknown well ahead of time and space in depicting human conditions. Indeed, they start out from the particular and reach out to the general in their applications and effects; in contexts and contents. That is why they are often couched in universal and timeless terms. In the textual analysis, attempt is made to lift the veil of complexity to examine ideas underlying proverbs used in the selected plays with a view to enhancing our understanding of their artistic concerns. These plays include Soyinka’s Death and the King’s Horseman,


Ola Rotimi’s Kurunmi, Ama Ata Aidoo’s Anowa and Mohammed ben-Abdallah’s The Trial of Mallam Ilya. A play each is selected from four African dramatists, drawn from Nigeria and Ghana. The two countries, apart from sharing similar experience of British colonialism, also have striking details of similarities in terms of cultural practices among their various ethnic groups.

In contemporary African drama, proverbs are sometimes deployed to communicate across spatial and temporal boundaries. Thus, using the concise, crisp, metaphorical language of the “dead”, the “living” pursue a better understanding of their own world and make meaning of their present predicament. Proverbs as instruments of socialisation are used to pass instruction and correct human behaviour. Through warnings encoded in some proverbs, crises in inter-group and interpersonal relationships can be averted while disasters through error of judgment can be avoided. Proverbs reinforce conformity in pursuit of change, while they radiate exciting freshness in the toga of the old. Sometimes, proverbs express cross–cultural experience, making them applicable to the whole humanity.

One attribute of a proverb that is of import to us here is its economy of words while making plenty sense like poetry and riddle. According to Ogbeide, a proverb helps to economize words as so much can be said in just one proverb. In his words, “they help to convey delicate and exceptional messages in a rather instructive and innocuous manner” (2013: 18). As a result of its terse and code-like structure, proverb suggests far more than what it actually bears in words and images when it comes to deciphering meaning from it. According to a Yoruba proverb, for instance, aabo o ro laa so fo mo luabi, to ba de inu re a dodidi (half a word is sufficient for the wise; when it gets to his thought process, it becomes whole).

A proverb is open to different interpretations, depending on the context and the sagacity of the user and audience. The person on whom the task of decoding falls, therefore, needs to probe beyond the surface of the proverb as stated, into the dark recesses of the “unsaid”, using the context as a guide.

Of African drama and the proverbialDrama, like other genres of literature, has explored the profundity of thought and verbal dexterity that a proverb offers in dialogue. Though the notion


of drama in Africa embraces traditional rituals and festivals as well as the folk theatre practice of Hubert Ogunde, Kola Ogunmola and Duro Ladipo of Nigeria1 or the popular Dan Ge entertainment in Ivory Coast, our focus is the literary drama tradition which captures the works of Western educated playwrights who wrote for the arts theatre and mostly in a colonialist language, English language (Clark, 1981; Ogunbiyi, 1981; and Etherton; 1982). In this category are Ngugi wa Thiong’o, John Ruganda, Ama Ata Aidoo, Wole Soyinka, Ola Rotimi, Ahmed Yerima, Efua Sutherland, Dele Charley, Lewis Nkosi, Yaw Asare, Mohammed ben-Abdallah and Joe de Graft among others. One major challenge before these dramatists is that of language as they write their plays largely in English, an option for which Obi Wali foresees a grave consequence which he terms the “dead end of African Literature” (2007).

Apart from the use of legends, folktales, myths and history, the proverb is another vital element drawn from the cultural background of the dramatists. For instance, Ola Rotimi uses proverbs in indigenous languages (though translated into English) in his attempt to produce African plays written in English. This goal is shared by other playwrights whose works are studied in this paper. In their translation of proverbs into English, the playwrights strive for the level of profundity and oratorical appeal offered in their original form in indigenous languages.

1. Take the case of the Yoruba popular travelling theatre for instance, because it performed in the language of its people, dialogue in their plays were always enriched with proverbs and other rhetorical resources of the people including chants, panegyric, incantation and so on. These resources were carried over into the home video tradition in Yoruba, a thriving segment of the movie industry in Nigeria. Though the instances of wise sayings in the movies are getting fewer and fewer with increasing emphasis on youth characters, love and urban experiences by film makers, proverb is not altogether eliminated. Sometimes, titles of films are generated from proverbs, while some characters use counter-proverbs or anti-proverbs for rhetorical and thematic purposes. As the elders say: kii tan ninu igba osun, ka ma ri fi pa o mo lara (however dry the camwood bowl is, there will still be some left to rub on the body of the baby).


This is true of Akan proverbs in Aidoo’s Anowa, and Sutherland’s Marriage of Anansewa; Yoruba proverbs in Soyinka’s A Dance of the Forests; Rotimi’s Kurunmi, Igbo proverbs in Zulu Sofola’s Wedlock of the Gods, Urhobo proverbs in Eghagha’s Death, Not a Redeemer, and so on. In this regard, the proverb confers some naturalness on characters and the spaces they inhabit.

As earlier indicated, African dramatists use proverbs to elicit certain emotional responses from characters on stage as well as from the audience. In this case, a proverb may be twisted, manipulated and reconfigured into counter-proverb, anti-proverb or post-proverbial to achieve the aimed artistic effect. One remembers instances in African drama, where certain characters linger for a long time in the mind of the audience on account of such characters’ peculiar use of proverbs. An illustration is found in Oladejo Okediji’s Rere Run, a play in Yoruba. The peculiar use of proverbs by Lawuwo (Owe Lawuwo) in his moments of emotional turmoil, are significant, not only in the humour and entertainment provided by their incongruity, but also in the development of characterisation. These examples of what Mieder (2012: 154) will call “twisted wisdom” or “anti-proverbial proverbs” underscore the fall of the vibrant labour leader, Lawuwo, who is now weighed down by a possible insinuation of mismanagement of the workers’ money in his custody. This is because he will not be in a position to produce the money on demand by the workers, since his wife, Morenike, has unwittingly gambled with the money. In his state of psychological disturbance, he strings together the beginning and ending units of two or three proverbs. The consequent absurdity is sure to arouse laughter in the audience and achieve some comic relief, but they are bound to pity him for his fall from grace to grass in the manner of Aristotelian heroes. On the surface, the splicing of proverbs looks bereft of meaning, but it is meaningful when one considers the way it depicts Lawuwo’s eccentricity and his reversal of fortune. Here is one of Lawuwo’s proverbs:

…Se iwo taa n waparo, as o re n po n koko, s ugbo n aluko ko pas o esi da, piri lolongo o ji. Lataaro ana. Ojo lo ke ye lé po magbado (92).

(As we look at the partridge, its feathers become brown more and more, but the woodcock never changes its last year’s dress, as the robin wakes up, bubbling with energy. Since yesterday morning, the rain has crowded the


pigeon together with corn).

The proverbs strung together by Lawuwo are stated below:

i. Iwo taa n waparo, bii ka fi da ‘la, ori eye ni ko pe ye

(As we cast a furtive glance at the partridge with the intent of cooking it in okra soup, it is the bird’s providence that spares its life).

ii. Aguntan ko pas o es i da.

(The sheep has not changed its cloth of last year).

iii. piri lolongo o ji, a kii ba okunrun e ye lori ite .

(the robin wakes up bubbling with energy; no one finds a sick bird in the nest).

iv. Ojo lo ke ye lé po madie .

(It is the rain that crowds pigeons together with chickens)

The oratorical effect of the distorted proverbs can also not be ignored. He reminds one of the eccentric Marquis in Beatrice Grimshaw’s The Sorcerer’s Stone.

In Femi Osofisan’s Midnight Hotel, the Headmaster Alatise, a businessman, politician and an educationist is remarkable for his inexhaustible pool of quaint proverbs. He has a “suitable’ proverb for every anxiety-generating situation after he losing the gubernatorial election along with his huge financial investment. Some of the proverbs are not the popularly accepted ones, but self-invented. In addition to losing the election, the new government confiscates his land and his school. He is consequently bankrupt, jobless, homeless and hungry along with his daughters. Alatise’s proverbs in their anti-proverbial tone, become psychological fillip to mediate his existential anguish which later impels him toward suicide as the plot unfolds. The proverbs are drawn from Yoruba and English linguo-cultural background. However, they are either platitudinous in nature, like “All that glitters is not gold” (29) or simply distorted like “The spirit was willing, but not the neck” (63), rather than “the spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak”. This is a biblical saying found in Matthew 26:41.

Alatise prefaces his wise sayings with “Eti roo o!” (Let all ears be


attentive!). This prepares the audience for profundity expected of a proverb. But due to their flawed or platitudinous construction, the audience is let down in a way that reinforces the overall burlesque ambience of the play. For instance, ordinarily, he would not want to lodge in Midnight Hotel with his three daughters who are “evidently exhausted” from their travelling. However, they have to settle for that as the only option they have in the circumstances after much efforts made to locate it:

ALATISE: Girls, no complaint. At least we‘ve found it now. Eti ro-o!

As the proverb says, no expectant woman enters the labour room with a smiling face….(27).

When the Girls complain that the hotel looks so seedy like a den of robbers, Alatise cautions them:

ALATISE: Don’t be too hasty, girls. There is no art to know the mind’s construction from the frown, as the proverb says. Eti ro-o! (28).

This is a parody of a saying in William Shakespeare’s Macbeth. King Duncan in his discussion with Banquo provides the epigram. The correct quotation is: “There’s no art, to find the mind’s construction in the face” Macbeth I: IV, II. 12-13.

Because all the rooms in the hotel are already occupied, Alatise resolves to stay in the only room left, with his daughters. In accepting the offer, Alatise says: “Right then. Eti ro-o! A beggar has no shoes, as they say” (30). The popular saying is that “A beggar has no choice”. But the distortion also makes meaning in its own way as “shoelessness” graphically paints the picture of destitution. Though they hesitate to lodge in the room because there is no light there due to long neglect of the faulty switch, he encourages the daughters to settle for the option in spite of the inconvenience: “Come, my girls. Nothing ventured, nothing great. Eti ro-o! (31). The usual expression is “Nothing ventured, nothing gained”.

To his surprise and satisfaction, he finds in the room items like comb, toothbrush, glass, soap and perfume. The discovery elicits from him another self-generated/created proverb: “Eti ro-o! Happiness is a perfume, you must pour it first on yourself for others to appreciate” (44).

He intervenes in the quarrel between Awe ro and her husband, Asibong. In his mannerism, he declares: “Eti ro-o! The way to paradise, says the


proverb, is like the narrow hole of the ballot box” (59). This is a parody of the Biblical saying that narrow is the way that leads to salvation while the way to damnation is broad.

The manner of proverb usage in Rere Run and Midnight Hotel is remarkably different from the realistic mode of its exploration in the dialogue of selected plays examined in this paper.

In some contexts, proverbs can be employed to generate humour and liven up the somber atmosphere and intense emotion in the plot. One category of proverb that primarily generates humour in context of use is the obscene type (Amali, 2001). Each culture has a body of obscene proverbs, but they are seldom openly employed in stage or screen discourse by African dramatists though some contexts permit their free usage in human interactions. The reality in African theatrical experience is that sex organs are usually euphemised rather than being mentioned openly and freely.

The proverb encapsulates more meaning than what lies on the surface. The meaning underneath the surface is what is regarded here as the “unsaid. To better understand the expressly stated content of a literary work, attention needs to be paid to the implied or unstated. This paradoxical supposition provides inspiration for our examination of some proverbs deployed at critical moments by some characters in the selected plays.

Let us now draw some examples from the selected plays to illustrate how proverbs are used to address or capture the issues that define the African experience.

In Soyinka’s Death and the King’s Horseman, the proverb is one of the rhetorical strategies used to elicit the “threnodic essence”, which is the central element of the play. According to the playwright in his prefatory comments, its essence lies in the celebration of transition among the people rather than in the futile attempt by a supercilious agency of colonialism to arrest a cultural practice of the “natives” considered by the colonialists to be “barbaric”. Soyinka explains: “The confrontation in the play is largely metaphysical, contained in the human vehicle which is Elesin and the universe of the Yoruba mind – the world of the living, the dead and the unborn, and the numinous passage which links all: transition” (1988: 145). Three characters that belong to the generation of “elders” bear the burden of this thematic concern. They are E le s in O ba (the King’s Horseman), Olohun Iyo (Praise-singer) and Iyalo ja (Mother of the market). In the


play, E lesin Oba speaks in proverbs, “the language of our elders”, not easily grasped by the women.

Olohun Iyo and Iyaloja too spice their speeches with appropriate proverbs as the illocutionary horse that elegantly bears home the kernel of their conversations.

When the play begins, the Alaafin of Oyo has just joined his ancestors. The Oyo kingdom is under British colonial administration. Among the rites of transition, he is to be joined in the other world by his horse and the horseman for continuous order and stability in the polity. Approaching the final moments of the rites, Elesin decides to take a new bride and “travel light”, like a considerate voyager who “sheds off his excessive load, all that may benefit the living” (159). However, Ele s in is interrupted in the final moment of crossing the gulf of transition by the agency of British colonialism, Mr. Pilkings, the District Officer, who uses his guards to arrest Elesin and detain him. Unsettled by the imminent doom that the disruption of the final rites is likely to bring, the people settle for an alternative. They find a willing replacement in the heir of Elesin, Olunde, who “could not bear to let honour fly out of doors for his family” (218) and he stops the drift into abyss with his life. He takes the place of his father by undergoing the rituals of passage for the Elesin. As Praise-singer puts it proverbially, “if there is a dearth of bats, the pigeon must serve us for the offering” (218).

Though the alternative provided by Olunde helps the community to regain its violated equilibrium, it is not without its cost which the proverb above by Praise-singer does not capture. “Bat” here refers to Elesin and “pigeon” refers to Olunde, the youth in a culture that prays for its sapling to replace a banana stem. Elesin is expected to die before his son, thus, the alternative is calamitous for Elesin’s family, though it provides succour for the community. It accentuates Elesin’s reversal of fortune (peripeteia). It is not surprising therefore, that Elesin finally strangles himself when he can no longer withstand the shameful consequences of his hedonism, delay and incarceration. The disruption in the order of things is stressed by Praise-singer as unfortunate products of colonial intrusion. In his words…”we know this is not the way of life. Our world is tumbling in the void of strangers, Elesin.” (218).

The bond between Elesin and Praise-singer is explored in what Soyinka calls “the evocation of music from the abyss of transition.” Speaking in


proverb, poetry and riddle, they are bonded by figurative diction right from the beginning of the play. Praise-singer has to protest Elesin’s fast pace of movement which gives the impression that Elesin wants to abandon and leave him behind in this proverbial expression: “What tryst is this the cockerel goes to keep with such haste that he must leave his tail behind?”. Elesin is the Cockrel and Praise-singer its tail. Not satisfied with Elesin’s answer, he responds: “Because the man approaches a brand new bride he forgets the long faithful mother of his children” (147). Describing this as the way of the world, the proverb prepares the audience for dynamic and transient nature of life which the play emphasises. The proverbial expression also comments on loyalty and trust in relationships. Both values are on trial in the conflict of the play.

Though Elesin is to betray his people in the end, he is not presented in that light when the play begins. Indeed, he is cast in the light of tragic heroes as a man of trust, honour and integrity. Honour is a core virtue among the people and Elesin commits himself to his “carrier” role. He looks forward to fulfilling his own aspect of the social contract at the appropriate moment without delay. He buttresses his assurance thus: “Where the storm pleases, and when, it drects the giants of the forest…” (153).

Elesin recognises the paradox of human existence. While he is described as “a man of enormous vitality” who speaks, dances and sings with that infectious enjoyment of life” (147), he knows that life is not as perfectly laid as the horizon. Life is defined by change and non-permanence of any position, whether of prosperity or penury. Elesin demonstrates this understanding when he says:

The world is not a constant honey-pot

Where I found little I made do with little.

Where there was plenty I gorged myself. (153)

Human beings should, therefore, prepare to adapt and respond to each situation suitably in order to live a meaningful life. It also stresses the importance of moderation and contentment. This philosophical approach to life marks Elesin out as a man of honour (o mo luwabi). He is concerned with the fate of others. To be selfish is to court disgrace from unexpected quarters like the man in the proverb that eats without leaving some crumbs in the plates for children who are expected to pack them:


What elder takes his tongue to his plate,

licks it clean of every crumb? He will encounter

silence when he calls on children to fulfill

the smallest errand! Life is honour.

It ends when honour ends. (154)

The proverb has an element of foreshadowing and dramatic irony as Elesin turns out to be the elder who licks his plate clean of crumbs by taking a new bride and refusing to join Alaafin at the appropriate moment of transition. For this, he encounters the consequences of that act of indiscretion in the hands of Iyaloja and the people in Scene 5. In the first Scene, he is regarded as “father” by Iyaloja and treated with dignity by the people. But his honour slips into a septic tank of shame when he is helplessly manacled and confined to a cage like an animal.

IYALOJA: It is the death of war that kills the valiant,

Death of water is how the swimmer goes

It is the death of a market that kills the trader. (184)

Even if he is not conscious of it, the proverb about the elder who licks his plate clean of crumbs is very significant for his role as a tragic hero who will later suffer a reversal of fortune in the plot. According to Iyaloja, “what we have no intention of eating should not be held to the nose” (211). She refers here to the act of taking a new wife even when the bride is already bethrothed to a young man, as an act of eating and leaving nothing in the plates for children. Earlier, she warns Elesin against this when she says: “Eating the awusa nut is not so difficult as drinking water afterwards” (162). Awusa here is the wallnut.

The role of youths in the struggle for emancipation from colonialism is demonstrated in the encounter between the young girls in the market and Sergeant Amusa and other policemen who are the disruptive agents of colonialism. As the girls torment and humiliate the policemen out of the market, Iyaloja triumphantly remarks: “Well, our elders have said it: Dada may be weak, but he has a younger sibling who is truly fearless” (180). Dada refers to the women and African natives, while the girls are the fearless siblings. In a way, there is a conflation of colonial domination with patriarchal oppression in the security guards led by Amusa. They are agents of colonialism and they are all men. The girls are able to stand up


to the forces of colonialism and patriarchy because they are educated. This points to Soyinka’s interrogation of the role that Western education plays in the colony. For the people and Olunde, Western education opens the eye to imperfections of Western civilisation. Rather than subservience and inferiority complex, education should breed in the people, a critical and questioning mind.

The transition rite is accompanied with solemn music, riddle and poetic chants to create the atmosphere of threnody. This process is marked with uncertainty and confusion as attested to by Elesin when he says: “the seven-way crossroads confuses only the stranger” (183). There is, however, a courageous affirmation of his readiness to plunge into the abyss of transition in the following:

…the elephant

trails no tethering rope; that king

is not yet crowned who will peg an elephant-

…The elephant deserves

Better than we say “I have ‘I have caught

A glimpse of something”. If we see the tamer

Of the forest let us say plainly, we have seen an elephant. (183)

Elesin presents himself as being determined and unstoppable. The assurance creates suspense in the audience as events turn out to be the opposite of a man of valour that the proverb wants to make out of Elesin. It also unwittingly reinforces the extent of his crash as a tragic hero because he is no longer the elephant intended in the proverb. The “tamer of elephant” is ironically being tamed in Pilkings cage, giving him a cowardly image. In essence, the proverbs employed by Soyinka have greater implications beyond what they overtly suggest.

Another playwright who holds much fascination for his use of proverbs is Ola Rotimi. He uses proverbs as an expressive tool to convey the African experience on stage. In his usage of proverbs, Rotimi preserves sound, sense and symbols, in a way that represents their models in indigenous languages.

Kurunmi is based on the Ijaye war in Yoruba history, focusing on the tragic ruin of Kurunmi, the Generalissimo of Yoruba army, Ijaye, his domain and his family. He raises objection to what he perceives as a violation of tradition


– the installation of Adelu as Alaafin to succeed his father, Atiba, shortly after the transition of the latter. The tradition here is that the heir dies when the king dies. He does not succeed his father. Kurunmi’s principled position in defence of tradition pitches him against the newly-installed king and the Ibadan forces who are under obligation to rise in defence of the Alaafin and the Oyo empire whenever under any threat of aggression. The support offered by the Egba and Europeans could not save Ijaye from disaster as the Ibadan people are able to overcome them following a spiritual error of judgement and tactical blunder: crossing River Ose, to go and meet a well-prepared and strategically located enemy army.

In the opening scene, Kurunmi creates a sense of urgency in resisting the perversion of tradition through a string of proverbial expressions:

The fire dies, its ashes

bear its memory with a shroud

of white fluff. (15 )

He rapidly mobilises for war as evident in the message that he sends to the Emir of Ilorin, his friend. “Tell him that a man with fire in his hands welcome no delay” (28). When he is challenged by five of his soldiers for his “dictatorial and totalitarian” actions, he cautiously remarks that “When a rat laughs at a cat, there is a hole nearby…” (38). This means that the sudden confrontation put up by his surbodinates is not voluntary or by accident. Kurunmi believes that they must have been influenced by a powerful, but yet to be known principal force, which may be physical or spiritual.

Kurunmi objects to the installation of Adelu as Alaafin because: “Kurunmi will never prostrate himself to shoot a deer with a father one morning, and then squat with the son in the evening to shoot a goose !Never…” (21). He adds later that “When an Elder sees a mudskipper, he must not afterwards say it was a crocodile” (42). He sees doom awaiting Adelu and his supporters who are denigrating tradition. He uses the story of the tortoise that walks into disgrace due to lack of discretion:

when the tortoise

is heading for

a senselesss journey,

And you say to him:


‘Brother tortoise,

brother tortoise,

when will you be

wise and come back

home?

The tortoise will say:

‘Brother, not until

I have been disgraced

Not until I have been disgraced….(17)

Close to this proverb in meaning is the fate of a cow that is about to be shipped to Europe and she is happy. “ Ehn..let the cow go. When she gets to Whiteman’s land, what will she become? C-o-r-n-e-d b-e-e-f!” (22).

Here are other proverbs with similar meaning:

“The bull-frog that rivals the size of the elephant will burst” (29).

“A goat gets wiser after an ear is dropped off” (32).

“… the young palm tree grows rapidly, and it is proud,

thinking, hoping that one day it will scratch the face of the sky” (35).

The bull frog above is the young Alaafin Adelu while Kurunmi is the elephant. He is confident that Alaafin and his allies who flout tradition will come to irreversible disaster in the end. Unfortunately, Rotimi does not hide the dramatic irony in the statement as the disaster of Ijaye and its Egba allies in the war shows that Kurunmi is the bull-frog while Alaafin and the Ibadan forces are the elephants in a reversal of fate. He captures the catastrophic defeat suffered by his forces in a response to the woman who is looking for her husband, a soldier: “Where elephants were being slaughtered by the thousand, how could a man take notice of the death of a house rat?” (84). It means that where great warriors are being killed in large numbers in the Ijaye’s disatrous routing, it is difficult to account for soldiers of lower ranks. In the animal images, elephant stands for great warriors while house rat refers to men of lower ranks.

Somoye who is leading the Egba forces cautions that “…a man with grass on


his buttocks must not forget himself when he goes to put out a neighbour’s fire” (74). He is of the Egba allies fighting on the side of Kurunmi. He posits that they should not lose their own heads while trying to save those of Kurunmi and the Ijaye people.

After the defeat on the battle field, a body guard tries to put the blame of their routing on the Egba allies. Kurunmi disagrees and rather than blame, he prefers a sympathetic understanding of their plight. In his words, “When a one-legged man needs help, he must not say that the friend who carries him on the back stinks; even if that helper does stink” (83-84). The proverb is taken from the story of the tortoise and the black ant. The latter offers to help remould the carapace of the tortoise which is shattered and scattered after he falls on hard objects while jumping down from the sky. While on the journey with the rest of the birds, the tortoise abandons the birds and abuses their generosity due to his selfishness and greed. The black ant is doing the work of remoulding diligently, but he has to leave the task uncompleted when the tortoise remarks rudely three times that the black ant stinks.

In spite of the setback, however, Kurunmi’s nobility is still palpable, as he rallies his people again for another attack against the enemy, this time in a self-reliant move. In a determined tone, he says: “It is the water that is spilt. The calabash is still unbroken. We fight on!” (89). His soldiers believe that they can still triumph over the Ibadan forces. They see their enemies as hawks in a metaphorical sense while they are the snail:

WARRIORS: The hawk!

The hawk yearns for

the taste of the snail.

But it forgets;

it forgets that the

shell of the snail

is no food for hawks.

The hawk will fail. (89)

And like the hawk, their enemies cannot do anything to harm them. They are sure of victory.

Besides, while Kurunmi deploys appropriate proverbs to justify his actions


in defence of tradition, those proverbs are countered by Ibikunle and Ogunmola, the Ibadan allies who are vehemently opposed to the belligerent position of Kurunmi against the newly-installed Alaafin. Consequently, the proverb in this situation, sits on the two sides of the conflict. On the whole, proverbs not only contribute insight into the personality of Kurunmi, they also create the right mood, tone, and temper for the realisation of tragedy in the historical text.

The plays of Ama Ata Aidoo in equally significant measure, explore the use of proverbs to create a natural atmosphere of African conversation on stage. Though in Akan, like many other African cultures, the proverb is the pastime of elders, in Anowa which is here selected for illustration, proverb usage is not restricted to the elders. Old Man, Old Woman, (The-mouth-that-eats-salt-and-pepper), Osam and Badua use proverbs, but Kofi and Anowa who represent the younger generation also allude to wise sayings in their conversations especially during the period of domestic tension.

Anowa is sourced in a folk tale. Its eponymous heroine is the typical intransigent young girl in folk narrative, who turns down almost every reasonable man that asks her hand in marriage, only to end up with a choice that will be widely considered a “bad or wrong choice”. She lives with the consequences, usually unpalatable and tragic. Anowa refuses to be a priestess to a goddess as demanded. She also turns down every suitor, but turns up one day with a firm decision to marry Kofi Ako, a lazy man described by Badua, her mother, as “...this fool, this good-for-nothing cassava-man, this watery male of all watery males…” (15).

Against the strong opposition from Badua, she runs away from home in Yebi and elopes with Kofi Ako. They find prosperity, trading in slaves on the Highway and finally settle down in opulence in the Big House at Oguaa. But lack of a child; a defining factor in African marriage, stands between the couple and happiness. Anowa becomes anxious and hysterical while Kofi is angry at her strange ways. He wants to send her away. The marital turbulence continues until Kofi shoots himself and Anowa drowns to complete the tragedy.

Old Man and Old Woman, the wise ones with wide experience of life already hint at the beginning of the play that Anowa is a strange being whose behaviour is different from that of any “normal” girl. Stepping out of the norms as she does will only bring disaster on her. Old Woman warns:


“Badua should tell her daughter that the sapling breaks with bending that will not grow straight” (8). Anowa refuses to grow straight as it is expected of normal girls in the culture; hence, she breaks like the sapling in the proverb as evident in her disastrous end. The same sense is conveyed in another proverb by Old Woman: “Badua should have told her daughter that the infant which tries its milk teeth on every bone and stone, grows up with nothing to eat dried meat with (21). The proverb implies that a child that refuses the counsel of elders often goes astray. The two proverbs prepare the audience for the tragedy at the end with their foreboding tone. Osam too is persuaded about the inevitability of disaster for a girl who behaves like Anowa when he says: “…the yam that will burn, shall burn, boiled or roasted” (13). Osam is not talking about yam and its manner of preparation for consumption. Rather, he is warning about what lies ahead and this reinforces Old Woman’s view on the stubbornness of Anowa and the tragic consequences that such intransigent disposition will court in the end. Thus, African proverbs, apart from upholding social ethos, are useful in socialising young members of the society. In the hands of the dramatist, as evident in Anowa, they are strategic tools in conflict exposition, plot development and characterisation.

In the conversation between Old Man and Old Woman, the playwright tries to present a balanced view of generational differences that pitch the youths against the older generation. While the Old Woman laments the improper orientation that produces disobedient children, Old Man thinks that rather than heaping the blame on the youths, it is better to consider all sides of the issue, including the responsibilities of parents. In his words, “the best way to sharpen a knife is not to whet one side of it only. And neither can you solve a riddle by considering only one end of it…” (20). After all, as Osam contends, “A crab never fathers a bird” …(31). Children take after their parents. Riddle, like the proverb, has two sides both of which should always be taken into consideration in the task of interpretation. The side that is stated and that which is implied, imagined or suggested.

Reflecting on the uncommon loyalty, devotion, dependability and hard work of Anowa, Kofi remarks: “…they say that however good for licking the back of your hand is, it would never be like your palms” 2 (27). That Anowa is not like other girls is underscored by Kofi with this proverb. It registers her personality trait as a tragic heroine who has extra-ordinary qualities. Here is a wife who is so devoted to her husband like a sister. The positive


value in her personality builds up empathy in the audience when she is undergoing a slide in fortune which culminates in her suicide. Proverb in this case reinforces the playwright’s tragic epistemology.

Kofi enjoys the easy life and would not want Anowa to stress herself working. He employs slaves and domestic hands to free her of any chore, easy or stressful. She objects to this daily life of leisure and prefers to continue working with her hands. In her words, “…one stops wearing a hat only when the head has fallen off” (35). … one never stops wearing hats on a head which still stands on its shoulders” (53).

There is a clear indication that Aidoo indicts Africans who collaborated with whites to engage in slave trade, a practice that accounts for many centuries of Africans’ misery. During the slave trade, millions of Africans were captured by fellow Africans, sold into slavery and shipped to Europe. These Africans, represented by Kofi, are the agents of slavery and colonialism. He has learnt the ways of the white people being in league with slave dealers and colonisers. By extension, he also represents postcolonial leaders who glory in material acquisition and exploitation of their citizens. He becomes prosperous from slavery, but the fruits of human exploitation do not endure as his marriage to Anowa remains fruitless. In an aphoristic tone that has greater implications in the mind of the audience, Anowa hints at her tragic end. She declares: “...no man made a slave of his friend and came to much himself…it is wrong. It is evil” (30). She is conscious of the fact that they owe their sudden prosperity to the misery of fellow human beings. That informs another proverb from her: “The string of orphan beads might look better on the wrist of the leopard but it is the antelope who has lost his mother” (51). The leopard here refers to Kofi Ako who is enjoying his life of opulence attained through the sweat and blood of fellow Africans (metaphorised as the antelope) who are sold into slavery.2. This Akan proverb has a similar version in Yoruba as used in Ola Rotimi’s Kurunmi. In the words of the play’s hero: “… A foster-mother is not like the real mother. A foster-father cannot stand upright like the real father. Ten eyes, twenty eyes, countless eyes of the other person are not the same as a single eye of your own” (88).

There is a gender dimension to Anowa that needs further attention. Women are supposed to be heard and not seen. Badua puts it sharply: “A good woman does not have a brain or a mouth” (33). Anowa crosses this gender boundary by acting freely in the choice of her husband. Badua represents


the older generation of women who rather than challenge gender imbalance, reinforce it through acquiesence with tradition. A proverb is an expressive tool for articulting that acquiescence.

In his plays, Mohammed ben-Abdallah poignantly addresses the burning issues of power abuse, corruption, instability and nepotism that characterise politics and governance in many African countries in the post-colonial era. Even though his immediate target in his dramaturgy is Ghana, his country of origin, the issues raised in a play like The Trial of Mallam Ilya have far-reaching relevance to many countries in Africa after independence, from Cameroon to Uganda, from Burundi and Rwanda to Burkina Faso, Gambia and Nigeria.

In his preface to The Trial of Mallam Ilya, Yaw Asare, a Ghanaian playwright and critic, draws attention to indigenous literary elements explored by ben-Abdallah in his plays to give them traditional flavour. These include “a range of proverbs, imageries, and other local literary devices” (xiii).

The play begins on a note of confusion and disorder. A military coup has just taken place, led by Malwal. The new men of power are going after the key figures in the old regime and their perceived collaborators. One of them is Mallam Ilya, whose house is attacked and he is arrested. Ilya is a popular and influential Islamic religious leader who is expected by the people to use his closeness to power in successive regimes to speak truth to power. Unfortunately, he acquisces with oppressive and arbitrary conducts of the rulers through his audible silence. The polity suffers from his disappointing inaction. He is, therefore, seen as a traitor and he is put on trial by the new regime. According to Second Man, Ilya belongs to

A generation of ageless butterflies that have sucked from high

places from one generation of rulers to another with amazing agility.

Like a runner in the relay of time, he has sat in council after council

without break. But like a renegade and a traitor, he has failed to

let the lessons of history shine through him. (6)

His trial which constitutes the main action in the plot, provides revelations about how the nation of Angha (Ghana) arrives at its present state of corruption, chaos and instability, especially from the regime of the great old man, father of the nation, Mwake Kumrhan the Black (Kwame Nkrumah).


It is a situation when, in the words of Ilya, “our deliverers become our executioners” (31).

The plot exposes the evil consequences of arbitrary rule – anarchy, corruption, and insecurity, instability and economic hardship. The play ends with the announcement of another military intervention which overthrows the regime that takes over at the beginning of the play, thus, giving the play’s plot its cyclic structure. Apart from showing the futility of violent and arbitrary change of regime in addressing the challenges of development in post-independence Africa, ben-Abdallah also establishes the link between sychophancy and dictatorship. In the play. The latter thrives with the former as exemplified in the activities of “yes men” called “Elders of the Inner Council” – Bawa Samburu, El Fasi and Abdul Karim. They are the eyes of the regime and Kumrhan describes them as “the best brains”. He tries to defend the choice of these Elders and his choice of Ilya too in his Inner circle of advisors when he says: “The child of today is the father of tomorrow. And as our elders say: “The child who keeps his hands clean, gets to eat with elders” (34). .

The praise song of the Court Crier is metaphorical and proverbial in content. “A fart may be a gush of wind but it can never feed a fire, it only smells” (18). There is an element of humour in the proverb as it lights up the prevailing atmosphere in the context in which it is used. However, it points to the grandeur of Kumrhan. He is depicted as a great man who cannot be overpowered by his enemies. The Crier reinforces the great personality of Kumrhan with another wise saying in his panegyric: “When was it said that the goat had enough courage to go and say good morning to the hyena?” (26). Rendered in the form of a rhetorical question, the proverb carries a tone of finality concernng the reality of invincibility that it expresses. Kumrhan has much hope in Ilya, the son of his teacher and mentor. He believes that if he is wise and clever, he has a bright prospect to rise into position of fame. Unfortunately, he falls short of this expectation as stated in the proverb: “The child of today is the father of tomorrow… the child who keeps his hands clean, gets to eat with elders” (34).


Apart from the huge dose of native wit and humour generated through the proverb, Court Crier’s panegyric in the words of Asare, “recaptures the poetic ingenuity of the Ashanti Court Praise-singers” in a way that preserves this verbal art as it existed in its original performance in a local language and context” (xii). ben-Abdallah also uses his play to re-awaken attention in performance culture and ritual origin of African drama. Yaw Asare notes that he has what he calls a “near-obsessive conviction in the evocation of cultural and ritual authenticity, as a means of soliciting theatrical empathy”. Cultural identification has always had a magnetic pull on even the urbane middle-to-top classes in Africa, and the playwright does not miss any opportunity to appropriate it for absolute effect.

ConclusionFrom the foregoing, it has been shown that the proverb is a universal concept that manifests in most cultures of the world. No culture seems to lack the notion of the proverbial. It captures succinctly, concretely and imagistically, the experience of people over the years. It subsists on rhetorical deployment of words for thematic and aesthetic effects. Its literariness makes interpretation a corollary art of the proverb. Interpretation takes into cognizance, content and context. A proverb can apply to as many situations as possible; hence, its interpretation is open so long as there are correlating circumstances.

It is our contention that the proverb manifests in many discursive fora and performing arts. Drama, being the art that seeks to represent human experience most directly through mimesis, is a veritable forum for creators, communicators and critics to come to a greater understanding of the


nature, role and aesthetic effects of proverb. This much is demonstrated in our analysis of five plays by five playwrights from Nigeria and Ghana as illustrative texts. These playwrights explore the communicative resources and potentials of proverbs in their drama.

In the textual analyses, it is evident that proverbs are used to build themes and characterisation. Therefore, the essay pays attention to the hidden but decipherable meanings of proverbs within and outside the textual context. In the acknowledged instances where they are deployed, proverbs lighten up and animate discussions. Where effectively deployed as one finds in the selected plays, there is much sense to harvest from the overtly stated component of a proverb as well as from its vast pool of the “unsaid”.

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Proverbs and naturalness in mother-tongue translation:

the Dagaare New Testament in perspective

Solomon Ali DansiehSenior Lecturer

Department of General and Liberal StudiesWa Polytechnic, Wa, Ghana

Email: [email protected]; [email protected]

Submitted: May 16, 2018 / Accepted: December 13, 2018 / Published: October 4, 2019

Abstract

This paper argues that the use of proverbs in translating the Bible into mother-tongues constitutes an essential ingredient to naturalness in the receptor-language text, thereby enhancing acceptability.

Thus, the subject of translating proverbs and translating using proverbs should be handled with the attention it deserves. Using the Dagaare New Testaments as the main texts, the study aims to explore the use of proverbs in the Dagaare text in general; examine how English proverbs were


translated; identify which proverbs translate well between English and Dagaare; find out how parallel proverbs were used in Dagaare and how non-proverbial expressions were translated as proverbs in the RL. This study also considered how proverbs were translated as ordinary expressions and how connotative proverbs used in the Dagaare text manifest themselves. Proverbs thus identified were read out to users of the text drawn from different denominations in the area to test for naturalness. The study found that majority (50%) of the SL proverbs translated into Dagaare were ‘near natural’; 33% ‘natural’, and the remaining 17% ‘less natural’. This study recommends that, in future reviews of the two Dagaare NT texts, translators and consultants take note of suggestions made so that proverbs/idioms and cultural equivalents that translate more naturally into the language are adopted to enhance the quality of the translation.

Keywords: Proverbs; naturalness; translation/translating; receptor language; connotativeness

IntroductionNaturalness, accuracy and clarity in the receptor language (RL) text constitute the three cardinal principles that are often taken into account when assessing the quality of Bible translation. Anderson (1998) proposes a fourth criterion – “the criterion of perceived authenticity”. For a translated text to pass the test of acceptability, it is expected to possess all the above qualities. Though these principles will be discussed in turns later under the literature review section, the main focus of this paper is on the principle of naturalness and how well this principle has been employed in translating English proverbs into Dagaare from a native speaker’s point of view.

The lack of naturalness in a translation can impact negatively on the whole translation project. The target community may even reject the project on account of difficulties they may encounter in reading and understanding it. The most precarious situation is where rather than reject it outright, the text is maintained but misread and consequently, misinterpreted. Considering the importance of Bible translation, firstly as a result of its uniqueness as a book of God’s own word, and secondly because of the huge financial and human capital that go into it, it is crucial that any facet of the discourse that can compromise its quality be treated with optimum diligence. Whether they are in English or Dagaare, proverbs occupy a unique place in everyday


discourse. This study investigates the criterion of naturalness in the use of proverbs translated from the English source texts (NRSV, 1999) and English Standard Version (ESV, 2001) into the Dagaare New Testament as receptor language (RL) text.

The DagaabaThe Dagaaba (Singular: Dagao), a people known to hold their culture in high esteem, are found mainly in the Upper-West Region of Ghana and parts of neighbouring Burkina Faso and La Cote d’Ivoire. Their language is known as Dagaare or Dagara, a Gur language belonging in the Niger-Congo family. The term Dagaare may also mean the culture of the people. Thus, depending on the context, if one is told that one does not know Dagaare, it could be understood as not knowing the culture of the Dagaaba or not knowing the language. Majority of the people are subsistence farmers engaged in the cultivation of food crops such as sorghum, millet, maize, groundnuts, tigernuts, cowpea and yam. In recent times the cultivation of non-traditional cash crops like cashew and soya is becoming popular. The cotton industry which used to be vibrant in the area during the early ‘80s and ‘90s is now on the verge of collapse. The people are also engaged in animal husbandry and small-scale fresh-water fishing, especially in communities along the banks of the Black Volta. The dominant religions among the Dagaaba are Christianity, Traditional African Religion and Islam.

The place of proverbs in Dagaare cultureLike in most African languages, proverbs play a very significant role in Dagaare. Proverbs abound in everyday speech among the Dagaaba: They are used in the traditional courts, in songs and dirges, and in folklore. In everyday interactions among the people, the rich use of proverbs is easily observable. On moonlit nights, it is not uncommon to hear adults, and sometimes children, trying to outdo one another in the display of skills in proverb and riddle interpretation. This is confirmed by Yankah’s observation that “children in Africa sometimes engage in a game of proverbs in which participants take turns in uttering proverbs” (Yankah, 1982). With the recent proliferation of FM radio stations in Ghana, the game of proverbs has been taken to the airwaves, with both adults and children taking part in the game. Among the Dagaaba, oftentimes, the seriousness of a subject


under discussion can be determined by the frequency in proverb usage in a particular communicative situation. Persons who are conversant with the proper use of proverbs and their relevant interpretations are accorded great respect. In Dagaare culture, a speaker’s ability to aptly use proverbs in both formal and informal contexts is considered a mark of maturity and their linguistic prowess in the language and often received with admiration. One who is unable to understand the meaning of proverbs used in various contexts is branded “childish” and “naïve”. When the wise intend to confound the unwise, they often use proverbs; hence, in Dagaare proverbs are “thrown” (lↄↄ) and not “said.” When one uses a proverb in a discourse, it is literally expressed as ‘throwing a proverb’ (lↄↄ lugo/sokpare). This assertion is affirmed by a popular proverb in Dagaare that says: Bambugo zuŋ baŋ lɔɔra lugo, meaning: “Proverbs are employed because of the unwise.” When elders gather to discuss serious business, their discourse is dominated by the use of proverbs; when the sages meet, proverb use assumes centre-stage in their discourse. Considering how popular and pervasive proverb use is among the Dagaaba, it is only proper that the translation of a culturally-significant book like the Bible into that language takes into account the proper use and interpretation of proverbs to ensure naturalness, hence this study.

Donor and receptor language tools used in this studyIn this study, Dagaare is the receptor language (RL) with English as the donor language (DL). Two versions of the New Testament in Dagaare, namely Naaŋmen Nɔpaalaa Gane, published by the Bible Society of Ghana in 2014 and the Naaŋmen Nɔlaŋ Paalaa published by Bibles International (BI, USA) in 2015 respectively were used in this study. Proverbs cited in this study were randomly selected from the two versions. The English text that served as source text for the former was the New Revised Standard Version (NRSV, 1999).The translators explained that their choice of the NRSV was because they considered it a near-literal translation of the original Greek and Hebrew texts, thus making it closer to the original. The NRSV has also received wide acclaim and broad support from academics and church leaders as “a bible for all Christians” (www.biblestudytools.com ). The English Standard Version (ESV, 2001) served as source text for the latter. Translators of the latter, which is widely used in the Lawra area, could not be reached to give this researcher the reason for their choice. Nonetheless, as a revision of the 1971 edition of the Revised Standard Version that employs an


“essentially literal” translation “philosophy” (www.esv.org ), their reason for adopting it as source text may not be very far from being the same as their earlier colleagues’. Interestingly, it was observed that dialectical differences in the two texts are insignificant. This is because, for purposes of wider acceptability by the targeted readership, the central Dagaare dialect spoken in Jirapa and surrounding areas was adopted in both versions.

Purpose of studyThis study sought to examine following naturalness-related issues: How the translators rendered English proverbs in Dagaare; Which proverbs translate well between English and Dagaare; How parallel proverbs were used in the Dagaare text; How non-proverbial expressions were translated as proverbs in the RL and vice versa; and How connotative proverbs used in the Dagaare text are rendered.

The two main questions that guided this study are:

1.Do the proverbs used in the Dagaare NT sound natural?2.Do the proverbs with low naturalness compromise the quality of the translation?

Specifically, the study considered the following pertinent questions:1. Are the natural ones exactly the same as the English ones or

are they cultural equivalents?

2. For those that are less natural,

a) Why are they so?

b) What is missing in them?

c) Are there cultural equivalents for them in Dagaare?

d) What will be the natural forms?

3. Are there any of the English proverbs that are alien to Dagaare? If so, how best could they have been translated?

Another interesting question that could be examined in future research would be whether some of the expressions labelled as ‘proverbs’ are not just mere adages or aphorisms or axioms or maxims and do not qualify to be ‘proverbs’.


Significance of studyThis study is significant in the sense that it is the first of its kind as far as the examining of naturalness in proverbs used in the Dagaare New Testament (and probably the whole Bible) is concerned. Various Bible publishers have a specific number of years that a particular version of the Bible must be in circulation before it is revised. Bibles International (BI), publishers of one of the Dagaare texts used in this study, require at least 10 years. That means that, the Naaŋmen Nɔlaŋ Paalaa, which was published in 2015 by BI should be due for review in five years. Since proverbs constitute a major part of the discourse of both the Dagaaba and Hebrews, findings of this research would be very beneficial to reviewers that will work on this and other versions in the near future. The study also provides another window for scholars interested in cultural and linguistic study of African languages to peep into Dagaare culture. As John Mbiti once observed: “Where and when the gospel is proclaimed, it cannot be removed from the cultural letters all around us, since you cannot have the gospel in a vacuum …One of the vital cultural elements in Africa is the proverb” (Mbiti, 1995:1). Mbiti bemoans the abandonment and disuse of proverbs in theological discourses, given the acknowledged enviable place that proverbs occupy in African culture. A study that seeks to contribute to the use of these important cultural communicative devices should therefore be very significant.

MethodologyData for this study were obtained mainly from secondary sources and comprised two versions of the New Testament in Dagaare – Naaŋmen Nɔpaalaa Gane (Bible Society of Ghana, 2014) and the Naaŋmen Nɔlaŋ Paalaa (Bibles International, 2015). The New Revised Standard Version (NRSV, 1999) and the English Standard Version (ESV, 2001) served as the source texts. Over 100 proverbs were identified from the Dagaare New Testament. Out of the number, 42 proverbs were selected based on their similarity to the source text proverbs in English. These were subsequently compared with their renderings in the Dagaare (RL) text to determine their degree of naturalness. Both online and library sources were also used in this study. Personal interaction with the translators and some users of the Dagaare NT also yielded valuable information on the naturalness of proverbial and idiomatic biblical verses translated into Dagaare from English. The data obtained was compiled and tabulated. Proverbs compiled


were then subjected to analysis in the receptor language (RL) to assess the extent of their naturalness by ticking in the appropriate column on the scale: Natural – Near Natural – Less Natural.

The 42 proverbs identified in the source text in English were compared with their renderings in the Dagaare (RL) texts to determine their extent of naturalness, using native speaker intuition. Admittedly, the list of proverbs sampled cannot be said to be exhaustive; however, considering the scope of this paper, it was considered representative enough for the intended analysis. The sampled proverbs were read out to members of selected churches in the Wa Municipality where the two versions of the Dagaare NT have been in use since their dedication in 2014 and 2015 respectively. The translators were subsequently interviewed to find out whether, if they were given a second chance, they would translate those proverbs differently or maintain their earlier renderings.

Previous studiesRhetorical tensions on defining key quality concepts in Bible TranslationThe topic of determining translation quality has been a subject of debate for decades with the possibility of ever arriving at a consensus on a universally acceptable definition remaining elusive. Traditionally, three main criteria have been in use: accuracy, clarity and naturalness (Barnwell, 1992:23). In recent times some other benchmarks for assessing the quality of translation have been introduced. Anderson (1998:1) for instance proposed a fourth criterion – “the criterion of perceived authenticity.” In relating this criterion to the other three, he defines “perceived authenticity” as “the receptor audience’s perception that the text is an authentic and trustworthy version of the original message.” He based his addition of the fourth criterion on the premise that many controversies about translation, such as the debate about literal translation versus dynamic equivalence, are really debates about authenticity, even though the debate is expressed in terms of accuracy. He argues that it is perceived authenticity that often causes translations to be accepted or rejected, and that it is authenticity that is implicitly used to judge translations. Mudge rather calls Anderson’s “criterion of authenticity”


the criterion of “acceptability,” arguing that “the last critical quality of a good translation is acceptability” (Mudge, 1997:65). He emphasizes the importance of the target audience’s acceptance of the translation as an accurate and meaningful rendering of the original message. Acknowledging the relevance of acceptability theory, Larson (2001:44) asserts that “acceptability should be a major concern to translators” as the absence of this benchmark in a text could result in the receptor audience rejecting the translation. As Daams (2015) rightly observes, the merit of translation must not only be based on it being good quality; it must also be perceived to be good quality by the target audience.

Writing onnaturalness and artificiality in Bioethics, Schiemannalso adds an interesting twist to the quality-translation debate – “Naturalness” and “artificiality”. He argues that:

[n]aturalness and artificiality form an unlikely pair. While the expression “natural” is usually connected with positive attributes, “artificial”, as a rule has negative connotations. “Natural”suggests obviousness, self-evidence, genuineness or harmoniousness, whereas “artificial” implies complicatedness, lack of clarity, inauthenticity or incoherence (Schiemann, 2011: 99).

NaturalnessA key criterion for establishing the quality of any translation project is that it must attain the naturalness standard; that is, it must sound natural. The subject of naturalness dates back to the days of St. Jerome and his followers like Luther (1530) amd Dryden (1684), who advocated for “colloquial and natural renderings of texts.” Following this, other translation authorities endeavoured to produce translation works that they considered “natural as much as possible” and stressed the need for a natural translation.They includedTyter (1797); Beloc (1931); Nida (1943) and Jakobson (1959). A brief note on two of them just to affirm their strong stance on the subject is offered here: First, Tyter (1797) is acknowledged as one who advocated that in order to achieve a natural translation, a translator must be free in adding to or retrenching from the original text when it is being translated into a target language. Nida (1943), is cited as describing a translator, who aims at a natural translation, as one who “produces a total overall effect with approximate tone” where the intention of the text takes precedence over the words that the author uses and the author’s understanding of the kind of


target audience the original author had in mind (in Fadaee, 2011:201).

In recent times, it has been the practice in naturalness theory to view all distinctions in language as scales (Fadaee, 2011). Entities on each scale differ in naturalness, the end points of each scale being the most natural and least natural respectively. The terms “more natural” and “less natural” make it possible to avoid the logically contradictory terms “natural” and “unnatural”. Fadaee argues that “unnatural” cannot seriously be predicated of anything in a natural language. He however concedes that the word occurs occasionally in theoretical writings.

AccuracyAccuracy of translation implies that a translated text communicates the same meaning as the source text. A translation that tends to omit some pieces of information, adds information that is not actually in the source language, or contains errors in analysing the source text and consequently producing a different meaning cannot be accepted as accurate (Rahimi, 2004).

ClarityAccording to Larsen (2001), “clearness in translation means that the translated piece can communicate to the people (target audience) who are to use it. In his view, the forms of the language used in a clear translation should be those which make the message of the source text as easy to understand as the source text itself was to understand. Thus, a translation‘s quality is compromised if it:

1. Fails to communicate to the people who use it;

2. Does not use the form of language that is understandable by the speakers.

(Rahimi, 2004:56).

This paper focuses on naturalness in translating, but it was deemed necessary to briefly introduce the concepts of clarity and accuracy, considering their inter-relatedness to naturalness.

ProverbsThe word proverb originated from the Latin word proverbium, meaning “saying” (www.latin-dictionary.org 2008). A proverb is usually a short and pithy saying that states a general truth or piece of advice and is often


metaphorical. It is also said to be a simple and concrete saying that is popularly known and repeated. It expresses a truth based on common sense or experience. Proverbs are culture-specific but oftentimes one may find similarities in wording and the underlying concepts between two languages. It has also been observed that proverbs are often borrowed from similar languages and cultures, and sometimes come down to the present through more than one language. Proverbs are context-specific and using them out of context or at the wrong time is usually frowned upon (Ojoade, 1983).Yankah, in an earlier study, argued that “in the absence of context, proverbial wit cannot be determined” (Yankah, 1982:145). He acknowledged the value of “verbal wit” in Africa and underscored the pervasiveness of its use by saying that “the proverb is employed in everyday discourse, and is probably the most spontaneous of all the expressive art forms in Africa.” He further noted that people from all walks of life: “orators, preachers, litigants, debaters, elders and participants in ordinary discourses normally consider it a mark of traditional sophistication to spice their speech with proverbs.” As far as context is concerned, he argues that writing and speaking require different skills and that whereas “oral use of the proverb is spontaneous, literary use is not.” This does not suggest that proverbs are not used in African literary works or should not be used in works (such as the Bible) translated into these languages from non-African languages. The non-spontaneity of proverbs, when it comes to literary use, is not surprising because the concept of literacy itself in most African communities is arguably a recent development. Proverbs may also be expressed on drums, through gestures, in dancing and through visual art symbols (Yankah, 1982:144). As far as their use in other media like those cited by Yankah is concerned, the practice is as old as the cultures themselves.

Interpreting proverbs in the same language has never been an easy job, even for persons aclaimed by local folks to be knowlegeable in them. The task of interpreting proverbs across cultures naturally becomes much more difficult. Hashemi (2009:1) observes that “All languages have particular terminology, some of which are deeply rooted in the culture of the speakers of the specific language; consequently, they can pose unique difficulties in the comprehension of culture specific texts.”The Bible, by virtue of it being a historical and cultural book is replete with proverbs, and so is formal Dagaare discourse. Interestingly, a lot of similarities can be observed between Hebrew and Dagaare cultures. One classic example is the Hebrew levirate marriage mandated by Deuteronomy 25:5-6 obliging a surviving


brother of a man who dies childless to marry the widow of his childless deceased brother. Similarly, as part of the complex patriarchal inheritance system of the Dagaaba, a surviving brother can inherit a deceased brother’s properties, including his widow. The cleansing rites of the Hebrews and the Dagaaba also show striking similarities, especially in their use of specific birds and the hyssop for cleansing. It would therefore be interesting to explore possible similarities and differences that may exist in their use of proverbs too.

Proverbs as instruments for culturo-religious dialogueThe relationship between African proverbs and the Gospel has been likened, at one point, to a bridge and at another to a window. One author that addresses the subject extensively is Van Heerden (2013). In his interesting article entitled: “The Proverb is the Drum of God”: On the Use of African Proverbs in the Interaction between African Culture and the Christian Faith”, he credits Coter (1997) with the bridge metaphor, and Bernett (1997) with that of the window. The latter, for instance, is quoted as saying:

The question is: How do we communicate biblical values, the values contained in the gospel at a people’s worldview level? I suggest that we must find a window, an access point into their worldview. One window into a people’s worldview can be found and developed through an analysis of their traditional proverbial lore. Once we have sufficiently understood the nature of the window, we can then build communication bridges through this window between worldview values and biblical values. (Bernett, 1997 in van Heerden, 2013:465)

According to van Heerden, the metaphors suggest that proverbs constitute a framework for facilitating open communication in the midst of cultural gaps. He sees them as instruments for the provision of a language which enhances meaningful communication of the Bible. Among all the various metaphors used to illustrate the culturo-religious dialogue between African proverbs and the Gospel, van Heerden acknowledges one Anne Nasimyu-Wasike for what he calls “the most striking metaphor” – ‘the unwritten Bible’ of the African people”(van Heerden, 2013). These metaphorical characteristics of


proverbs were arrived at based on a long period of observation of proverb use on the continent. Another interesting but delicate area for the translator to consider is to be able to determine whether some of the sayings are not mere adages or aphorisms or axioms or maxims rather than ‘proverbs’. To translate a text that would be accepted by the people as natural, accurate, clear and authentic, the appropriate use of proverbs would play a key role.

FindingsThe focus of this study has been on naturalness in translating English proverbs into Dagaare, using the NRSV (1999) and the ESV (2001) as the English source texts and the Dagaare NT as RL text. Dressler’s (2003) theory of naturalness which is said to evaluate translation quality in subjective terms with the criteria: “more natural” and “less natural” implying the existence of standards of comparison: a translation x is more or less natural than y was adopted. Proverbial and idiomatic biblical verses translated into Dagaare from English were compiled and tabulated as follows:

Table 1: Biblical verses considered proverbial

S/N Proverbs/Idioms Source Text Version in En-glish

Receptor Language Text Version in Dagaare with Gloss

1. An eye for an eye and tooth for a tooth

Mtt. 5:38: An eye for eye, a tooth for a tooth.

Nimirinayɔɔ la nimiri sane, kanyene, meŋ na yɔɔ la nye-nee sane.Eye Fut. Pay Fact. Eye debt Conj. tooth also Fut. Pay Fact. Tooth debt.


2. To go the extra mile Mtt. 5:41: Go the extra mile

…vɛŋ ka fo gaa mɛɛle ayi ne o…let that you go mile two Conj 3rd Pers. Sing.

3. To wash one’s hands off a matter

Mtt. 27:24 Wash your hands of the matter

…ka o de koɔ a neba niŋe eŋe a pɛge o nuuri…Conj. he take water Def. peo-ple eye on Conj. wash 3rd Pers. Sing. hand+pl.

4. To cast pearls before swine

Mtt. 7: 6 To give dogs what is holy.

Ta ko bare boŋ naŋ e bon-soŋ, bee lɔɔ yɛ lɛpɛl-veɛlaa eŋ dobaare poɔ.Imp.Neg.givedog+Pl.thing which be thing-good Conj. throw Your pearl+beautiful put pig-Pl. inside.

5. To cast the first stone/ People who live in glass houses must not throw stones.

Jn. 8:7: Cast the first stone

A soba na zaa naŋ ba taa yel-bieri a yɛpoɔ, yɛ vɛŋ ka o de weɛ de kuurii za neŋ a pɔgoDef. fellow Spec. all that Neg. have deed+badYou+Pl. let him take lead take stone throw Prep. Def. woman

6. In/By the twinkling of an eye

I Cor. 15:50-52 In the twinkling of an eye

…a nimiri zaŋnoo poɔ…… Def. eye blinking inside

7. To fall from grace to grass

Gal. 5:4: Fall from grace

…yɛ le la yi a nɔndeteroo sobiri poɔ… You-Pl. fall Fact. From Def. mouth-take-give road inside

8. Do not muzzle out the ox that treads the grain.

I Cor. 9:9; I Tim 5:18 Do not muz-zle out the ox that treads out the grain.

…ta le a nakuoraa na noɔre naŋ nɛbrɛ a bombie.Neg. tie Def. cow-farmer mouth that stepping-on Def grain.

9. Bad company ruins good morals

I Cor. 15: 33 Bad company ruins good morals.

Tutaafaare maŋ saaŋ la eveɛle.Follow-fellow bad Hab. Spoil Spec. Deed+good

10. If the blind leadthe blind, both will fall in a pit

Mtt.15:14 Ka zɔŋ wa tagra zɔŋ, ba zaa bayi na laŋ le la a bɔg poɔ. Cond.Blind-person+Emph. Pull+Prog. Blind-person they all two Fut. together fall Def. ditch inside.


11. No city or house divid-ed against itself will stand

Mtt 12:25 Yiri na zaa naŋ poŋ kyaare ne o meŋɛ koŋ toɔ are.House/Town Spec. all that divide towards with 3rd Pers. Sing Pron. Fut. Neg. be-able stand.

12. The Son of man Mtt 8:20; Lk 9:58 Nensaala Bidɔɔ Person+weak child+male (Dɔɔ bie/ninsaalaa bie)

13. Signs of the times A baroo saŋ mannoo (Nya-laanyiili)Def. ending time illustration.

14. The eleventh hour Mtt 20:6-8 Zimanee gogori anuu saŋ (Saŋparaa puoriŋ, meaning too late) Evening bell+Pl. 5 period.

15. Den of thieves Mtt 21:13; Mk 11:17; Lk 19:46

Nanyigiri die(Nanyigi baa)Thieves+Pl room

16. Sounding your trumpet Mtt 6:2 Peɛle eelɛ (fara bara) Blow-Prog. Horn+Pl.

17. All who take the sword will perish by the sword.

Mtt. 26:52 Balaŋ naŋ voɔ a soɔ na bɔre wɛ la a soɔ eŋɛThey-who that pull-out Def. knife Fut. Get-lost waste Perf. Def. knife on

18. The stone that the builders rejected, has become the corner-stone.

Mtt 21:42 A kuuri na mɛmeɛrebɛ naŋ zagre, waa la a goŋgonaa zukuuriDef. stone which Def. build+builders Perf. reject be Fact. Def. bend-bend head stone.

19. Straight and narrow. Mtt.7:14 Kyɛ a sobiri naŋ gɛrɛ a Nyɔ-vore zie ne a be dendɔree la bile

20. No man seweth a piece of new cloth on an old garment.

Mk2:21 Neɛ bamaŋ de pɛmpaala a liiri ne kparekora.Person Neg. Hab. Take new-cloth Prep. Sew-on with dress-old.

21. Good Samaritan Lk 10:30-37 Samaria Dɔɔvelaa (Nensoŋ-bie) Samaria Man-good


22. Breathed His last/He gave up the ghost

Lk 23:46 Voore O vooroŋ pare baara.Breathe 3rd Pers. Sing. source ending

23. Eat, drink and be merry Lk 12:19 Dire, nyuuro, a nyɛrɛ popeɛloŋEat+Prog. Drin+Prog. Conj. See+Prog. Stomach-white (Dire, nyuuro, a kuolo)

24. See the light Lk 11:33 Nyɛrɛ a kyaaneSee+Prog. Def. light (Possi-ble interpretation of the neg. being stupid)

25. Not lose heart Lk 18:1 Ta baleImp. Neg. Be+tired (poɔ saaŋ/eŋa kyoɔre) may be better sometimes

26. Divided we fall Lk 11:17 Yiri kaŋa zaa naŋ poŋ kyaare ne o meŋɛ na le laHouse any all that di-vide+Perf. towards Prep. 3rd Pers. Sing. self Fut. Fall Emph.(Dankyiniŋ maŋ wɛre ka nane zo kpɛ te pa)

27. A cross you have to bear

Lk 14:27 Tuo dagaraCarry wood+cross

28. Don’t judge by appear-ances

Jn 7:24: 2 Cor 10:7

Kaara lɛ nensaala naŋ waa kyɛ dire o sarɛɛWatch how weak-person Emph. Be Conj. Eat+Prog. 3rd Pers. Sing. judgment

29. Cast the first stone. Jn. 8:7 A soba na naŋ ba taa yelbieri zaa a yɛ poɔ, yɛ vɛŋ ka o de weɛ de kuurii za...Def. fellow Emph. that Neg. have deed-bad any Def. 2nd Pers. Pl. inside 2ndPers. Pl. allow that 3rd Pers. Sing. take lead take stone throw.

30. Circumcision of the heart

Rom 2:29 Yɔ-ŋmaabo e la sukyiri bone.Penis-cutting Pres.+Be Spec. heart knowing.


31. Risk your neck Rom 16:4 De fo nyɔvore koTake 2nd Pers. Sing. give.(De zu biŋ ka ba ŋmaa)

32. Twinkling of an eye I Cor 15:50-52 A nimiri zaŋbo poɔDef. eye blink inside.

33. A thorn in the flesh 2 Cor 12:7 Goɔ da kyɔge ma laThorn prick me Perf. (Saŋk-paŋ-malee)Too literal

34. Fall from grace Gal. 5:4 Ye le la yi a nɔndeteroo sobiri poɔ2nd-Pers-Pl. fall Perf. from Def. mouth-take-give road inside.

35. Whatever one sows, that will he reap

Gal 6:7. Bon na neɛ naŋ bore, onɔ la ka o na kyɛ (Neɛ zaa waseɛroŋ maŋ o nuore).Thing that person Emph. Sow that Spec. that 3rd-Pers.-Sing.-cut

36. The love of money is a root of all kinds of evil.

I Tim. 6:10 Bonso libie nɔmmo la a yelfaa eroŋ yaga piilu zie.What-cause money love be Def. matter-bad deed plenty beginning place.

37. Does a spring pour forth from the same opening both fresh and salt water?…Can a fig tree bear olives, or a grapevine produce figs?

James 3:11,12 Kŏɔnoɔ ane kŏɔtuo natŏɔ bul-lo yire la ziyenaa bee? N yɔɔ mine, kaŋkaŋteɛ na tŏɔ wɔŋ la *ɔleve wɔmɔ bee? Ora na tŏɔ wɔŋ la kaŋkama?

Water+sweet Conj. Wa-ter+bitter can germinate come+out+from Def. place+one Qn. MarkerMy younger+siblings fig+tree can bear+fruit Spec. olive fruits Qn. Marker Yellow ber-ry Fut. Be+able bear fig Qn.

38. Wallowing in the mire 2 Peter 2:22a Bille mɛmɛrɛ poɔRoll-over+Prog. Mud inside.

39. The dog returns to his own vomit

2 Peter 2:22b Baa maŋ leɛ di la o meŋɛ tiiri. Dog Hab. Turn-back eat Emph. 3rd Pers. Sing. self vomit


40. God speed 2 Jn 1:11 TuoriMeet

41. Lukewarm Rev 3:16a Ba waa maaroŋ bee toloŋ Neg. be cold Conj. hot

42. Spit out of Rev. 3:16b Poore bareSpew throw-away(Poore/Toore bare, usually after uttering a curse)

The 42 proverbs compiled were then subjected to analysis in the receptor language (RL) to assess the extent of their naturalness by checking (X) in the appropriate column on the scale: Natural –Near Natural – Less Natural. The results are presented in Table 2.

Table 2: Extent of naturalness of identified proverbs translated into Dagaare

S/N Source Text Ver-sion in English

RL Version Degree of Natural-ness:1.Natural

Degree ofNaturalness:2. Near Nat-ural

Degree of Natural-ness:3. Less Nat-ural

1. Mtt. 5:38An Eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth.

Nimiri na yɔɔ la nimiri sane, ka nyene, meŋ na yɔɔ la nyenee sane.Eye Fut. Pay-for Fact. eye debt Conj. tooth Fut. pay-for tooth debt

X


2. Mtt. 5:41…go with him two (i.e. To go the extra mile)

…vɛŋ ka fo gaa mɛɛle ayi ne oLet-that 2nd Pers.-Sing. go mile two with him

X

3. Mtt 27:24 ...washed his hands of the matter

…ka o de koɔ…a pɛge o nuuri…Conj. 2nd-Pers.-Sing. take water Conj. wash 2nd-Pers.-Sing. hand

X

4. Mtt 7: 6Do not give dogs what is holy (=To cast pearls before swine KJV)

Ta ko bare boŋ naŋ e bon-soŋ, bee lɔɔ yɛ lɛpɛl-veɛlaa eŋ dobaare poɔ.Imp.+Neg. take-give thing that be thing-good pig+dog-Pl. inside

X

5. Jn. 8:7Be the first to throw a stone at.

A soba na zaa naŋ ba taa yel-bieri a yɛ poɔ, yɛ vɛŋ ka o de weɛ de kuurii zaneŋ a pɔgoTake lead take stone throw

X

6. I Cor 15:50-52; Eph 6:12In the twin-kling of an eye

… a nimiri zaŋnoo poɔ…Def. eye blink-ing inside

X

7. Gal. 5:4Fallen away from grace. (To fall from grace)

… yɛ le la yi a nɔndeteroo sobiri poɔ.2nd-Pers.-Pl. fall Fact. from road inside

X


8. I Cor 9:9 I Tim 5:18You shall not muzzle out an ox when it treads out the grain.

…ta le a nakuoraa na noɔre naŋ nɛbrɛ a bombie.Imp.-Neg. tie cow-farmer Comp. step-ping-on things-seed

X

9. I Cor 15: 33Bad company ruins good morals.

Tutaafaare maŋ saaŋ la eveɛle.Follow-ing+one-an-other+bad Hab. Spoil Fact deeds-good

X

10. 2 Peter 2:22The dog re-turns to its own vomit.

Baa maŋ leɛ di la o meŋɛ tiiriDog Hab. turn eat 3rd Pers. Sing. own vomit

X

11. Mtt.15:13-14The blind leading the blind.

Ka zɔŋ wa tagra zɔŋ, ba zaa bayi na laŋ le la a bɔg poɔ. Cond.Blind-per-son+Emph. Pull+Prog. Blind-person they all two Fut. together fall Def. ditch inside.

X


12. Mtt 12:25A house divided against itself

Yiri na zaa naŋ poŋ kyaare ne o meŋɛ koŋ toɔ are. (Dankyiniŋ maŋ wɛre ka nane zo kpɛte pa)House/Town Spec. all that divide towards with 3rd Pers. Sing Pron. Fut. Neg. be-able stand.

X

13. Mtt 8:20; Lk 9:58The Son of man

Nensaala BidɔɔPerson+weak child+male (Dɔɔ bie/nin-saalaa bie)

X

14. Mtt. 10:6Signs of the times

A baroosaŋ mannoo Def. ending+time illustration.

XX

15. Mtt 20:6-8The elev-enth hour

Zimanee gogori anuu saŋ (Saŋparaa puoriŋ) Eve-ning bell+Pl. 5 period.

X

16. Mtt 21:13; Mk 11:17; Lk 19:46Den of thieves

Nanyigiri die(Nanyigi baa)Thieves+Pl room

X

17. Mtt 6:2Sounding your trum-pet

Peɛle eelɛ (fara bara) Blow-Prog. Horn+Pl.

X


18. Mtt. 26:52He who lives by the sword dies by the sword.

Balaŋ naŋ voɔ a soɔ na bɔrewɛ la a soɔ eŋɛ They-who that pull-out Def. knife Fut. Get+lost+waste Perf. Def. knife on

X

19. Mtt 21:42The stone which the builders rejected, the same became the head of the corner.

A kuuri na mɛmeɛrebɛ naŋ zagre, waa la a goŋgo-naazukuuriDef. stone which Def. build+builders Perf. reject be Fact. Def. bend-Redup. head stone.

X

20. Mtt.7:14Straight and narrow.

Kyɛ a sobiri naŋ gɛrɛ a Nyɔvore zie ne a be dendɔre e la bile.

X

21. Mk2:21No man seweth a piece of new cloth on an old garment.

Neɛ ba maŋ de pɛmpaala a liiri ne kparekora.Person Neg. Hab. Take new-cloth Prep. Sew-on with dress-old.

X

22. Lk 10:30-37Good Sa-maritan

Samaria Dɔɔve-laa (Nensoŋ bie)Samaria Man-good

X


23. Lk 23:46He gave up the ghost

Voore O vooroŋ pare baara.Breathe 3rd Pers. Sing. source ending(Oŋ daaŋ ŋmaa vooroŋ/ Oŋ daaŋ kpi) Pos-sible cultural misinterpre-tation of “give up the ghost” =:seɛ yi (mean-ing one’s soul leaving the body and can be brought back through rituals).

X

24. Lk 12:19Eat, drink and be merry

Dire, nyuuro, a nyɛrɛ popeɛloŋEat+Prog. Drin+Prog. Conj. See+Prog. Stomach-white (Dire, nyuuro, a kuolo)

X

25. Lk 11:33See the light

Nyɛrɛ a kyaaneSee+Prog. Def. light (Possible interpretation of the Neg. will mean ‘to be stupid’)

X

26. Lk 18:1Not lose heart

Ta baleImp. Neg. Be+tired (ta vɛŋ ka poɔ saaŋ/eŋa kyo-ɔre, literally: Imp. Neg. let (your) stomach spoil/body be weak) may be better.

X


27. Lk 11:17Divided we fall

Yirikang-zaanang pong kyaare ne o mengena le laHouse any all that di-vide+Perf towards Prep. 3rd Pers. Sing. self Fut. Fall Emph.

X

28. Lk 14:27A cross you have to bear

Tuo dagaraCarry wood+cross

X

29. Jn 7:24: 2 Cor 10:7Don’t judge by appear-ances

Kaara lɛ nensaala naŋ waa kyɛ dire o sarɛɛ Watch how weak-per-son Emph. Be Conj. Eat+Prog. 3rd Pers. Sing. judgement

X

30. Jn. 8:7Cast the first stone.

A soba na naŋ ba taa yelbieri zaa a yɛ poɔ, yɛ vɛŋ ka o de weɛ de kuurii za...Def. fellow Emph that Neg. have deed-bad any Def. 2nd Pers. Pl. inside 2ndPers. Pl. allow that 3rd Pers. Sing. take lead take stone throw.

X

31. Rom 2:29Circumci-sion of the heart

Yɔ-ŋmaabo e la sukyiri bone.Penis-cutting Pres.+Be Spec. heart knowing.

X


32. Rom 16:4Risk your neck

De fo nyɔvore koTake 2nd Pers. Sing. Nose+liv-ing give.(De zu biŋ ka ba ŋmaa Take head put+down Comp. they cut)

X

33. I Cor 15:50-52Twinkling of an eye

A nimiri zaŋbo poɔDef. eye blink inside.

X

34. 2 Cor 12:7A thorn in the flesh

Goɔ da kyɔge ma la Thorn Past prick me Perf.

Xx

35. Gal. 5:4Fall from grace

Ye le la yi a nɔndeteroo sobiri poɔ2nd-Pers-Pl. fall Perf. from Def. mouth-take-give road inside.

X

36. Gal 6:7Whatsoev-er a man soweth, that shall he also reap.

Bon na neɛ naŋ bore, onɔ la ka o meŋ na kyɛ (Neɛ zaa waseɛroo maŋ soɔ o noɔre).Thing Spec. person Emph. Sow Comp. Spec. Fut. 3rd-Pers.-Sing. cut

X

37. I Tim. 6:10The love of money is the root of all evil.

Bonso libie nɔmmo la a yelfaa eroŋ yaga piilu zie.What-cause money love be Def. matter-bad deed plenty be-ginning place.

X


38. James 3:11,12Does a fountain send forth at the same place sweet water and bitter…Can a fig tree bear olive beries?

Kŏɔnoɔ ane kŏɔtuo na tŏɔ bullo yire la ziyenaa bee? N yɔɔ mine, kaŋkaŋteɛ natŏɔ wɔŋ la *ɔlevewɔmɔ bee? Ora na t ŏ ɔ wɔŋ la kaŋka-ma?Sweet-water Conj. Be-able spring com-ing-from place-one Qn. Mark-er. My brothers, fig+tree be able bear olivet+-fruit Qn. Mark-er. Yellow-berry can bear fig?

X

39. 2 Peter 2:22aWallowing in the mire.

Bille mɛmɛrɛ poɔRoll-over+Prog. Mud inside.

X

40. 2 Jn 1:11God speed

TuoriMeet

XXxX

41. Rev 3:16aLukewarm

Ba waa maar-oŋ bee toloŋNeg. be cold Conj. hot

X

42. Rev. 3:16bSpew out

Poore bareSpew throw-away

X

DiscussionThe study considered which of the translated proverbs and/or idioms were natural; those that were near natural and those that were deemed less natural. This was done with a view to revealing why the natural ones are said to be so, and why those deemed to be less natural tend to be so. English proverbs considered alien to Dagaare were also identified for suggestions to be made on how best they could have been translated into the RL.


From Table 2, the results obtained were: Natural = 14; Near Natural = 21; Less Natural = 7. This implies that most (50%) of the proverbs translated into Dagaare were deemed near natural. Those that were considered natural by respondents constituted 33%, while those that were deemed less natural represented 17%.

The study observed that proverbs that had almost word-for-word equivalents or expressed familiar concepts in Dagaare were those considered by respondents as natural. Classic examples included Sample Proverbs 3, 10, 11 in Table 2 (from Matthew 27: 24; 2 Peter 2: 22; Matthew 15: 13; 21:42; Mark 2:21; Rev 3:16a and16b). For instance, the concept of dogs eating their own vomit in 2 Peter 2: 22, is not new to the Dagaaba. In fact, there is a similar proverb in the language for expressing the idea of individualism which is gradually creeping into Dagaare culture – a culture that is known for its high communal spirit. It is not uncommon to hear the people say:

Pampana baa ba la dire o tɔ tiiri.

Now dog Neg. Rep.-Marker eat 3rd-Pers-Sing-Pron.kind vomit.

Literal meaning: These days, dogs no longer eat the vomit of their kind.

Metaphorical meaning: These days, no one cares for someone else’s child.

Even though the underlying meaning of this proverb in Dagaare is not exactly the same as the example from 2 Peter 2: 22, one fact is affirmed: Dogs do return to their vomit. “Casting the first stone” from John 8:7: Though not a proverb that exists in the language, the idea it expresses in the SL is so clear that neither the translators nor the readers found any difficulties in understanding it. Similarly, “wallowing in the mire” from 2 Peter 2: 22 is a familiar concept, as most of the Dagaaba rear pigs and are very aware of those animals’ fondness of wallowing in the mud. The expressions “lukewarm” and “spew out” used in Revelations 3:16a&b provide


interesting connotations: The word “lukewarm” has an exact equivalent in Dagaare - pɔlɔpɔlɔ; however, the translators opted for a descriptive phrase that included the adjectives “cold” (maaroŋ) and “hot” (toloŋ) which are often used to describe slow or sluggish and active persons respectively. The reduplicant pɔlɔpɔlɔ, though the exact equivalent of lukewarm is used exclusively for liquid and not persons, not even in the metaphorical sense. “Spew out” rendered by the translators as Poore bare in Revelations 3:16b is another familiar concept in Dagaare. Nonetheless, it has further connotative extensions that should be clarified to avoid confusion in the minds of the reader: The expression poore/toore bare (to spew out) in Dagaare can also be used in contexts where a person who has uttered a curse is rebuked and asked to retract the curse.

The 21 proverbs that were considered by respondents as near natural were observed to sound more literal than proverbial in the receptor text. Five of them are discussed here, namely: Mt. 5:41 “to go the extra mile”; Mt. 5:38 “an eye for an eye and tooth for a tooth”; Mt. 7:6 “to cast pearls before swine”; Eph. 6:12 “in the twinkling of an eye” and I Corinthians 15:33 “bad company ruins good morals”. There was the likelihood that the translators leaned more towards the source text meaning than they did towards the production of a natural translation into the receptor text that represented the source text proverbs with equivalents or near equivalents in the Dagaare text. It was also observed that the use of proverbs in a translation could depend on the translator’s own mastery of their use in everyday language. The respondents could understand what was implied by those statements, albeit with a bit of explanation. The translation of Matthew 12:25 in particular, presented an interesting observation: Even though the idea expressed here of a divided house not being able to stand is clear, the Dagaaba have a similar proverb that could fit in this context more naturally:

Dankyiniŋ maŋ were ka nanne zo kpe te pa

Wall-Spec. Hab. crack that scorpion+Pl. run enter go fill-in

Literal: When a wall cracks, it makes room for scorpions to creep in

Metaphorical meaning: A house divided against itself cannot stand.

The proverbs in Galatians 5:4 “to fall from grace”; I Cor. 9:9 “to muzzle the ox that treads the grain”; Matthew 10:6 “Signs of the time” whose renderings in the Dagaare texts were considered less natural by respondents, tended to be


the most literal of all the translated proverbs in Dagaare. The Dagaaba have expressions that are near equivalents of these sayings that could have been used. For instance, “Signs of the time” could be rendered as “nyalaanyiili”. Falling from grace, usually expressed as “mɔg tampɛloŋ” (literally: to eat ashes but metaphorically, to experience a reversal of fortunes) or “nyɛ woore” could also fit in the latter.

ConclusionThis study investigated the extent of naturalness in the translation of English proverbs into Dagaare, using the Dagaare New Testament: Naaŋmen Nɔpaalaa Gane. Using the scale of natural – near natural – less natural, it was observed that majority (50%) of the proverbs translated into Dagaare was near natural. Those that were deemed natural constituted 33%; while those that were considered less natural represented 17%. The extent of naturalness in the translated texts depended largely on the level of literalness in the translation. The study argued that the profuseness in the use of proverbs in a translation could depend on the translator’s own mastery of their use in everyday language. How well a translator knows, understands and uses proverbs in daily discourse could greatly determine how frequently and appropriately they use proverbs in a translated text.Yankah‘s (1982) article: “The Proverb and the Western Educated: Use or Neglect” is considered particularly interesting for this study. Though the people who translated the NT into Dagaare might not have been trained in the West, the formal education received locally in Ghana is modelled upon that of the West. It would be interesting to find out whether their use or misuse of proverbs could be linked to their educational background. This present study cannot claim to be exhaustive in its discussion of issues relating to proverbs and naturalness as it only examined the subject as it pertains to Dagaare and the English language, both of which are, strictly speaking, receptor languages. Therefore future research could look at the level of naturalness of translated proverbs not just from the English language, but also from the Greek and Hebrew languages.


ReferencesAnderson, D. (1998). Perceived Authenticity: The Fourth Criterion of Good

Translation. Notes on Translation 12(3): 1-3.

Barnwell, K. (1992). Manual for Bible Translation: Introductory Course on Translation Principles. Dallas: Summer Institute of Linguistics.

Chemorion, D. C. (2009). Considerations for Acceptability in Bible Translation. Verbum etEcclesia 30(2) Art. #343, 5 pages. DOI: 10.4102/ve.v30i2.343

Dressler, W. U. (2003). Naturalness and Morphological Change. Berlin: De Gruyter.

Crossway Bibles (2001). English Standard Version. Wheaton, IL: Crossway.

Fadaee, E. (2011). Translation Naturalness in Literary Works: English to Persian. International Journal of English and Literature. 2(9): 200-205. Available at: www.academicjournals.org/ijel DOI: 10.5897/IJEL11.089.

Hashemi, H. (2009). Naturalness in Translation. Art of Translation and Interpreting. Available at: www.proz.com Accessed on: 19th October, 2017.

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Mbiti, J. S. (1995). The Gospel and African Culture: Use and Unuse of Proverbs in African Theology. Paper Presented at a Consultation on African Proverbs and Christian Mission in Maputo. 27-31 March, 1995.

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Churches of Christ (1999).New Revised Standard Version. USA: Division of Christian Education.


Nida, E. A. (1943). Towards a Science of Translation, with Special Reference to Principles and Involved in Bible Translating. Leiden, the Netherlands: E.J. Brills for the United Bible.

Ojoade, J.O. (1983). African Sexual Proverbs: Some Yoruba Examples. Folklore 194(2): 201-13.

Rahimi, R. (2004). Alpha, Beta and Gamma in Translation: Towards the Objectivity of Testing Translation. Translation Studies 2(5).

Schiemann, J. (2011). Naturalness and artificiality in Bioethics. Human Nature and Self-Design. Paderborn: mentis Verlag GmbH.

Van Heerden, W. (2013). The Proverb is the Drum of God: On the Use of African Proverbs in the Interaction Between African Culture and the Christian Faith. Scriptura 81 (2002): 462-475.

Yankah, K. (1982). The Proverb and the Western Educated: Use or Neglect. Available at: www.scholarworks.iu.edu Accessed on 21st October, 2017.



Use of proverbs as communicative tool in Ghanaian choral music compositions

Joshua Alfred AmuahSenior Lecturer

Department of MusicUniversity of Ghana

LegonEmail: [email protected]

Hilarius Mawutor WuakuLecturer

Department of MusicUniversity of Ghana

LegonEmail: [email protected]

Submitted: June 28, 2018 / Accepted: March 27, 2019 / Published: October 4, 2019

Abstract

This paper first of all identifies Ghanaian composers who explore proverbs as textual materials in their composition. It then proceeds to analyse how proverbs are deployed as communicative tools against the

backdrop of Ghanaian cultural sensibilities. The paper further examines the effectiveness of these proverbs from the viewpoint of audience perception and reception. Methodology was based on a search from archives of selected composers and libraries to unravel compositions that use proverbs as the source of text. Audiences were interrogated on their perceptions about such choral works. The research has shown that the use of proverbs in choral music promotes effective communication as well as contributes to the sustainability of Ghana’s rich traditional way of communication.


Keywords: Proverbs, Ghanaian choral music, communication, Ghanaian composers, composition

IntroductionIn Ghana, Choral music has been in existence since the pre-colonial era and has been used effectively in day to day social activities. Activities such as funerals, rites of passage, plays, festivals and storytelling have explored choral music. Choral art music in its strictest sense is the exploration of indigenous African music elements and applying them to Western compositional techniques. Dor (2005:443) states that “the Ghanaian choral art idiom since the 1930s can be described as a symbiosis of traditional African music and Western art music. Ghanaian composers have sought not only to situate their songs in the broader social, cultural, and political landscapes of their nation, but also to use indigenous materials and creative procedures that redefine their identity as African composers”. Proverbs in the pre-colonial era have been an integral part of most activities that explore choral music since it is known among Ghanaians that proverbs sweeten speeches. However, its scholarly work on use of proverbs in choral music remains relatively few if not non-existent. The only readily available study on the use of proverbs in Ghanaian music is Agyekum (2005). It is a study of the use of proverbs in Ghanaian popular music, specifically on Alex Kwabena Konadu as an Akan oral artist, using his song obi abawuo tuatua obi aso (the death of one’s child disturbs another) as an example. This paper builds on Agyekum (2005) by examining the use of proverbs in Ghanaian art choral music as a way to fill this missing gap in Ghanaian musicology.

Since choral music has been an integral part of day to day activities, the use of proverbs in them will instil, and improve the learning and usage of our rich traditional oral culture, which seems to have fallen off from the current generation of Ghanaians. Beside this, choral music which has become ubiquitous by the proliferation of youth choirs all over the country will encourage the younger generation to learn proverbs better and faster than in speech, written texts and in pictures, because in speech, proverbs are explored when there are issues involving the elderly, on written texts, only when one happens to read. Finally, proverbs in pictures could portray varied interpretations since there are no texts to speak to the meaning. The meaning of proverbs remains the same in singing and in speech. The


difference in usage either in singing or in speech, as stated earlier, is the fact that the younger ones participate in its usage because they are always performing choral music, but they are not always using proverbs in speech since it is envisaged as the preserve of the elderly.

Amuah (2012) suggests four generations of choral music composers. With this as a guide, the selection of items was made from all the four generations. The following composers were selected at the end of the search. In the first generation, Emmanuel Kwasi Aggor’s piece was identified as a text with proverbs. In the second generation, pieces from Michael Amissah, Augustine Adu Safo and Walter Blege were recognised. In the third generation, George Worlasi Kwasi Dor’s piece had proverbs and in the fourth generation, Sam Asare Bediako’s pieces were identified.

MethodologyThe data for this paper were based on interviews and library search for materials on choral music that explore proverbs from composers in Ghana and the outside world. We also searched for most performed choral items by Ghanaians that have proverbs, and collected them from different generations of Ghanaian choral music composers. We searched for these songs from the composers themselves, YouTube and from the gramophone record library at the Ghana Broadcasting Corporation. We also participated in the teaching/rehearsal sessions with the choral ensemble of the Department of Music, University of Ghana, Legon, and the Harmonious Chorale, Ghana, where varied choral items including items with proverbs are taught and learned to ascertain how students and members respectively react to choral pieces with proverbs.

We recorded, transcribed, translated, and analysed six (6) choral pieces that have proverbs, from the Akan and the Ewe communities, with the view of determining how the pieces effectively communicate to choral music enthusiasts and the masses. We attended performances which presented choral music with proverbs to realise the audience reception and perception. A couple of members from the two choral groups and audiences after performances of choral works were interviewed about their perceptions on such pieces. These include the students, lecturers, elders, middle aged and the teens, all of mixed gender and diverse academic backgrounds. Libraries in the University of Ghana, Legon, including those of the Departments


of Music, Linguistics, and the Institute of African Studies and the Balme library were our search libraries for relevant information.

This paper is multi-sectional in structure, and encompasses four broad sections; an introduction, exploration of proverbs and choral music, choral music composers as oral artists and proverbial themes in Ghanaian choral music compositions. The introduction comprises the methodology that was employed for the research, the theoretical and conceptual frameworks. The exploration section provides a record of literature related to this study, and biographical sketches of selected composers that have been chosen to precede the analysis of the text of selected works.

Theoretical frameworkScudder (1980) propounded the theory of communication which says that communication is simply the process of transferring information from the sender to the recipient where the recipient decodes the information and acts accordingly. This paper is based on the basic theory of communication which states that a message emanates from a source, passes through a channel and received and decoded at a destination. Between the source and the destination there could be interferences which distort the intended message. For effective communication to take place, there must be a feedback mechanism from the destination that the message was received and decoded correctly or incorrectly. In the context of this paper, the source of the message is the proverbs in the compositions which is sent through songs in a performance to a target audience who decode the message(s). It is actually the audience that determines whether the message in the proverb from the source is received and understood as intended by the composer and as performed by singers and musicians. Between the source and the target, interferences such as audience noise, acoustics of performance venue, sound reinforcement equipment etc., could all distort the message and prevent effective communication.

Proverbs in Akan: An explorationAgyekum (2005:9) posits that “proverbs are interpretations of traditional wisdom based on the experiences and socio-political life of our elders. The most acknowledged element of communicative competencies of an Akan speaker is his/her ability to use ɛbɛ (proverbs)”. This implies that a


competent Akan composer is the one who usually explores proverbs in his/her compositions.

In the Akan context, there are adages such as ɛbɛ ne ᴐkasamu abohenmmaa, (the proverb is the most precious stone of speech), ɛtwa asɛm tia, (it curtails matters) ɛnka asɛm ho a ɛnnwie dɛ yɛ, (without it, a speech does not acquire sweetness). Yankah (1989) on another dimension declares that the proverb is a broad concept and instances, and encompasses both malicious and benign uses of indirectness (Yankah 1989b: 109-111). In all these instances, there is the indigenous perception of the proverb as an aesthetic device of vitality in speech and also as an indispensable aspect of speech. (Agyekum 2005) considers proverbs as the salt of a language, without which the real taste of the language dish is not felt. The relevance of these short sayings is clear. Proverbs are a rich source of imagery. The proverb is a succinct expression on which more elaborate forms can be drawn. (Finnegan 2012: 379).

The value of the proverb to people in modern day Ghana does not lie only in what it reveals of the thoughts of the past. For the speaker and the oral artist, the proverb is a model of compressed or forceful language. In addition to drawing on it for its words of wisdom, the Akan or Ewe speaker takes interest in its verbal techniques (its selection of words) and comparison as a method of statement. Familiarity with its techniques enables the oral artiste to create his own proverbs. This enables him to avoid hackneyed expressions and give a certain amount of freshness to his speech.

According to Owusu Brempong (2014: 147), “the use of proverbs is not only to mark the elegance in speech but also phrases the philosophy and the poetry of the Akan people. For example, folk songs, funeral dirges and other lamentations, ceremonial songs, adawu (court) songs and dances draw on immense store of proverbs for the theme, imagery and the morals of the Akan”. He emphasizes that proverbs do not belong to any particular person. They are traditional knowledge, often attributed to elders and ancestors. Old people are assumed to have more experience and know more about the Akan world than the young people, who are not close to their ancestors. Proverbs, are thus, words of wisdom from ancient times.

The employment of proverbs in the speech of accomplished speakers or oral artists makes the proverbs not only a body of short statements and a reflection of thought and insight of Ghanaians into problems of life, but


also a technique of verbal expression, which is greatly appreciated by the Ghanaian. It is no wonder therefore that the use of proverbs has continued to be a living tradition in Ghana (Nketia 1978:21).

From the above discussion, it is evident that proverbs provide interpretations of traditional wisdom based on the experiences; it comprises malicious and benign uses of indirectness. This implies that choral compositions embedded with proverbs equally provide same benefits as in the spoken language. That accounts for why choral composers resort to spicing their compositions with proverbs. However, even though proverbs have been extensively used in choral compositions, no scholarly writings seem to address this issue. This paper therefore discusses some choral compositions that have explored proverbs in them to display the potency of proverbs.

Choral music: A surveyDor (2005) in his paper “Uses of Indigenous Music Genres in Ghanaian Choral Art Music: Perspectives from the Works of Amu, Blege, and Dor” discusses three selected art choral works, Yaanom Abibirim mma (“Fellow Black Africans”) by Ephraim Amu, Ese ye do Ame da (“The Creator God Sends People with Unique Gifts”) by Walter Blege, and Agbemavo Minyam Miele (“We are Aiming at Eternal Life”) by himself. This paper aims at illustrating the ways in which these representative Ghanaian composers have used indigenous music genres in their works as pre-compositional resources. Dor (2005), further indicates that the similarities in the uses of re-invigorated genres in the three selected works make them archetypes and perfect for the discussion. Although Dor explores the use of indigenous music, his work does not principally include the use of proverbs. In his work, it was evident that he has explored proverbs but does not deepen the discussion on them since that was not the central theme of the paper.

Terpenning (2017) in his Ph.D dissertation discusses “Choral Music, Hybridity, and Postcolonial Consciousness in Ghana”. In that study he indicates that Ghanaian choral music developed from the colonial experience through a process of musical hybridity and became relevant in the post-independent state of Ghana. The dissertation in no other circumstance makes reference to proverbs.

Gbolonyo (2009) in his PhD dissertation on “Indigenous knowledge and cultural values in Ewe musical practice: their traditional roles and place


in modern society” examines the aspects and functions of Ewe indigenous knowledge system, values, and musical practice. The general objective of the study is to help policy makers to create and promote awareness of the use of indigenous knowledge and values among Ewe youth and scholars. It explores Ewe indigenous knowledge and cultural values rooted in Ewe musical practices and discusses the extent to which musical practice preserves and transmits them. Even though proverbs constitute an integral part of indigenous knowledge systems the project seems to be silent on it. This gap, so identified in the above stated attempts offer the opportunity to delve deep into the use of proverbs in choral music in contribution to the application of indigenous knowledge system in contemporary Ghana.

Composers and performers as oral artistsAgyekum (2005:3) states that “oral artists in Akan include singers and composers, poets, dirge singers, etc.” They have major social roles to play in almost all the important occasions in our life from cradle to grave. One of the most important scenarios for oral performance in Akan and Ewe communities is during funeral ceremonies where many traditional orchestras like the adowa, kete, nnwonkorᴐ, apatampa, adenkum, osoode and bᴐsoe, (in the Akan-speaking areas), and agbadza, bᴐbᴐᴐbᴐ, gahu, avihawo, and egbanegba (in the Ewe-speaking areas) among others perform choral pieces of the composers whose works are selected for this paper are also performed at funerals, especially at burial services in the church. This implies that choral music composers are oral artists and can be recognised from the same perspectives. Choral music composers should therefore be regarded as oral artists because African/Ghanaian composers sometimes borrow from oral traditions with the inclusion of proverbs.

Oral artists receive traditions and cultural training from the society and the cultural set up and interpret them in their own experiences and situations; hence, there is a continuity of tradition. In the first place, the language used for the composition belongs to the society. (See Agyekum 2005) A work becomes popular and acceptable if many people understand the language, its symbolism and can decode the message. Oral artists have at their disposal, stocks of tradition including phrases, proverbs, idioms, allusions and other stylistic devices and techniques of composition that they adopt from older artists and reshape them to suit current situations and times (see Finnegan, 2012:60; Bauman, 1986:8).


Agyekum (2005) again states that the most outstanding oral artists are the praise singers at the various traditional courts. They perform when a king is appearing in public, when he sits in public for his subjects to pay homage and when he is leaving the place. Akan kings and chiefs had court poets and praise singers who helped to maintain the powers and images of these rulers. They could use their poetry and praises to advise and caution the rulers about crucial issues that may affect their regimes. They could draw the attention of the kings to some of the improprieties of their regimes. This is not different from what choral music performers do. We believe it is because they fall under the purview of oral artists. Choral music performers, especially those who perform for church activities perform very similar roles. They perform when a pastor is appearing in the pulpit to preach and also when any dignitary is about to speak in the church and in the public domain.

Use of proverbs in Ghanaian choral Art Music compositions

Clayton (1996:27), opines that, “a theme is a central idea upon which a creative work is designed. It gives a clue as to how the artist should proceed with his work. The theme is the triggering factor that controls all the expressive choices of a literary artist”. With respect to the selected composers, the themes of their works hover around patriotism and nationalism. This implies that the text of their pieces hinge on love and the development of one’s nation, and the use of folk elements and nationalism in music.

In the first piece by Emmanuel Aggor, Maalee maalee dii wotsiɛ (I will bath, I will bath,leaves you in dirt) speaks to procrastination. In the second piece by Walter Blege, Nunya Adidoe (Knowledge is the baobab), he dilates on selfishness and sharing or collaboration. The third piece by Augustine Adu Safo also concentrates on procrastination; the fourth, Susu w’asɛm kyerɛ by Michael Amissah focusses on sharing and collaboration. The fifth item Megati nusikᴐwu wo la yome o (Be content with what you have) by George Dor emphasises that one needs to be content with what one has. Finally, the sixth piece, Na adɛn? (And why?), by Asare Bediako concentrates on patriotism.


Songs with proverbsThis section presents songs by the selected composers which have proverbs in them. The songs provide the Akan/Ewe texts and their translations in English and identify the proverbs in the songs. We have demarcated proverbs from the entire texts by italicising and bolding at the right side of the translations to enable easy referencing.

Quite a number of researches have been done on the first and the second generations on the use of traditional music elements in Ghanaian choral music compositions. The following choral pieces from the selected composers have been chosen for this study, representing all four (4) generations in choral music composition in Ghana.

Title of Song English Transla-tion

Composer Generation

Maalee, Maalee, Dii Wotsiɛ

(I will bath, I will bath, leaves you in dirt)

Emmanuel Aggor 1st

Nunya Adidoe Knowledge is the baobab

Walter Kᴐmla Blege

2nd

Kᴐkᴐsakyi Vulture Augustine Adu Safo

2nd

Susu ho Kyerɛ Share with others Michael K. Amis-sah

2nd

Megati Nusi Kᴐwu Wo La Yome o

Be content with what you have

George W. K. Dor 3rd

Na adɛn? And why? Sam Asare Be-diako

4th

Pᴐnkᴐ abᴐ dam a, no wura no dze ᴐmmbᴐᴐ dam bi

If the horse is mad the owner is not

Newlove Annan 4th

In all, six (6) compositions were realised; one from the first generation, three for the second generation, one for the third generation, and one for the fourth generation. The reason as to why one piece was realised in the first generation will be attributed to the fact that art music compositions had just been begun and the concentration was on what had been received from the missionaries, which was more of hymn writing. The idea to incorporate


or blend traditional elements had not taken roots then, and that accounts for that. Even though exploration of indigenous elements in composing had taken roots, dominant composers of the third generation, had less interest in using proverbs which perhaps might be that they had not been nurtured from the traditional roots.

In each of the compositions the composers’ brief background is provided followed by the translation of the texts either from Akan/Ewe to English. The proverbs identified in the piece are then indicated followed with a brief musical analysis, an analysis of the texts and the proverbs.

1. Maalee, Maalee, Dii Wotsie (I Will Bath, I Will Bath, Leaves You In Dirt) Emmanuel Kwasi AggorThis was written by Emmanuel Kwasi Aggor (1908-1999). Born in Peki Avetile on November 22, 1908, Emmanuel Kwasi Aggor, known popularly as Catechist Aggor, trained as a teacher in the Akropong Teacher Training College from 1927 to 1930 where he was also taught by the legendary Dr. Ephraim Amu. Emmanuel Aggor has over fifty (50) choral works to his credit, some of which used to be constantly aired on Radio Ghana. His works include choruses for Soprano, Alto, Tenor, Bass, and solo voices. Generally, his compositions are not contrapuntal. He hardly uses a harmonic vocabulary beyond the chord of the 7th (Agordoh, 2011). One of his extended solo works is Maalee, Maalee, Dii Wotsiɛ. This is discussed here in relation to the use of proverbs which dilate on the popular adage that procrastination is the thief of time.

The proverb, Maalee, maalee, ɗii Wotsiɛ (I will bath, I will bath, leaves you in dirt), as represented in the title of the song stands out as the main theme – procrastination is the thief of time – around which the composer builds his story line. The haunt of one’s own inaction becomes an unbearable burden if care is not taken. This is the lesson the composer draws on in the proverb “procrastination is the thief of time” as stated earlier. As clearly spelt out in the song text in the appendix No. 1, the composer begins to tell his story about the velvet bean seed, a very dangerous plant that itches strongly when it gets in contact with the body when dried. This, he noticed


right from the onset when it germinated at his backyard. He had planned to uproot it since but kept postponing till it got fully grown and dried up to the extent that it became a no-go area in his own backyard.

The story continued with that allusion; he kept postponing attending to a friend’s call for him to come and listen to a matter that concerned himself. The next thing he heard was the death of that friend. That eventually set him in a serious state of confusion and imbalance and continued to be a burden that has arisen as a result of his own inaction of procrastination.

The moral lesson here is that procrastination has serious consequence on our future hence there is the need for us to perform our tasks immediately without delays.

2. Nunya Adidoe (Knowledge is the Baobab)Nunya Adidoe (Knowledge is the Baobab) is a composition by Walter Kɔmla Blege. He hails from Kpedze in the Volta Region of Ghana and was born on December 22, 1936. He holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in History (London), Diploma in Education and M.Ed. in Curriculum from the University of Toronto, Canada. In the Evangelical Presbyterian Church at Ho, he played a very significant role in indigenizing Ewe music for Christian liturgy. Blege moved away from composing in the style of his teacher, Nayo, and adopted his own originality in composing by employing traditional musical elements including dance forms, themes, performance, singing style and idioms. Agordoh (2011) revealed that it was during the tenure of office of the late Rev. Noah Dzobo as Moderator of the Evangelical Presbyterian Church (1981-1990) “that he commissioned Blege to write several works including the opera, Kristo, a Drum Prelude as introit and setting, “The Lord’s Prayer” to music in traditional gahu dance style.

Nunya Adidoe, is one of the songs composed by Walter Kɔmla Blege who made use of a single proverb in the song. It is a very simple and short song with this proverb which


runs through and ending up as the only text of the song – Nunya adidoe, asi me tunɛo. The song encourages the spirit of collaboration and likens it to the fact that knowledge is like the baobab tree which is so huge, a state in which the arm’s length cannot go round it. For steady and speedy progress, the spirit of partnership is key. According to hunker.com, the:

“Baobab (Adansonia digitata) is a tree consisting of nine species native to the dry, hot savannas of Australia, Africa and the island of Madagascar. The tree grows 40 to 75 feet tall and has a trunk measuring 35 to 60 feet in diameter”. (Stevenson 2010:130).

Indications are clear from the above that the arm’s length cannot go round this tree and so is life performance where we need one another to cooperate in order to accomplish tasks. The proverb admonishes us that knowledge is never and can never be embedded in one person’s mind. The fact is that one person does not know it all. It is in the spirit of sharing ideas and collaborative work that progress abounds in an atmosphere of stress, no matter the level of one’s expertise, and experience.

3. Kɔkɔsakyi (Vulture) Augustine Adu SafoKᴐkᴐsakyi was composed in 1969 by Augustine Adu Safo. He was born in 1934 and died in 1988. He attended the Akropong Presbyterian Training College now the Akropong Presbyterian College of Education at Akropong from 1952 to 1955, and to the then Specialist College at Winneba and obtained the Licentiate Royal School of Music Certificate in 1966. He taught at the Erstwhile National Academy of Music now the Department of Music Education of the University of Education, and held many positions including the head of the theory unit, conductor of the institutional choir. He also taught at the Musama School of Music and served as the director from 1985 until his death in 1988. He has several choral works prominent of which are Kᴐkᴐsakyi, Iesu Aseda and News.


Adu Safo explores two proverbs in Kᴐkᴐsakyi

Mmᴐtohᴐ yɛ musu o Procrastination is dangerous.

Wofiri ntɛm bore nsuo a na wani bere Mmᴐtohᴐ yɛ musuo.

If you set off in good time to swim you show seriousness.Procrastination is dangerous.

The piece talks about the vulture and its habitual postponement to build a house. It keeps postponing and thinks about building only when there are signs of rainfall. The idea comes to mind only when clouds are formed with thunderstorm, which leads to rainfall. The idea to build dissipates as soon as the gathered clouds, thunderstorms and rains are over.

The two proverbs conclude his preaching on the use of time, and advice that we must with all seriousness attack our goals and accomplish them once we conceive the idea to embark on a project. The more we postpone, the more we are unable to complete the task. The first proverb, procrastination is the thief of time, speaks on the fact that we should not keep postponing the accomplishment of an activity because we will end up not doing it. The second proverb indicates that the earlier we started, the better, and that brings seriousness in what we want to achieve, so we must immediately start and accomplish a task once we conceive the idea to do it.

4. Susu Ho Kyerɛ (Share with others) By M. K. AmissahSusu W’asɛm kyerɛ is a composition written by Michael K. Amissah. He was born in Aboso in the Western Region of Ghana. He started learning music at a tender age and sang as the soloist in Aboso Catholic church choir. He also joined a fife band at Tarkwa, and eventually became its leader. In 1958, Amissah enrolled at the Kumasi College of Technology to study Music, which led to the award of Associated Board of the Royal School of Music (ABRSM) and Licentiate Diploma London Royal School of Music (LRSM). He went for further


studies in Rome leading to the award of a Bachelor’s degree in Sacred Music, and Master of Arts Degree in Music (Agordoh, 2005). In the Western Region, he paired with Entsuah Mensah16 and formed several Vocal Bands which compelled him to write so many social songs for “wake keeping”. One of such songs is Susu ho kyerɛ.

Susu ho kyerɛ speaks to colleagues who are selfish or secretive, and will never divulge any issue of concern, whether good or bad, to colleagues for direction, advice or support. Such colleagues usually keep issues to themselves until the inevitable occurs. The proverb Itsir kor mpam means that one head does not go into counselling. In this piece Amissah encourages all to share issues that bother them with a colleague or two because when two heads brainstorm on an issue they arrive at a faster and prudent decision. It is only when you have put your problems before other people that you can receive suggestions on how best to solve them. So we are encouraged to share our worries.

5. Megati Nusi Kɔwu wo la Yome o (Be Content with what you have) George Worlasi Kwasi Dor

Megati Nusi Kᴐwu wo la Yome o (Be Content With What You Have) is a choral piece composed by George Worlasi Kwasi Dor. He was born in Alavanyo Wudidi in the Volta Region of Ghana on the 11th of July, 1954. He took advantage of his favourable musical environment to build his career. He pursued his tertiary education at the University of Ghana up to the Masters level before proceeding to the USA for his PhD in Music. The song, Megati Nusi Kɔwu wo la Yome o, was composed in May, 1977. The song presents six (6) proverbial expressions, all of which address the stated theme “one needs to be content with what one has”. The proverbs are:

16 A renowned composer and organist of the Methodist Church, an exponent of African rhythms and the use of chromatic notes, whose compositions are difficult to perform.


1 Megati nusi kɔwuwo la ƒe yoo me oo

Do not pursue heights beyond you

2. Ahlɔe medoa nyifɔk-pa o ɗe

The antelope does not wear the shoe of a cow

3. Devi mekaa nyaga o, akplegae wo kana

A child does not bite big words, it is big morsel of food he bites

4. Avu ɗu ƒu me ɗuna ga o, me ɗuna ga o

A dog does chew bones; it does not chew metal.

5. Devi gbana abɔbɔgo, megbana klogo o ɗee

The child breaks the shell of the snail and not the shell of the tortoises

6. Devi dzroa nu, medz-roa golo ƒ’azi o

A child curiously yearns for food and not for the ostrich egg

The entire text of the song is available in appendix No. 5.

The text of the song advises that, to eschew violence and social misfit characterised by envy, stealing and murder, among other societal unrests, we need to be content with what we have. As espoused in the text, the composer used proverbial expressions. First of all, in a general statement that one should not pursue heights that one cannot attain as in proverb 1. The composer proceeded with the antelope and the cow as in proverb 2 above. The antelope is a much smaller animal compared with the cow. There is no way the feet of the antelope can fit into the shoe of the huge legs of the cow. This clearly links up with the composer’s main theme that there is no need craving to achieve unattainable heights. There is the need for one to realise one’s own capabilities and live within those parameters.

Thirdly, the composer, using the child, draws attention to the fact that there is the need to be mindful of the choice of words. The wrongful use of utterances is much likely to land him and the society in unbearable trouble as against biting and chewing a big morsel of food. The text of the song continues to compare how easy it is for the dog to crack and chew a piece of hard bone but impossible to chew a metal. The bone from meat can easily be cracked and chewed by the dog. On the other hand metal is a substance which a dog can neither crack nor chew.


Similarly, the composer uses proverb 5 in the text, to compare the child’s ability to easily break the shell of the snail as against the simple impossibility to break that of the tortoises. Proverb 6 finally draws attention to the fact that the curiosity and yearn for food on the part of the child is not a crime, but venturing into seeking for the egg of an ostrich can be an unattainable request.

The song advises mankind to be content with both physical and spiritual possessions and to operate within their abilities so society will continue to be a peaceful place to live in. Similar proverbs within the Akan culture of Ghana states, “abɔfra bɔ nwa na ɔmmɔ akyekyedeɛ”, “abɔfra te fufuo a ɔte deɛ ɛbɛkɔ n’ano” and abofra hɛn abɛn na ᴐnnhɛn wodur (Fante).And such English proverb as, “do not bite more than you can chew”, all add to explaining the message which is built around the theme which admonishes one to be content with what one has.

6. Na Adɛn? (And Why?) Samuel K. Asare-BediakoNa Adɛn? (And why?) was composed by Samuel K. Asare-Bediako, a son to Mr. Christian Asare Bediako and Mrs Rose Asare-Bediako. He had his first music lessons from the parents from age 5 and started playing hymns at the age of 7. Asare-Bediako was greatly encouraged by his grandparents, Pastor J. K Amoah and Mrs. Mary Boatemaa Amoah. He received his first harmonium organ from the grandfather when he was just eight (8) years old and started composing before high school education. He later had his Diploma in Music Education at the National Academy of Music, Winneba in 1986, B.A (Music) at the University of Cape-Coast in 1997 and Diploma in Social Service at Toronto Medix School in 2006.

Asare Bediako explores four proverbs in the song Na adɛn? (And why?):


1 Tiri ko nkɔ egyina It takes two people to tango.

2 Dua koro gye mframa ebu

Isolated tree falls on the least thunder-storm.

3 Praee wɔ hɔ yi woyi baako a, na ebu woka bɔ mu a, emmu oo

The broom breaks easily as a single unit but not possible when they are put together.

4 Koroye ma nkun-im

Unity brings victory.

Together the four proverbs speak to unity. With this, Asare Bediako speaks to Ghanaians to be united since two or more people on a mission usually accomplish tasks successfully. The first proverb, it takes two people to tango, demonstrates this. The second proverb speaks to unity on a different dimension using trees in the forest and admonishes Ghanaians to be united and not stand apart as isolated trees, because the least thunderstorm can fell an isolated tree but a lot of trees in the forests stand firm even with heavy thunderstorm. He relates this to us as human beings that one person could easily be attacked by the enemy but two or more people can face an aggression from the foe. Similarly, the third proverb reiterates the theme of unity and warns us to be united like a number of broom sticks which have been put together, and can never be broken. This suggests that if we come together as a unified force we can stand any violence but if we fight individually we can be defeated. The composer employs the style of semantic parallelism where the implications of the four proverbs are the same.

Abridged musical analysis of selected piecesThe melodic organisation of the songs with the proverbs follow the speech contour because of the Akan and Ewe languages, which are tonal languages, and are presented as the spoken text. In rhythm, the durational values of the notes correspond to the durational values of the syllables in the text. It therefore aids in transmitting clearly the meaning of the songs. The


harmonies employed for these songs are varied. Since the songs are all African/Ghanaian, harmony of thirds and sixths are predominant, and are spiced with Western harmonic usages such as the shifting tonality and secondary seventh chords. The texture for the selected compositions is generally homophonic with few instances of monophonic and polyphonic textures. On dynamics, there were instances where the composers use melodic contours, text and harmony to depict dynamic levels they wish to achieve in their works.

Audience appraisal of proverbs as communicative toolOn interviews conducted among choral music performance audiences, indications were that the use of proverbs to spice the text in choral compositions presented them very natural and also manifested the African nature of the text. Performances looked real as if the text was spoken, and this confirms the orality of Ghanaian traditional discourse. The one or more proverb(s) in a composition summarise(s) the volume of song text that constructs the piece. The audiences also indicated that the message in the proverbs were well understood putting them in the context with which the composers used them. The feedback from audiences after a performance of choral compositions weaved with proverbs portrayed that choral composers who used the style of composing choral works with proverbs have gained wisdom, and are knowledgeable based on experiences or occurrences in our real life situations. They also indicated that choral compositions spiced with proverbs make the compositions “sweet”. Finally, audiences showed that the use of proverbs is an aesthetic means of strengthening speech in choral music.

ConclusionIt has been realised that in choral pieces the proverbs sum up the meaning embedded in the entire piece. This confirms Agyekum’s assertion that ɛbɛ twa asɛm tia (proverb curtails matters). In the first generation of choral music composers Aggor, in his Maalee, Maalee, dii wotsiɛ, explored only one proverb, yet a huge volume of texts surrounding it in his chain of story line hinge on the proverb. The story leading to the proverb made the meaning very clear.


In the second generation Adu Safo, explores two proverbs: mmɔtohɔ yɛ musuo and wofiri ntɛm boro nsuoa, na w’ani bere mmɔtohɔ yɛ mmusuo, which speak directly to the text. Blege uses only one proverb Nunya Adidoeasi me tuneo, which constitutes the entire song. Amissah explores two proverbs Susu w’asɛm kyerɛ and itsir kor mpam, as part of the text that constructs the entire piece. In all the selected pieces, one or two proverbs in the text summarise(s) the entire piece.

It is generally accepted that the use of proverbs in choral music enhances the meaning and presents choral music as a word of admonition. The pieces sought further to advising the audience to desist from procrastination or be content with what is due them. Audience indicated that they wish to have had a lot of songs which have proverbs in them, since the younger ones will learn the proverbs, their meanings, and usage in choral music as well as learning them as part of the rich cultural resources of Ghana.


ReferencesAdu-Safo, A. (1992). Kɔkɔsakyi (Vulture) Unpublished Manuscript.

Aggor, E. K. (1928). Malee, maalee, dii wotsiɛ (I Will Bath, I Will Bath, Leaves You in Dirt) Unpublished Manuscript.

Agordoh, A. A. (2011). The development of church music in Ghana. Sundel Services, Accra, Ghana.

Agyekum, K. (2005). An Akan oral artist-The use of proverbs in the lyrics of the Kwabena Konadu. Research Review NS 21. (1-17)

Amuah, J.A. (2012). The use of traditional music elements in contemporary choral music compositions: Perspectives form the selected works of GWK Dor, Nicodemus Kofi Badu and Newlove Annan. PhD Thesis, University of Ghana, Legon.

Amissah, M.K. (1982). Susu ho kyerɛ (Share with others) Unpublished Manuscript.

Asare Bediako, S. (1998). N’adɛn? (But Why?) Unpublished Manuscript.

Bauman, R, (1986). Story, performance, Event: Contextual studies of oral narrative. New York: Cambridge University Press.Blege, W.K. (1974). Nunya adidoe (Knowledge is The Baobab) Unpublished

Manuscript.

Clayton, J. J. (1996). The heath introduction of fiction. Lexington: D.C Heath and Company Publishers.

Dor, G.W.K (1977). Megati nusi kowu wo la yome (Be content with what you have).

Dor, G.W.K (2005). Uses of indigenous music genres in Ghanaian choral art music: Perspectives from the works of Amu, Blege, and Dor. Journal of Ethnomusicology 49, (3).

Finnegan, R. (2012). Oral Poetry: Its nature, significance and social context. Bloomington:Indiana University Press.

Gbolonyo, J. S. K (2009). Indigenous knowledge and cultural values in Ewe musical practice: Their traditional roles and place in modern society Unpublished PhD Thesis, University of Pittsburgh, USA.


Nketia, J.H.K. (1978) Amoma. Accra: Ghana Publishing Corporation.

Owusu, Brempong, (2014). Proverbs and proverbial sayings in highlife songs. Journal of Performing Arts. 4 (147-156).

Randel, M (2004) The new Harvard dictionary of music. Cambridge, MA. Belknap Press of Harvard University.

Scudder, S. F. (1980). [http://www.managementstudyguide.com/communication- theory. html retrieved 31/10/17.

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Terpenning, S. T. S. (2017). Choral music, hybridity, and postcolonial consciousness in Ghana. PhD Dissertation. University of Colorado. Boulder.

Yankah, K. (1989). ‘Proverbs: the aesthetics of traditional communication’. Research in African Literatures2. (2): (325-347). Austin: University of Texas USA.


AppendicesSong Texts of Selected Pieces

1. Malee, Maalee, Ɗii Wotsiɛ (I Will Bath, I Will Bath, Leaves You In Dirt)

Ewe Text English Translation ProverbMalee, maalee, ɗii wotsiɛ I will bath, I will bath, leaves you in dirt ProverbMalee, maalee, ɗii wonɔ I will bath, I will bath, leaves you in dirt ProverbNe metso ɗe ŋu kaba wɔe ne enyo

It would have been good if I had taken off early to do it

Etsi megbe xoxo It’s already late.

Etsi megbe hezu fu nam mele kpɛkpɛ

It’s late and has become a burden am suffering

Awlɔka ɗe miɛ ɗe boto A certain velvet bean seed sprouted / geminated at the backyard

Nye ŋtɔŋtɔ wo boto My own backyard

Mekpɔe kaba, wɔ ɗoɗo ɗe eŋu

I saw it early and had planned to act

Mewɔ ɗoɗo be mahoe I planned to uproot it

Mekpɔe kaba, wɔ ɗoɗo ɗe eŋu

I saw it early and had planned to act

Mewɔ ɗoɗo be mahoe, mahoe

I planned I will uproot it, I will uproot it

Aƒee woava azu tsetsela Before it develops its seed

Ava zu ƒuƒula Before it gets dried

Mewɔ ɗoɗoa pɛ, edziwɔwɔ I had really done the plan, but the im-plementation

Etsɔ maahoe, etsɔ maahoe, I will uproot it tomorrow, I will uproot it tomorrow

Eya dzi ko mele kaka Is all I have been on always

Dutanya ɗe va hem yi duɗeƒe.

A call came that summoned me to a distant place

Kasia magbɔi eƒu xoxo Before I returned, it had already dried up

’Tadodo ɗe teƒ’aa megalio No possibility of getting near there.

Kasia magbɔi eƒu xoxo Before I returned, it had already dried up


’Tadodo ɗe teƒ’aa megalio No possibility of getting near there.

Ne metso ɗe ɗoɗoa dzi kaba ne mehoe (x2)

I would have uprooted it if I had taken the planned action earlier (x2)

Etsi megbe xoxo It’s already late

Etsi megbe, hezu fu nam mele kpekpe

It’s late and has become a burden am suffering

Maalee, maalee ɗii wonɔɔ

I will bath, I will bath, keeps one in dirt Proverb

Chorus: Tso ɗe ‘dzi egbe, tso ɗe ‘dzi ege, tso, ne nawɔ ɗoɗoa dzi

Chorus: Rise up today, rise up today, rise up and take action as planned.

Doɗodziwɔwɔ tsɔtsɔ da ɗe ŋgɔ

Postponement of plans (procrastina-tion)

Tsi wo tsianyi mawɔmawɔ Leaves the plan undone

Tso ɗe ‘dzi egbe, tso ɗe ‘dzi egbe, tso, ne nawɔ ɗoɗoa dzi

Rise up today, rise up today, rise up and take action as planned.

Doɗodziwɔwɔ tsɔtsɔ da ɗe ŋgɔ

Postponement of plans

Dee wo tsianyi mawɔmawɔ Leaves the plan undone

Solo: Tso ɗe ‘dzi egbe, tso ɗe ɗoɗoa dzi

Solo: Rise up today, rise up to the task today

Chorus: Etsɔ menye tɔwo oo

Chorus: You don’t have a hold on tomorrow.

Solo: Egbe tuwo, wɔ egbe ŋudɔ

Solo: Today is at your disposal use today.



Solo: Mega susu be etsɔ naa nyowu oo

Solo: Do not think tomorrow will be better



Solo: Egbe tuwo, tso ɗe ɗoɗoa ŋu

Solo: Today is at your disposal, rise up to the task


Chorus: You don’t have a hold on tomorrow

Maalee, maalee, ɗii wonɔɔ I will bath, I will bath, keeps you in dirt Proverb


Solo: Xɔnye ɗe dɔ ame ɗoɗam be mava se nye ŋutɔ wo nya ɗe ɗa

A friend sent word inviting me for a discussion in my own interest.

Mexɔ nyaa pɛ, wɔ ɗoɗo ɗe eŋu

I received the word alright, and planned for it

Mewɔ ɗoɗo be maa yi I planned that I will go

Mexɔ dua pɛ, wɔ ɗoɗo ɗe eŋu I received the message alright, and planned for it

Mewɔ ɗoɗo be mayi, mayi, I planned that I will go, I will go

Aƒee woava ayi afiɗe, ava yi duɗe ƒe

Before he goes somewhere, or travels

Mewɔ ɗoɗoa pɛ, edziwɔwɔ I had planned, alright, the implemen-tation

Etsɔ maayi, etsɔ maa yi I will go tomorrow, I will go tomorrow

Eya dzi ko mele kaka This is what I kept telling myself

Kasia masei, xɔnyea megali o

Suddenly, the next I heard; the friend is no more

Kasia masei, xɔnyea megali o

Before I heard, that friend is no more

Ne me tso kaba yi yee ne metuii

If only I arose and attended to the call, I would have met him.

Ne me tso kaba yi yee ne metuii

If only I arose and attended to the call, I would have met him.

Etsi megbe xoxo It’s already late

Etsi megbe hezu agba nam mele tsɔtsɔ

It’s too late now and has become a bur-den am carrying

Maalee, maalee, ɗii wonɔɔ I will bath, I will bath, keeps you in dirt ProverbChorus: Tso ɗe ‘dzi egbe, tso ɗe ‘dzi egbe, tso, ne nawɔ ɗoɗoa dzi

Chorus: Rise up today, rise up today, rise up and take action as planned.

Doɗodziwɔwɔtsɔtsɔdaɗeŋgɔ Postponement of plans (procrastina-tion)


Tso ɗe ‘dzi egbe, tso ɗe ‘dzi egbe, tso, ne nawɔ ɗoɗoa dzi

Rise up today, rise up today, rise up and take action as planned.

Doɗodziwɔwɔtsɔtsɔdaɗeŋgɔ Postponement of plans



Solo: Tso ɗe ‘dzi egbe, tso ɗe ɗoɗoa dzi

Solo: Rise up today, rise up to the task today



Solo: Egbe tuwo, wɔ egbe ŋudɔ

Solo: Today is at your disposal use today.



Solo: Mega susu be etsɔ naa nyowu oo

Solo: Do not think tomorrow will be better



Solo: Egbe tuwo, tso ɗe ɗoɗoa ŋu

Solo: Today is at your disposal, rise up to the task


Chorus: You don’t have a hold on tomorrow

Maalee, maalee, ɗii wonɔɔ I will bath, I will bath, leaves you in dirt Proverb

2. Nunya Adidoe (Knowledge is the Baobab)

Ewe Text English Translation ProverbNunya adidoe, Knowledge is the baobab,

ProverbAsi me tunɛ o The arms’ length cannot go round it

Nunya adidoe, Knowledge is the baobab,





ProverbAsi me tunɛ o. The arms’ length cannot go round it

Tunɛ o, tunɛ o Cannot go round it, cannot go round it


3. Kᴐkᴐsakyi Vulture

Twi English Translation ProverbsKᴐkᴐsakyi Kᴐkᴐsakyi mmᴐtohᴐ yἑ musuo oKᴐkᴐsakyi Kᴐkᴐsakyi mmᴐtohᴐ yἑ musuoWofirin ntἑm boro nsuo a, na wani bere mmᴐtohᴐ yἑ musuo.Kᴐkᴐsakyi, Ɔkyena mesi me dan mesi me dan mesi me dan mesiKᴐkᴐsakyi, Ɔkyena mesi me dan mesi me dan mesi me dan mesiKᴐkᴐsakyi mesi mesi mesi mesi mesi mesiKᴐkᴐsakyi Ɔkyena mesi me dan o Ɔntee da oEwie mu yἑ kusu kusu kusu Ɔkyena mesi me danOsuo muna tuntun tum Ɔkyena mesi me danƆpraanaa bᴐ mu krudu kruduƆkyena mesi me danOsuo te gu kitikitikiti, Ɔkyena mesi me dan oNea ehia ne sἑ ewie mu abaeƆbᴐ n’ataban mu papa papaOtu ne nan mmaako, mmaakoƆbᴐ n’ataban mu papa papaƆno na ᴐrekᴐ no ne were afiKᴐksakyi e mmᴐtohᴐ yἑ musuoKᴐksakyi e mmᴐtohᴐ yἑ musu oKƆKƆSAKYI!!!

Vulture, vulture, procrastina-tion is the thief of timeVulture, vulture, procrastina-tion is the thief of timeIf you set off in good time to swim you show seriousness, procrastination is the thief of timeVulture, I will build my house tomorrow,I will build, I will buildVulture, I will build my house tomorrow, I will build, I will buildVulture, I will build, I will build, I will buildVulture, I will build my house tomorrow, it is lyingThe weather is very cloudy I will build my house tomorrowThe rain is about to fall I will build my house tomorrowThe thunder strikes heavily,I will build my house tomorrowIt rains cats and dogs, I will build my house tomorrowAll that it requires is the weath-er to be clear,It swings the wingsIt takes majestic steps,It swings the wingsIt has left, it has forgotten.Vulture, procrastination is the thief of timeVulture, procrastination is the thief of timeVULTURE!!!

Proverb 1Proverb 2


4. Susu ho kyerɛShare with others

Fante English Translation ProverbSusu o, Susu W’asɛm kyerɛ oSusu ho susu ho susu ho kyerɛ

Share, share your worries Share, share, share to others

Susu o, Susu W’asɛm kyerɛ o,Kyerɛ o

Share, share your worriesShare

Itsir kor mpam o One head (mind) does make not a de-cision

Proverb

Adwen ntoatoa o, ntsi susu o Minds are put together, so share

Susu W’asɛm Kyerɛ o Share your worries

5 .Megati Nusi Kɔwuwo La Ƒe Yoo Me Oo (Do Not Pursue Heights Beyond You)

Ewe Text English Translation ProverbMegati nusi kɔwuwo la ƒe yoo me oo

Do not pursue heights beyond you Proverb 1

Megati nusi kɔwu wo la ƒe yoo me oo


Nusiawɔwɔ mee nuvɔɗisusu dzea egɔme tsona

It is through this that evil thoughts set off

Heɗoa ta ŋuʋaʋa, fififi, amewuwu kple bubuawo gbɔ

Leading to envy, stealing, murder, and the rest

Megati nusi kɔwuwo la ƒe yoo me oo


Esia tae lododo aɗewo, woli tso blema, blema ke

This is why some proverbs have lived for / been there from time immemorial

Nyateƒe lododo aɗewo woli tso blema blema ke

It’s true, some proverbs have lived from time immemorial

Blema ke, (x 6) Time immemorial, (x 6)

Bena woanye nuxlɔamenya So to serve as words of advice

Na dzidzimevio, na dzidzi-mevio, na dzidzimevio

For generations to come, for genera-tions to come, for generations

Ahlɔe medoa nyifɔkpa o ɗe

The antelope does not wear the shoes of a cow

Proverb 2


Megati nusi kɔwu wola ƒe yome o


Devi mekaa nyaga o, akplegae wo kana

A child does not bite big words, it is big morsel of food he bites

Proverb 3



Avu ɗu ƒu me ɗuna ga o, me ɗuna ga o

A dog does chew bones; it does not chew metal, it does not chew metal

Proverb 4


Do not pursue heights above you

Devi gbana abɔbɔgo, megbana klogo o ɗee

The child breaks the shell of the snail and not the shell of the tortoises

Proverb 5

Megati nusi kɔwu wo la ƒe yome o


Devi dzroa nu, medzroa golo ƒ’azi o

A child curiously yearns for food and not for the ostrich egg

Proverb 6

Megati nusi kɔwu wo la ƒe yome o


Nusiawɔwɔ mee nuvɔɗisusu dzea egɔme tsona

It is through this that evil thoughts set off

Heɗoa ta ŋuʋaʋa, fififi, amewuwu kple bubuawo gbɔ

Leading to envy, stealing, murder, and the rest

Megati nusi kɔwuwo la wo yoo me oo


Ne xexeame, ne xexeame nefa bɔkɔɔ

So the world, so the world be peaceful

Ne mikata mianɔ eme. So we all leave in.


6. Na adɛn? And why?Twi English Translation ProverbsGhana adehyeman mma eNa adɛn? Na adɛn? Na adɛn?

Ghana! A royal nationalsWhy? Why? Why?

Twe ma mentwe ne mansotwe ne ntɔkwa dodo yi firi he ni?

Where from these struggles, countless wars and arbitrations?

ɔtan hunu yi ne ntetemu mu yi firi he ni?Ntetemu ne animtiabuo yi firi he ni?Adɛn na wonmmu wo nua mfa no nyɛ hwee yi?

Where from these divisions, sheer envy and hatred,Where from these divisions and disrespectfulness?Why don’t you recognize and accord the least respect to your brother/sister?

Aflao kosi Elubo, Cape Coast kosi Bawku Ghana kropɛ na ɛwɔ hɔ

Aflao to Elubo, Cape Coast to Bawku, are all in the same Ghana.

Nkranni sɔre a ɔse Ga nyo totro ogyimi

The Ga chests out and declares I am a true Ga

Nzemani sɔre a ɔse mele Nzema li ikwale

The Nzema gets up and declares I am a perfect Nzema

Ewe ni ka sɛ Eweto menye The Ewe says I am an Ewe

Sefwi ni ka sɛ menli Sefwi ni paa

The Sefwi says I am a true Sefwi,

Grunshini sɔre a, ɔse amo ye ka sem paa

The Grunshi declares I am a real Gurunshi

Angloni so ka sɛ Anglovi vava yeme nyɛ

The Anglo also says I am true Anglo

Kanjagani ka sɛ mekabula paa

The Kanjagani says I am a real Kanjagani

Asanteni de ne nsa si ne boAka sɛ meyɛ Asanteni ba kan!!

The Asante hits his chest and says I am a true Asante.

Enna ɛyɛ dɛn? And so what?


Ghanani biara yɛ nipa sɛ wo araɔno so mogya wɔ ne mu bio oEnti bu no na di no ni oDɔ no se w oara wo ho

Every Ghanaian is as human as you are.Blood equally flows in him.So accord him the necessary respect and love him as yourself

Kae hu sɛTiri ko nkɔ egyina,Dua koro gye mframaa, ebuPraeɛ wɔ hɔyi wo yi baakoa na ebuWoka bɔ mua, emmu oo,Koro yɛ ma nkunim

Remember that:It takes two people to tango;Isolated tree falls on the least thunderstorm.The broom breaks easily as a single unit but not possible when they are put together.Unity brings victory.

Proverb 1Proverb 2Proverb 3Proverb 4

Nea wofiri biara kasa ko a woka biaraEnyɛ eno na ehia.ɔman Ghana mpntu na ehia

Whereever you hail from, the kind of language you speak are not necessary.The development of the nation Ghana is the most important issue.

Yɛmfa dɔ mpagya Ghana oGhanani biara yɛ nipa sɛ wo araɔno so mogya wɔ ne mu bi ooEnti bu no na di no ni oDɔ no sɛ wo ara wo ho

Let’s together with love, lift the image of Ghana.Every Ghanaian is human as you are.Blood equally flows in him.So accord him the necessary respect and love him as yourself.



Towards a sociolinguistic analysis of the current relevance of androcentric proverbs in Peninsular

Spanish

Benedicta Adokarley LomoteyLecturer

Department of Modern LanguagesUniversity of Ghana, Legon, Ghana

Email: [email protected]

Submitted: May 2, 2018 / Accepted: February 18, 2019 / Published: October 4, 2019

Abstract

Gender-related Spanish proverbs are often reflections of what Swim, Aikin, Hall and Hunter (1995) identify as Old-Fashioned Sexism which make these proverbs appear outdated. Using questionnaires

designed based on both the Modern Sexism and Old-Fashioned Sexism theories of Swim et al (1995), the author investigates the current relevance of some gender-related proverbs. The study reveals that overtly sexist proverbs are uncommon in modern times. However, androcentricism and sexism are still evident in some contemporary Spanish proverbs because some old-fashioned overtly sexist proverbs have refashioned themselves into proverbs that appear covertly benevolent to women, concealing the ‘traditional’ and bluntly sexist ones.

Keywords: proverbs, feminist linguistics, modern sexism scale, old-fashioned sexism scale, linguistic androcentricism


IntroductionThe origin of paremiology is often traced back to the 16th century with the publication of Erasmus of Rotterdam’s collection of proverbs in 1515. Recently, proverbs have occupied a central focus in sociolinguistic research due to their popularity, and their traditional and pragmatic values. They are universal in nature as they can be found in all societies around the world. Interestingly, despite the diversity in languages and cultures, certain phenomena, which appear to be inherent in humans irrespective of social and cultural differences, can be identified from a cross-cultural analysis of some proverbs. One such aspect of social values and ideologies, which is constantly found in many proverbs, are issues concerning gender relations.

The Spanish language in particular, provides an immense source for analysis of proverbs in general and many of them reflect gender power relations. Indeed, Calero Fernandez (1999, p. 132) investigates 10,884 proverbs and identifies 85 foibles of women and only 17 innate qualities. On his part, Tirado Zarco (1987 ) also categorises 5.56 % positive proverbs, 10% neutral ones and 76.79% negative ones about women.

Members of a given linguistic community often identify proverbs in their language as part of their linguistic heritage. Proverbial sayings are therefore passed on from generation to generation. Although this is generally done orally through natural speech with parents, other relatives and friends, speakers also learn them through Internet usage, the media and in educational institutions. Also, Taylor notes that people “buy and read collections of proverbs to awaken and enlarge reflections on the world and the nature of man, to suggest subjects for conversation, or to provide themselves with comment [sic] appropriate to situations in daily life” (Taylor, 1996, p. 45). Subsequently, proverbs are excellent vehicles for the transmission of a society’s values, good and bad.

As works by Calero Fernandez (1999), Martinez Garrido (2001), and Bosch, Victoria and Alzamora (2006) show, a significant amount of research on Spanish proverbs exist. However, not much attention has been given to their current relevance. Subsequently, given the adverse effects of hierarchical gender relations on a society’s progress and development17, this paper sought to investigate the current relevance or otherwise of gender related Spanish 17 The United Nations Organization at the IV World Conference in 1995 recognized that violence against women is an obstacle to achieving the objectives of equality, development and peace and violates and undermines the enjoyment of human rights and fundamental freedoms (BOE, 2004).


proverbs, which promote male dominance and female subordination. In the next section, we will explain the method used including the materials and procedure, analytical framework, and participants. The findings will then be discussed in the following section and a conclusion will be made in the final section.

MethodIt was necessary to employ a multifaceted approach in the collection and the analyses of data because of the multidimensional nature (social, psychological and linguistic) of the problem under study. With insight from feminist linguistic theory and the Modern and Old-Fashioned Sexism theories (Swim, Aikin, Hall, & Hunter, 1995), the study analysed the gender ideologies inherent in Spanish proverbs. Through the lenses of Lakoff and Johnson’s (1980) theory of metaphor, it also examined how these gender ideologies enact and reinforce gender bias and violence. Finally, the author examined participants’ familiarity with the proverbs under study through the administration of questionnaires.

Materials and procedureIn the analysis of the gender ideologies inherent in Spanish proverbs, sample proverbs were culled from existing literature by authors such as Calero Fernandez (1999), Martinez Garrido (2001), Bosch, Victoria, and Alzamora (2006), Mestre Chust (2007), DonAabangens (2010), and Fernandez Poncela (2012). Due to the substantial numbers of gender related proverbs, these proverb examples were carefully selected and categorised within the framework of the Old-Fashioned Sexism Scale (Swim et al., 1995) with the aim of obtaining illustrations of the different ideologies inherent in the wide variety of proverbs. The categorisation was done by taking into account proverbs which reflect ideologies of old-fashioned sexism; i.e. stereotypical conceptions of gender and open discrimination.

In order to determine their currency or obsolescence, Internet searches were carried out on the selected proverbs on online corpora. While it was complex and difficult to find these proverbs in the corpora used, certain varieties such as the following were successfully identified on the website of the Centro Virtual de Cervantes (Instituto Cervantes, 2000) and the Corpus del Español (Davies, 2002).


• Mujer en casa y con la pata quebrada [the woman in the house and with a broken leg].18

• La Mujer y el vino sacan al hombre de tino [women and wine prevent men from reasoning].

• La Mujer y el vino hacen del hombre un pollino [women and wine turn men into idiots].

An annotation indicated the second proverb advises one to ‘avoid excesses of drinking and lust’ and it was described as ‘hardly used’. The third one was explained as ‘teaches that these three things, if one submits himself to them with passion, are causes of dangerous results’ (Instituto Cervantes, 2000).

The author was further interested in investigating the rate of usage through questionnaires that contained both closed-ended and open-ended questions. While the former provided quantitative data, the latter offered qualitative information that gave further insights on gender ideologies in peninsular Spanish19 proverbs.

Analytical frameworkSwim et al. (1995) developed the Modern Sexism Scale (henceforth MSS) to measure covert prejudice against women and the Old-Fashioned Sexism Scale (henceforth OFSS) to measure traditional sexist beliefs about women. The latter (Old-Fashioned Sexism) is characterized by endorsement of traditional gender roles, differential treatment of women and men, and stereotypes about lesser female competence. As works by Martinez Garrido (2001) and Fernandez Poncela (2010) show, these attitudes and beliefs which are examples of overt sexism play a significant role in gender discrimination and gender violence.

While both types of sexism are built on prejudicial beliefs that promote discriminatory behaviour, they are differentiated by the fact that Modern Sexism is covert; probably due to current social awareness and criticism of gender discrimination. Modern sexists would thus tend to deny gender discrimination and show antagonism towards women’s demands (see Swim et al., 1995). On the other hand, Old-Fashioned Sexism is an overt type of sexism that explicitly endorses negative attitudes towards women.

18 Meaning women should be kept at home [broken feet]19 The standard form of Spanish spoken in the Iberian Peninsula.


For the present purpose of analysing androcentrism20 in Spanish proverbs and its influence on the thoughts and behaviour of speakers, the Modern Sexism theory was relevant for the design of the questionnaire; specifically, in the formulation of open ended questions. Additionally, the Old-Fashioned Sexism theory was an appropriate analytical framework for the categorisation of proverbs because the ideologies endorsed by these discourses are mostly reproductions of traditional and conservative beliefs about women and men.

ParticipantsConvenience sampling was used in the selection of participants. This sampling procedure was used because the study is an exploratory research that aims at obtaining a gross preliminary estimation of the truth. Nonetheless, one basic criterion was applied. Native Spaniards or individuals who had a good knowledge of the Spanish language were interviewed. Additionally, non-Spaniards who had lived in Spain for several consecutive years (up to 10 years) were included in the study. These participants were considered appropriate for the collection of data utilized for the study as they were individuals who had reasonable awareness of their sociocultural and linguistic environment. In all, 124 participants were interviewed. The following table presents their demographic information.

Table 1: Demographic profile of sample respondents

DEMOGRAPHIC PROFILE

VARIABLE NUMBER PERCENTAGE

Sex Male 28 22.6 %

Female 95 76.6 %

Unspecified 1 0.8 %

Age 18-30 50 40.3 %

31- 40 37 29.8 %

41-50 13 10.5 %

51-60 15 12.1 %

61-70 8 6.5 %

70 + 1 0.8 %

20 The dominance of masculine interests or a masculine point of view.


Nationality Spanish 72 58.1 %

South American 25 20.2 %

North American 7 5.6 %

African 13 10.5 %

Other European coun-tries

4 3.2 %

Asia 1 0.8 %

Unspecified 2 1.6 %

Level of education None 0 0 %

Primary Education 3 2.4 %

Secondary Education 15 12.1 %

University Education 95 76.6 %

Professional Training 10 8.1 %

FindingsIn order to explore the relevance of androcentric proverbs in modern times thirteen sample proverbs were selected. Before reviewing the results of the study it is worth emphasizing that the data are, strictly speaking, only valid for the chosen group of proverb samples analysed.

As mentioned above, each proverb represented an ideology. Participants were then asked to indicate their level of familiarity with the proverbs by choosing either a) ‘conocido’ if the proverb was familiar, b) ‘desconocido’ if it was not familiar or c) ‘no lo conozco, sin embargo, creo que transmite una percepción corriente’ if the respondent thought the perception inherent in the proverb was familiar. Participants were informed that they could only choose one answer to each question. The thirteen proverbs selected and participants’ responses are presented in table 2.


Table 2: Modern relevance of sample misogynous proverbs

Proverb Known Un-known

I do not know it, however, I think it transmits a current perception.

1. La mujer en casa y con la pata quebra-da [The woman in the house and with a broken leg].

35.5 % 45.2 % 19.4 %

2. Los hombres machos no hablan, pelean [Real men don’t talk. They fight].

25.8 % 44.4 % 29.8 %

3. La mujer y el vino sacan al hombre de tino [Women and wine prevent men from reasoning].

28.2 % 46 % 25.8 %

4. El hombre debe ganarlo y la mujer ad-ministrarlo [Men are the breadwinners and women are the homemakers].

34.7 % 36.3 % 29 %

5. El que tiene mujer bella, le pone tranca a la puerta [He who has a beautiful wife must lock his door with a crossbar].

21.1 % 47.2 % 31.7 %

6. La mujer habladora, duelo tiene donde mora [Talkative women provoke fights wherever they go].

9.7 % 62.9 % 27.4 %

7. A un hombre rico no le repares si es feo o bonito [So long as a man is rich, it doesn’t matter whether he is handsome or ugly].

25.8 % 39.5 % 34.7 %

8. A la mujer brava, soga larga [The hot-headed woman deserves to be hanged].

12.9 % 62.1 % 25 %

9. El amor entra por la cocina [Love en-ters through the kitchen].

59.7 % 19.4 % 21 %

10. La mujer y el vidrio siempre están en peligro [Women and glass are always in danger]’.

12.1 % 58.9 % 29 %


11. Matrimonio de buena fortuna: siete varones y de hembras sólo una [A marriage that brings a good fortune has seven sons and only one daughter].

7.3 % 70.2 % 22.6 %

12. El hombre se casa cuando quiere y la mujer cuando puede [Men marry when they want but women marry when they can].

30.1 % 42.3 % 27.6 %

13. Al asno y a la mujer, a palos se han de vencer [Women and donkeys need to be conquered with lashes].

20.3 % 54.5 % 25.2 %

As can be observed from the table, participants generally showed little familiarity with the misogynous proverbs analyzed. The sample proverbs above are reflections of perceptions of women as evil/ untrustworthy (3, 6), animals (13), objects/ possessions (5), and lesser human beings (8, 11). These ideologies are echoes of Old-Fashioned Sexism which is characterized by endorsement of traditional gender roles, differential treatment of women and men, and stereotypes about lesser female competence. These overtly androcentric, hostile and sexist proverbs scored relatively low marks as the majority of participants indicated they were not familiar with them.

However, interestingly, the ‘women as homemakers’ category was the only category that scored a clearly high mark. While the majority of participants (59.7 %) said they were familiar with proverb 9 which falls within this category, quite a number (21 %) said it was a common stereotype, and a relatively low amount (19.4 %) said they were not familiar with it. It must be noted that while the analogy between women and animals, objects and evil are examples of overt sexism, the ‘women as homemakers’ category (e.g. proverbs 1, 4, and 9) is an example of covert or benevolent sexism.21 Consequently, it appeared that due to modernization and public censure of gender discrimination, misogyny and gender violence, speakers are more likely to demonstrate covert sexism while overt sexism is frowned upon.This is evidenced in the organic law 1/2004 of 28th December, for ‘Comprehensive Protection Measures against Gender Violence’ – which clearly states that 21 Glick & Fiske (1996) identify hostile Sexism and benevolent Sexism as two different but interrelated components of their Ambivalent Sexism Theory. The first (hostile sexism), refers to negative attitudes and intolerance towards women. The authors define the second (benevolent sexism) as ‘a set of interrelated attitudes toward women that are sexist in terms of viewing women stereotypically and in restricted roles but that are subjectively positive in feeling tone (for the perceiver)’ (Glick & Fiske, 1996, p. 491).


gender violence “is no longer an ‘invisible crime’, but produces a collective rejection and an obvious social alarm” (BOE, 2004, p. 42166).

The majority of participants were of the opinion that the perceptions demonstrated in these proverbs are outdated and are exaggerations since they do not reflect present Spanish sociocultural ideology. In conflict with this affirmation, however, the majority opined that gender stereotypes are still rampant in Spain and gender imbalance still exists against women. Of particular importance for this study was the affirmation by a participant (extract 6) that women still suffer gender discrimination and consequently, it is necessary to promote gender equality between women and men. As authors such as Philips (2003) and Fernandez Poncela (2010) show, this can be done by identifying linguistic androcentrism and misogynous ideologies in language with the aim of creating an awareness and promoting the use of gender fair language. The results on participants’ opinions about social gender discrimination are summarized in table 3 below:

Table 3: Results for questions on social gender discrimination

PREGUNTA [QUESTION] OPCIONES [OPTIONS] RESPUESTAS [ANSWERS]

Muchos de los valores que transmiten estos refranes siguen[Many of the values transmitted by these proverbs are:]

Vigentes[current] 39.2 %

Anticuados [outdated] 60.8 %

Muchos de estos refranes son:[Many of these proverbs are:]

Exageraciones ya que reflejan el contrario de la ideología sociocultural [exaggerations because they do not reflect Spanish sociocultural ideologies]

45.8 %

Precisos, ya que reflejan la manera de pensar de los miembros de la sociedad [precise, because they reflect the worldview of speakers]

37.5 %

No lo sé [I do not know] 16.7 %


¿Sigue habiendo ideas falsas o prejuicios hacia el varón o hacia la mujer? [Does society still have false ideas or preju-dice against men or women?]

Sí [yes] 91.7 %

No[no] 0 %

No lo sé [I do not know] 8.3 %

¿En caso afirmativo cual de los sexos sufre mas estos prejuicios?[If yes, which of the sexes suf-fers more discrimination?]

Varón [men] 3.3 %

Mujer [women] 96.7 %

¿Siguen existiendo actividades propias de cada sexo? [Does society still have expectations of traditional gender roles?]

Sí [yes] 78.3 %

No [no] 13.3%

No lo sé [I do not know] 8.3%

La mujer sigue recibiendo ac-tualmente un trato desigual. En consecuencia, es necesa-rio educar en nuevos valores de igualdad y corresponsab-ilidad en las relaciones entre varones y mujeres. [Discrim-ination against women still exists. Consequently, it is necessary to educate society about equality and joint re-sponsibility between women and men]

Estoy de acuerdo [I agree] 47.4%

Estoy completamente de acuerdo [I completely agree]

49.1 %

No estoy de acuerdo [I disagree]

3.4 %

Estoy completamente en desacuerdo [I completely disagree]

0%

The inclusion of an open comment section also provided the possibility for a qualitative analysis. Some participants believed such ideologies are rampant especially in the rural areas and that presently, gender discrimination has been mitigated:

Extract 1

Es importante remarcar que estos valores están sobre todo presentes en las sociedades rurales y más afianzados en los miembros de primeras generaciones (60 para adelante) [It’s important to note that these values are rampant especially in rural societies and amongst the earlier generations (60 onwards)]. (Male, 18-30, Spaniard, Spanish as a Foreign Language Lecturer)

Extract 2

La sociedad Española está cambiando, las personas jóvenes han recibido mucha más educación que sus progenitores y son menos


machistas, intentan llevar a su vida y su profesión la igualdad de derechos entre mujeres y hombres [the Spanish society is changing, the youth have received more education than their elders and are less chauvinist, they try to be gender fair both in their professional and personal affairs]. (Female, 61-70, Spaniard, Geology Lecturer)

However, the data on gender violence22 in Spain appears to challenge the argument that such androcentric perceptions are more rampant in the rural areas and among the aged. These negative descriptions of women which appear in proverbs are very much related to a social reality which cannot be overlooked, i.e. societal gender discrimination and gender violence. An examination of the statistics on deaths resulting from gender violence in Spain on the Statistics Portal of the Institute for Women and for Equal Opportunities of the government of Spain, confirms the misogynous substratum of systemic prejudices reflected in these linguistic realities.

Table 4: Statistics on deaths resulting from gender violence in Spain (According to Autonomous Community)

AUTONOMOUS REGIONS 2019 2018 2017 2016 2015 TOTAL

ANDALUCÍA 2 12 7 5 14 40

ARAGÓN 1 3 0 3 1 8

ASTURIAS 0 3 0 2 3 8

BALEARES 0 1 0 6 1 8

CANARIAS 1 2 4 3 3 13

CANTABRIA 1 0 0 0 1 2

CASTILLA Y LEÓN 1 2 0 6 2 11

CASTILLA - LA MANCHA 0 2 6 2 1 11

CATALUÑA 1 7 8 6 6 28

C. VALENCIANA 0 2 8 6 11 27

EXTREMADURA 0 0 2 1 1 4

GALICIA 0 3 2 4 8 17

MADRID 1 5 8 3 4 21

MURCIA 0 1 3 0 1 5

22 The organic law 1/2004 of 28th December, defines gender violence as “a violence that is directed at women (my emphasis) for the very fact of being women, because they are considered, by their aggressors, as lacking the minimum rights of freedom, respect and decision-making capacity” (BOE, 2004).


NAVARRA 0 2 1 0 0 3

PAÍS VASCO 0 2 2 1 3 8

LA RIOJA 0 0 0 0 0 0

CEUTA 0 0 0 0 0 0

MELILLA 0 0 0 1 0 1

Source: (Instituto de la Mujer y para la Igualdad de Oportunidades, 2019)

As observed in the above table, contrary to participants assertion that gender violence is more rampant in rural areas, Madrid, the capital city of Spain, had the fourth highest case of gender violence out of the total of 17 autonomous regions and two autonomous cities (Ceuta and Melilla) for the years 2015 to 2019. Although one might argue that these are social facts and not linguistic, it must be noted that the proverbs analysed function as a discursive strategy that sustains the power of the dominant group over the dominated group and by so doing, they reinforce gender stereotypes and ideologies and help to propagate gender discrimination and violence. As Crida Alvarez (2001, p. 109) notes, gender related proverbs in Spanish23 can be classified psycho-socially, and this classification demonstrates the sexist behaviours in the Spanish society.

The following observations made by some participants confirm that although androcentrism appears to have been mitigated in Spain, more work is still needed to attain true gender equality. Indeed, in the words of one participant “society has changed and improved a lot. But there is still a lot to be done” (Male, 18-30, Spaniard, Banker)

Extract 3

El hecho de que sigan vigentes refranes y frases basados en la discriminación hacia la mujer es señal de que aún queda mucho por hacer a nivel social: cambiar la mente de las personas es lo más difícil [The fact that there are still proverbs and phrases based on discrimination against women is a sign that there is still much to be done at a social level: changing the minds of people is the most difficult thing]. (Female, 41-50, Spaniard, Philologist)

23 As well as Greek, which he analyses in the same study.


Extract 4

Parte del problema es la religión (cualquiera) que eleva al hombre y subyuga a la mujer. Esto no ha cambiado. Cuando la mujer viola ciertas normas culturales como tener varios amantes, la sociedad en general continúa llamándola ‘prostituta,’ ‘mujerzuela,’ ‘ninfomaníaca,’ etc. No conozco ningún tal adjetivo para el hombre que tenga la fuerza de los insultos hacia las mujeres. El tildar a un hombre de ‘mujeriego’ no tiene el mismo impacto lingüístico o sociocultural [Part of the problema is religion (anyone) that elevates men and subjugates women. This has not changed. When a woman violates certain cultural norms such as having several lovers, society in general continues to call her a “prostitute,” “whore,” “nymphomaniac,” etc. I do not know any such adjective for men which is as offensive as the insults used against women. Tagging a man as a ‘womanizer’ does not have the same linguistic or sociocultural impact]. (Female, 61- 70, American,

University lecturer)It is necessary to evaluate this apparent conflict between linguistic features and social facts. That is, the contrast in low scores for misogynous proverbs and gender related crime rates in Spain. The disconnect between the number of participants that opined that the sample proverbs are outmoded and exaggerations on the one hand, and on the other hand the high number of participants who affirmed the existence of gender inequality against women, might be explained by three factors.

Firstly, the responses obtained for the first part of the questionnaire (proverb frequency) and the second part (the existence of gender discrimination), could be an indication of modern sexism which is characterised by a denial of discrimination against women. In addition, it must be noted that some participants (11.6 %) chose ‘I don’t remember’ for how they acquired these proverbs. It is possible that these participants unconsciously (naturally) acquired these proverbs in their sociocultural and linguistic environment as against in educational institutions, for example, where they could have been learnt in gender and language lectures in which such proverbs are analyzed and criticized to create an awareness. This could be a confirmation that the proverbs studied are still present and used by some speakers. Indeed, an interestingly high number of participants (64.3 %) also indicated they acquired the familiar proverbs from their parents. Subsequently, this


confirms that these discourses are still being passed on from generation to generation.

Figure 1: Modes of acquisition of sample proverbs

Otro ‘other’; No me acuerdo ‘I do not remember’; Parientes (padres, abuelos etc.) ‘relatives (parents, grandparents etc.)’; En los medios (tv, radio) ‘in the media (tv, radio)’; Por internet ‘through the internet’; Escuela/ Universidad ‘School/ University’.

Secondly, the idea behind including option C as an alternative to ‘conocido’ and ‘desconocido’ was to explore whether the ideology inherent in each proverb was still rampant or relevant in present times. The selection of option ‘c’ for any given proverb could also indicate that proverb was unknown but there was a possibility of the respondent knowing other variants of the proverb in question. Consequently, the number of participants who selected option C could also be an indication of the persistence of misogynous ideologies; whether they are purely sociocultural or linguistic. The following responses by some participants confirm that other variations of these proverbs might be more familiar for some respondents:

Extract 5

Me da la impresión de que dichos refranes, al menos de la forma en que están escritos, son usados más comúnmente en Sudamérica. Existen algunos parecidos en España, pero no son expresados de la misma forma ni hay tantos como los enlistados aquí [I have the impression that these proverbs, at least in the form in which they are written, are used more in South America. Similar ones exist in Spain, but they are not expressed in the same way neither are there as many as those listed here]. (Female, 18-30, Spaniard, Researcher)

Extract 6

Nuestros refranes reflejan las actitudes sexistas de la cultura. Es hora de cambiarlos y adoptar nuevas ideas que no solo dejan participar a la mujer en lo que antes se consideraban actividades o espacios solo para hombres, sino, y a mi criterio aún más importante, debemos valorar más el trabajo que la mujer siempre ha hecho para construir comunidades, familias, etc. [Our proverbs reflect sexist cultural attitudes. It’s time to change them and adopt new ideas which not only allow women to participate in what was previously considered activities or domains for only men, but, in my opinion, it’s even more important that we value the work which


women have always done to construct communities, families etc.]. (Female, 51-60, Spaniard and American, University Level Spanish lecturer)

Extract 7

Casi todos sus “refranes” hablan sobre violencia física. En la clase media de mi país la violencia hacia la mujer ya no es física, pero sigue existiendo [Almost all of these “proverbs” talk about physical violence. In the middle class of my country, violence against women is no longer physical, but it still exists]. (Female, 51-60, Mexican, Linguist)

Extract 8

Conocía muchos de los refranes, o variaciones de los que nos proponían, y creo que todos muestran un estereotipo social que sigue vigente en la sociedad. Además, he señalado que no siguen existiendo actividades propias de cada sexo, porque no creo que existan, pero eso no quiere decir que el resto de la sociedad no lo piense [I used to know many of the sayings, or variations of those proposed, and I think they all show a social stereotype that is still valid in society. In addition, I have indicated that there are no gender specific roles because I do not think they exist, but that does not mean that the rest of society is of the same opinion]. (Female, 18-30, Spaniard, University Lecturer)

Thirdly, as mentioned above, the heightening of social awareness against gender discrimination appears to have curtailed the open manifestation of sexism. Indeed, in February 2014, the government speaker for the district town council of Jaén (Spain) made headlines in several Spanish newspapers (el diario, europapress, 20 minutos, and la gaceta de salamanca etc.).24 It was reported that he publicly used the proverb a la mujer y al papel, hasta el culo se ha de ver [women and papers need to be scrutinized thoroughly] while on official government duty for which reason he faced serious criticism and had to make a public apology. This confirms two things. In the first place, it demonstrates that some misogynous proverbs are still used. Secondly, judging by the barrage of criticisms which compelled the government 24 The news report is available at the following websites: http://www.20minutos.es/noticia/2057101/0/garcia-anguita/pp/mujeres/; http://www.lagacetadesalamanca.es/nacional/2014/02/13/portavoz-pp-jaen-mujer-papel-culo-ver/111964.html; http://www.europapress.es/andalucia/noticia-psoe-critica-verborrea-machista-garcia-anguita-decir-mujer-papel-culo-ver-20140212164628.html; http://web.psoe.es/provinciadejaen/news/717020/page/psoe-jaen-deplora-las-lamentables-palabras-machistas-garcia-anguita-la-mujer-papel-hasta-culo-ha-ver.html


speaker, as well as his other party members to apologise publicly, one can infer that the usage of androcentric proverbs produces public aversion and criticism. Linguistic androcentrism has therefore been curtailed by an awareness of the harmful effects of gender inequity. This has provoked a phase in which some misogynous proverbs are declining, while new and less distasteful ones are creatively metaphorised and popularly adopted e.g. esposa con blog no hace comida [a blogger wife does not cook]; la esposa con chat, el marido a Pizza Hut [the woman chatting on her phone, her husband at PizzaHut].

In addition to these factors, Martinez Garrido (2001) proposes other reasons for the apparent disappearance of androcentric proverbs.

A pesar de la pérdida de uso de muchos de nuestros refranes misoginos (sin embargo, no tan definitiva como en un principio podria pensarse), su vigencia continúa siendo un hecho real en el español y en el italiano hablado de zonas urbanas, al menos en contextos humoristicos, jocosos e ironicos, en los que el refran misogino se utiliza indirectamente. En tales casos la misoginia, aunque camuflada, sigue estando presente desde la misma contextualizacion ironica y ridiculizadora con respecto a las mujeres en las que el refran queda insertado [Despite the lack of usage of many of our misogynistic proverbs (however, not as definitive as one might at first think), its validity continues to be a real fact in the Spanish and Italian spoken in urban areas, at least in humorous and ironic contexts, in which the misogynistic proverb is used indirectly. In such cases the misogyny, although camouflaged, continues to be present from the same ironic and ridiculing contextualization with respect to the women about whom the sayings are made]. (p. 84)

ConclusionSome Spanish proverbs, like many others around the globe, project androcentric views. Results from the study confirmed that while certain categories of these proverbs appear to be phased out, some are still in use albeit to a minimal degree, and mostly, covertly. Although proverbs which reflect hostile sexism can still be found in literature that aims at collecting and analysing proverbs, they appear to have lost their popularity among speakers. On the other hand, proverbs that are reflections of covert and benevolent sexism seem to have maintained their well-established


popularity. This demonstrates societal awareness and sensitivity towards the negative effects of gender bias and it confirms a significant success in feminist attempts to eliminate sexism.

Nonetheless, this study was an exploratory one that aimed at examining an aspect of proverbs that have not received much attention, i.e., their current relevance. The discussion of the results lays foundation for further empirical research investigating the current relevance of proverbs and their contribution to gender violence. It would be beneficial to repeat the study with a larger corpus and with different methods that would focus on language in use.


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Instituto de la Mujer y para la Igualdad de Oportunidades. (2019, February 12). Mujeres en Cifras - Violencia - Víctimas Mortales por Violencia de Género. Retrieved February 20 , 2019, from Instituto de la Mujer: http://www.inmujer.gob.es/MujerCifras/Violencia/VictimasMortalesVG.htm

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Race, taxonomies, and proverbs in Latin American and the Caribbean Discourse

Maimouna SankhéSenior Lecturer

Department of Modern LanguagesUniversity of Ghana, Legon, Ghana

Email: [email protected]/[email protected]


Abstract

This paper analyzes how race, taxonomies, and proverbs in Latin American and Caribbean societies are interrelated. These taxonomies and proverbs which first gained currency during the 19th century when

the now discredited notion of scientific racism was in vogue, contributed to dehumanizing the others of colonial conquest in the Americas, including the Blacks and Native Americans. This paper, however, mainly focuses on the experiences of the Blacks and demonstrates how the prejudices resulting from colonial era cultural transactions determined and continue to determine the nature of taxonomies and proverbs in Latin America. This paper will situate its findings on the propositions of Édouard Glissant, Fernando Ortiz and José Vasconcelos on race, taxonomies and ethnicity in Latin America and the Caribbean. This paper concludes that such denominations, taxonomies or sayings were created by the hegemonic culture with the sole aim of dominating the populations involved as well as subjugating them to ill-treatment. The study also makes it obvious that there are many expressions that were born within a colonial context and yet have survived over time, and continue to appear in literature and popular parlance.

Keywords: Taxonomy, Latin America, race, prejudice, proverb


IntroductionThe discovery of the Americas by Europeans and the subsequent conquest and colonization of its territories created a new reality that Gaston Baquero defines as indios, blancos y negros en el caldero de América (1991) [Indians, Whites and Blacks in the cauldron of America (1991)]. With the arrival of the new settlers, the ethnic composition and the culture of the continent changed radically. This new heterogeneous and mestizo reality translated often into new forms of prejudice when it came to naming the others. The famous saying “who does not have inga has mandiga” (“if you do not have gringo roots you have African roots”), attributed to the Peruvian politician Ricardo Palma, summarizes the complex mixtures of blood in post-Columbian America.

The hegemonic culture used different taxonomies, sayings and proverbs to refer to the others, in this case, the Blacks and Indians of the Americas. The chronicles of the Indies produced by various European explorers played a very important role in representing the first visions of the Europeans of the native Americans. The letters of the chroniclers contributed to propagation of the myth of the “noble savage” in which Indians or Native Americans were considered as being savage and kind. The first of these denominations may be the word “Indian” that Christopher Columbus used by mistake to refer to the inhabitants of the lands he had just found or “discovered.” Just as the Native Americans or Indian, blacks brought from Africa as slaves were stripped of their original identities and had a new one created for them by the European colonizers. Once in America, these slaves were no longer considered as Africans; they were collectively labeled as ‘blacks’.

In the first section of this paper I analyze how these taxonomies dehumanized and stripped the others—in this case the Blacks and also Indians—of their identity although the emphasis of the analysis will be on the Black experience in Latin America and the Caribbean. In the second part I emphasize the relationship between taxonomies of colonial discourse and labels related to the animal world. In the last section I dwell on the connection between proverbs and social imaginaries, and their survivals over time.


MethodologyThe methodology employed in this paper was to analyze three main studies on race in Latin America and the Caribbean by the Cuban Fernando Ortiz (1906), the Mexican José Vasconcelos (1925), and most recently, the Antillean Édouard Glissant (1997).For Glissant, ideally creolization presupposes that the cultural elements present in the cross-cultural and racial cauldron of America are “of equivalent value” and this is what enables the creolization process to go on in a fair and even manner. According to Glissant, however, this is not what happens in countries where, because of the consequences of slavery, the cultural values of Africans are despised, meaning that the creolization process has been unfair to Blacks. This negative conception about Africans influenced the first investigations of the Cuban ethnologist Fernando Ortiz who analyzed what he considered the anti-social character of the Blacks whom he calls the “Afro-Cuban Hampa or riffraff”. Ortiz’s Los negros brujos was written in 1906 when the nineteenth-century ideas of scientific racism were still popular. In fact, the prologue to Ortiz’s work was signed by the Italian medical doctor, anthropologist, and criminologist Cesare Lombroso, who believed in the genetic origin of crime.

Relatedly, in his seminal essay, Raza cosmica: mision de la raza iberoamericana (1925), Vasconcelos exposes his thesis on miscegenation in Latin America and the destiny that converts the mixed races of Ibero-America into “la primerarazasintesis del globo” (Vasconcelos, 1925, p.29) (the first synthesized race of the globe, own translation). In this synthesis called “fifth race” or “cosmic race”, all races will be included without exception. Vasconcelos’ racial hierarchy ranged from the “superior ideals of the white” to “the races that could be considered as inferior” (Razacosmica, 1925).The reference to the Ibero-American race as the “cosmic race” in Vasconcelos’ title is significant insofar as it reveals the ideological scope of its author’s aspiration to create a “cosmic race” whose mission is the ethnic improvement of the Negro and the indigenous peoples. Blacks and Native Americans have a place in this new race if they mix with the “superior race” whose contributions altruistically improve the traits of these two ethnic groups.

I combine these three studies on race because Vasconcelos, in a Mexican context where Blacks were a minority, tried to encourage miscegenation to eliminate Blacks and Native Americans or inferiors in general through


ethnic improvement. Similarly, Ortiz, in his first investigations, sought to dehumanize Blacks in a country (Cuba), where they were important in number, by calling them “Hampaafrocuba” (Afro-Cuban riffraff).

But Glissant, who is of African descent, provides a more acceptable middle ground in that conversation by arguing that respect for the individual cultures involved in a mestizaje is a condition sine qua non for an effective co-habitation between races and cultures.

I determine how some of these studies dehumanized Blacks in Latin America and the Caribbean and affected them negatively. Such dehumanization and animalization of Blacks is further explained and confirmed by the prejudice employed in Hispanic sayings and proverbs, starting from the advent of European colonialism in the Latin America. I also demonstrate the connection between race, taxonomies and proverbs. When theories on race accept that there are “superior races” and “inferior races”, this allows them to dehumanize the so called “inferiors”. Then the social imaginaries retain such dehumanization which leads them to create negative taxonomies, sayings and proverbs related to Blacks.

The originality of this paper is in the fact that it analyzes the deep connection between race, taxonomies and proverbs in Latin American and Caribbean discourse. In addition, it refers to how this interrelation between race, taxonomies and proverbs is reflected not only in Latin American fictions but also in the Spanish Golden Age literature. Finally the study shows how these prejudices continue to exist in the Hispanic World.

Taxonomies and identityThe arrival of Columbus to America is considered as the beginning of the first contact between the Europeans and the indigenous people of America. This occurred in 1492 when the Italian navigator arrived on the coasts of America with the support of the Catholic kings of Spain. However, Columbus did not realize that he was in America because his original purpose was to go to Asia. By mistake he came to America but thought he was in Asia, so the first thing he did was to name the indigenous people he had just met as Indians. That misnomer has survived over time. Columbus opened the way to the colonization and conquest of the lands of these Indians. Like Columbus, many other conquerors and colonizers wrote letters to the Spanish Crown to describe the people and lands they had just discovered. These so-called


chroniclers of the Indies had the privilege of describing and naming the others, taking into account political, economic and religious motives. These Indians were often described as savage, naive, fearful and without religion; easy to conquer and convert to the Catholic religion. For instance, in his letter to Luis de Santangel, an employee at the Spanish Royal Crown at that time, Columbus said:

Andan todos desnudos, hombres y mujeres […]. Ellos no tienen hierro ni acero ni armas […]. Son muy temerosos […]. Y no conocian ninguna secta ni idolatria, salvo que todos creen que las fuerzas y el bien es en el cielo, y creian muy firme que yo con estos navios y gente venia del cielo y en tal acatamiento me recibian en todo cabo después de haber perdido el miedo (Serna 2007, pp. 119, 120, 121).

[they walked about naked, both men and women […]. They have neither steel nor weapons […]. They are very shy and timid […]. And they do not belong to any sect or practice idolatry, but all of them believe that everything that is good comes from heaven, believing strongly that, my good self and those ships and people came from the sky and for that reason they received me warmly after overcoming their fear (Serna 2007, pp. 119, 120, 121, own translation)].

This impression and others like it contributed to the myth of the good savage or noble savage that would be the counterpoint of so-called civilized European societies. The main motivation was to colonize and exploit the people and lands they had just discovered. This signified the first loss of the identity of these indigenous people which was followed by the disrespect of their culture on the part of the colonizer; a colonizer who, based on his supposed superiority, set out to carry out a civilizing mission. Before being forced under the Euro-generated umbrella category of Indianness, these natives were Mayas, Aztecs, Incas, etc. Colombus and others like him changed the names of their lands and imposed new names on them.

To emphasize an African dimension to the process described above, Elvira Diaz Benitez affirms:

Parto de la nocion de que asi como se construye cultura, también se construye raza. De hecho la categoria negro corresponde de por si a un constructo historico cuya logica fue de deshumanizacion y explotacion. La raza nacio en el Atlantico si tenemos en cuenta que en África no habia negros sino africanos; Yolofes, Balantes, Sereres, Biafaras, Kongos, Angolas, Branes, Zapes, Akanes, Lucumis,


Fantis, Ashantis, Ewe-Fon, Ibos y demas pueblos que en la trata se convirtieron en una sola: negros (Diaz Benitez, 2004, p. 124).

[my idea is based on the notion that just as culture is built, so is race. In fact, the black category corresponds in itself to a historical construct whose logic was one of dehumanization and exploitation. Race was born in the Atlantic if we consider that in Africa there were no blacks but Africans:Yolofes, Balantes, Sereres, Biafaras, Kongos, Angolas, Branes, Zapes, Akanes, Lucumis, Fantis, Ashantis, Ewe-Fon, Ibos; and the other peoples that in the slave trade became one: blacks “) (Diaz Benitez,2004, p. 124, own translation)] .

Similarly, in his article «et la traite créa le nègre: nombrar es crearmonstruos (naming is to create monsters)», Lavou Zoungbo states:

Nommer, dans le cas de l’histoire coloniale et esclavagiste c’est deposseder, prendre possession, biffer une genealogie-histoire, c’est affirmer une toute puissance ou une superiorite. Il s’agit en fait du pouvoir de dire, «tu es noir», «tu es Indien» et «tu le restera». De surcroît, tu reprendras a ton compte et tu répondras aux interpellations liees a ces qualifications, a ces fables, a ces noms (Lavou Zoungbo, 2004, p. 70).

[Naming, within the framework of colonialism and slavery is to strip, take possession of, erase a genealogy-history, is to affirm an entire power or superiority. That is to say, “you are black”, “you are Indian” and “ you will forever remain so.” In addition, you will intend or begin to call yourself black and respond to the questions related to these qualifications, fables, names (Lavou Zoungbo, 2004, p. 70, own translation)].

This erasure of peculiar pre-colonial ethnic identities is what happened in the Americas with the Indians and the Blacks. All these processes contributed to the loss of the aforementioned colonized peoples’ peculiar identities and reduced them to European formulated concepts such as Indians or Blacks; because before becoming Blacks or Indians they were Yolofes, Biafaras, Akanes, Lucumis, Ewe-Fon, Aztecas, Mayas, Incas, etc.

Slavery, taxonomies and the animal worldThis paper demonstrates, in this part, how the context of slavery determined the taxonomies and denominations given to Blacks in Latin America and the Caribbean. For this reason, I base the study on theories that had big


repercussions on discourses on race relations in Latin America such as those of the British Francis Galton. In fact, in his essay, La raza cómica: misión de la raza iberoamericana (1925), the Mexican philosopher José Vasconcelos takes up the term “eugenics” coined by Francis Galton, cousin of the scientist Charles Darwin. This concept, according to Peter Wade (2000, p.19): “was based on a scientific racism and on the idea that the reproductive capacities of biologically” inadequate “individuals (for example, the insane) and, more generally, of the “inferior races”, had to be limited “. Darwin also has the same conception as Galton on the need to make disappear the “weak” and the “inferior races”, among which were the blacks.

Galton was convinced that the physical, intellectual, moral and even social attributes characteristic of “races” were determined by their different biological nature, and that they were transmissible hereditarily. That is why Galton and Darwin’s theses on natural selection and eugenics aimed to eliminate all the inferiorities that opposed the march of progress. Galton went on to say the following: “aunque la mayoria de las razas barbaras desaparecieron, algunas, como la negra, no” (Soutullo, 1997, p.30) (although most of the barbarian races disappeared, some, like the black, did not, own translation).

In Latin America, taxonomy, race and stereotypes are closely linked with slavery playing a role as important as it is negative in the choice of taxonomies. Afro-descendants in Latin America are confronted with what Michel Certeau once called “Malheur généalogique” (“Genealogical misfortune”/“ill-fated genealogy”). Lavou Zoungbo takes up the issue in “Du migrant nu” au citoyen différé Présence-histoire “des noirs en Amérique Latine: Discours et Représentations (2003): “cuando no existe una liga entre genealogia y privilegios se puede hablar entonces de “desdicha genealogica” [...]. Un ejemplo de esta desdicha lo constituye la experiencia historica de los afrodescendientes en las Américas” (Lavou Zoungbo, 2003, pp.10-11).

[“when there is no link between genealogy and privileges, one refers to “genealogical misfortune” [...]. An example of this misfortune is the historical experience of people of African descent in the Americas” ( Lavou Zoungbo, 2003, pp.10-11, own translation)].

Lavou Zoungbo states that according to the social imaginaries in Latin America, slavery have transformed black people and had left them a “genealogical misfortune”.


This “Genealogical misfortune”/ “ill-fated genealogy” as it is called reveals the indelible marks that slavery has left on the lives of the slaves and their descendants. As a matter of fact, Modesto Chavez Franco, as quoted by Paulo de Carvalho-Neto in Estudios afros: Brasil, Paraguay, Uruguay, Ecuador(1971), described the startling difference he (Modesto Chavez Franco) perceived between the pre-Columbian Blacks and those arrived in Latin America as slaves:

Pues es de advertir que en ciertos grupos de negros hay tipos de verdadera belleza, ya varonil, ya femenina. Negras de la region de Limones y otros puntos hemos conocido que, de figurarselas blancas, serian bellisimas en esta raza. De narices perfiladas, finas, prominentes, bocas pequeñitas, labios delgados y rojos; orejas de elegantisimas curvas, cuellos y senos venusianos, cuerpos esbeltisimos con elegancia de aristocracia; altas, gentiles, naturalmente garbosas de aire señoril, fina epidermis y carnes duras; pies pequeños y muy bien torneados, manos largas y finas, dientes de blancura fulgurante y alineamiento y proporcion perfectos, ojos hermosisimos de grandes pestañas curvas, cejas finas de bonitos arcos y hasta cabellos sedosos, dúctil y mas largo y bien peinable que el abigarrado y duro del negro común [...]. Son, ademas, aseadas hasta la pulcritud, tanto en su persona como en los vestidos [...]. Vale tener en cuenta que negros habia en América desde siglos antes de su llamado descubrimiento [...]. Bien, pudieran pues, estos negros proceder de aquellos grupos prehistoricos, directamente, y diferenciarse por esto tan ostensiblemente de sus similares africanos importados por la colonizacion. (De Carvalho-Neto, 1971, p.279).

[it is interesting to note that existing among certain groups of Blacks are those (both males and females) endowed with truly beautiful features. If we imagine that the Blacks women we saw in the Limones region and other places were white women, then they would be really beautiful. With beautiful and prominent aquiline noses, very tiny mouths, thin and pink lips; exquisitely-curved ears, necks and breasts like those of the goddess Venus, very slender bodies, tall, graceful, gorgeous and majestic, smooth skin with firm proportions; dainty and well-shaped feet, long and thin hands, perfectly arranged and well-proportioned sparkling white teeth, truly beautiful eyes with long curved lashes, well-curved eyebrows and silky smooth hair that is flexible, longer and more manageable than the uneven and kinky air of Blacks in general [...]. Besides, they are very clean and well- groomed [...].It is worth mentioning


that they were Blacks in America for centuries before its so-called discovery [...]. It may well be that those Blacks were the direct descendants of those prehistoric groups but may be so different from their fellow Africans arriving as slaves. (De Carvalho-Neto, 1971, p.279, own translation)].

As a professional criminologist, Fernando Ortiz, in his first investigations, talked about the antisocial aspect of the religious practices of Blacks. At first, he pejoratively called them “The Afro-Cuban Hampa” or riffraff. Ortiz’s ideas had been influenced by the theories of the school of Cesare Lombroso who wrote the preface to Los negros brujos, a very important book that signaled the beginning of African studies in Cuba.

Ortiz might have been influenced also by the Brazilian ethnologist Raimundo Nina Rodrigues (1862-1906), whose great love for the scientific theories of his time, led him to defend the degeneration of miscegenation and the inequality of the races. However, over the years, the Cuban distanced himself from this posture, adopting a completely different one.

Los negros brujos (1906) is loaded with all the prejudices prevalent at the beginning of the 20th century against the Blacks and their culture. Based on theories about the so-called “superior races” and “inferior races” and those predestined to barbarism or crime, Los negros brujos (1906) investigates what it considers the nature of the African culture.In Los negros brujos, Ortiz states: “la raza negra llego a través de la esclavitud sin patria, sin familia, sin sociedad suya, con su impulsividad brutal comprimida frente a una raza de superior civilizacion y enemiga que la sometio a un trabajo rudo y constante” (Ortiz, 1973, p.13).

[“the black race arrived through slavery- a people without a homeland, family, neither were they an organized group. With sheer impulsiveness, they came up against a race of superior civilization and enemy that subjected them to hard and constant work” (Ortiz, 1973, p.13, own translation)].

Jose Vasconcelos (1882-1959) proposed “the cosmic race” or “fifth race” in which the said “inferior races” would be redeemed and, after a time, would be absorbed by the “superior races”. In the words of the Mexican Vasconcelos:

Los tipos bajos de la especie seran absorbidos por el tipo superior. De esta suerte podria redimirse, por ejemplo, el negro, y poco a poco, por extincion voluntaria, las estirpes mas feas iran cediendo el


paso a las mas hermosas. Las razas inferiores, al educarse, se harian menos prolificas, y los mejores especimenes iran ascendiendo en una escala de mejoramiento étnico (Vasconcelos, 1925, p.40).

[the inferior species will be absorbed by the superior ones. In this way, Black people could be redeemed, and little by little, by voluntary extinction, the uglier species will give way to the more beautiful ones. The inferior races, when educated, would become less prolific, and the best specimens will go up on a scale of ethnic improvement (Vasconcelos, 1925, p.40, own translation)].

Everything seems to indicate that the sole objective of the creation of this perfect “fifth race” is only to eliminate in a peaceful and “altruistic” way, “inferior races” because Vasconcelos himself is convinced that this is the best way to reach “ethnic improvement”.

This confirms the fact that slavery and colonization have contributed to the stigmatization of Blacks. For that reason, Frantz Fanon affirms in his book Piel negra, máscaras blancas that “la desgracia del hombre de color es el haber sido esclavizado” (Fanon, 2009, p.189).

[“the misfortune of the Black person is to be enslaved” (Fanon, 2009, p.189, own translation)].

These prejudices have been transferred to Latin American literature where the black characters are presented and seen as inferior. In the work of Adalberto Ortiz titled Juyungo, historia de un negro, un aisla y otros negros, it is very common to notice these prejudices in the Black characters of the novel.

The word “juyungo” itself is derogatory because it could refer to any of a monkey, a dirty person, or a smelly person. This is the name the Indians gave their Black neighbors, a name which the main character of the novel, Ascension Lastre, bears.

Once a race is created, one looks for a name or names that respond to the idea or concept one has of that race; all of which is for the purpose of exploiting and subjugating others to inhuman treatment. If we take into consideration the terms mestizo and mulatto, the former describes the son or daughter of an Indian and white person while mulatto refers to the son or daughter of a Black and white person and vice versa. However, in the opinion of Jean-Luc Bonniol, as cited by Lavou Zoungbo, the word mestizo derives from the


Latin mixticum and refers to mixtures of blood especially between animals. It is during the modern age when the term was used to define a new category of people born of mixed blood during the colonial epoch. Likewise, the word mulatto came into existence at the beginning of the sixteenth century and was used to describe the crosses between animals in general and especially among sheep. Then, later the word referred to the children born out of the union between whites and blacks. It is noteworthy that both mestizo and mulatto are based on connotations clearly related to the animal world.

For Lavou Zoungbo (2003), this clarifies a type of taxonomy which racializes the colony in Latin America, such as “Coyote” (In colonial America, born of parents of different races, especially barcino and mulatto, or mulatto and barcino. Barcino refers to the animal world especially that of dogs, bulls and cows), “Lobo” wolf), “Mulatto” (derives from “Mula” (Mule), “Matungo” (horse that is not healthy)”, “Bozal” (newly-arrived slave), among others. Even the word “Cimarron”, so highly symbolic during the resistance of the Blacks against their dehumanization, originally meant a wild animal. These are the definitions that the dictionary of the Real Academia Española collects from the word “Cimarron”: “indolent sailor and little worker”, “domestic animal that flees to the field and becomes mount”, “wild animal, not domesticated”, “a plant which can grow by itself in the forest or be cultivated”, and also “the slave who took refuge in the mountains seeking freedom”.

Racializing taxonomy was often connected to the animal world. According to the authoritative dictionary RAE, the word zambo, which describes the son of a Negro and an Indian, or vice versa refers to:

Mono americano de unos 60 cm de longitud, que tiene la cola prensil y casi tan larga como el cuerpo, el pelaje de color pardo amarillento, como el cabello de los mestizos zambos, el hocico negro y una mancha blanca en la frente, rudimentales los pulgares de las manos, muy aplastadas y abiertas las narices, y fuertes y acanaladas las uñas (Dictionary RAE, Twentieth second edition,).

[american monkey which is about six decimeters long with a prehensile tail almost as long as the body. It has the yellowish-brown coat, like the zambo’s hair, a black snout and a white spot on the forehead, rough thumbs of the hands, very flattened and open noses, and strong and grooved nails, Dictionary RAE Twentieth second edition, own translation)].


The other words like wolf, muzzle, mulatto, and coyote all come from the animal register.

In her article titled “Alonso de Sandoval y la construccion de las “naciones africanas” del Nuevo Mundo” published in Mots pour Nègres maux de noir (e) s enjeux socio-symboliques de la nomination des Noir (e) s en Amérique Latine (2004), Carmen Bernand states:

La proliferacion de los hibridos - castas - con las connotaciones simbolicas y normativas que conllevan (ilegitimidad, deslealtad, vicio, lujuria, metaforas animales) se refleja en un vocabulario que alude a una pigmentacion indeterminada, ni negra ni blanca, sino “abigarrada”, es decir “de varios colores mal combinados”, lo heterogéneo, lo que es sin concierto” (Bernand, 2004, p.56).

[the proliferation of hybrids - castes - with the symbolic and normative connotations that involve (illegitimacy, disloyalty, vice, lust, animal metaphors) is reflected in a vocabulary that refers to an indeterminate pigmentation, neither black nor white, but “variegated”, that is to say, “Mixed colors”, heterogeneous, which is without concert”(Bernand, 2004, p.56, own translation)].

In conclusion, it is clear that slavery created stereotypes and contributed to the dehumanization of Blacks in Latin America.

Proverbs and social imaginariesThis dehumanization rooted in social imaginaries is noted in the proverbs and sayings in forms of linguistic prejudices. For example there are sayings like trabajar como un negro (working as a black man, own translation), well known in the Hispanic world and that means working more than normal. In fact, some Afro-descendant organizations are fighting to expunge this saying from the dictionary RAE. In Puerto Rico there is the proverb Dios hizo al negro para que el animal descanse (God created the black man in order to grant animals a rest. own translation). Expressions such as es negro pero guapo, es negro pero bueno, es negro pero inteligente (he is black but handsome, he is black but good or he is black but smart, own translation), are also very common in the Hispanic world. The expression merienda de negros (blacks having a snack) which according to the RAE dictionary means disorder, confusion in which no one understands anything, is an expression which came into existence during the period of slavery when


Blacks organized small get-togethers after the long and hard day’s work, something that the colonial masters considered as rowdy or rollicking good time. It also has the same meaning the expression boda de negros (wedding between Blacks, own translation) which according to the RAE dictionary means, a meeting in which there is much confusion and racket. Quevedo’s poem titled Boda de negros (wedding between Blacks, own translation) reveals Europeans’ conceptions about the Blacks at the time. However for Maria Luisa Peña Tristan:

Esta anomala vision del hombre negro no era exclusiva de Quevedo ni fruto de una invencion literaria, sino la que, desde muy atras, se habia extendido por toda la peninsula y que los pensadores, teologos, humanistas… etc. se empeñaron en mantener viva a lo largo de los siglos XVI y XVII. Aunque en Quevedo se plasme de manera mas brutal y despectiva esta concepcion del negro africano era de todos conocida y peor aún, compartida. Para la mayoria, los negros no eran completamente humanos sino seres tan extraordinarios, salvajes e inusitados como las tierras de donde provienen (Peña Tristan, Thesis, Universidad Complutense Madrid, 2012).

[this anomalous vision of the black man was not exclusive to Quevedo nor was it the result of a literary invention, but one that from a very remote time had spread all over the peninsula and that thinkers, theologians, humanists ... etc. insisted on keeping alive throughout the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries. Although in Quevedo it is reflected in a more brutal and contemptuous way, this conception of the African Negro was known and worse of all accepted. For most people, Blacks were not completely human, but beings that are as bizarre, savage and abnormal as the lands from which they came (Peña Tristan, Thesis, Universidad Complutense Madrid, 2012, own translation)].

In Latin American literature on Blacks, the concept of race is repeated very often: hay que mejorar la raza (the race must be improved, own translation) or hay que mejorar el color (the complexion must be toned or improved, own translation), something which was one of the main goals of the Latin American elites of the time who used miscegenation to improve the race. Juan Pablo Sojo’s novel Nochebuena negra addresses this theme. One of the young Blacks in the novel no longer wants to have a black girlfriend after traveling to Caracas, the capital of Venezuela. He has changed and no longer wants to have a black woman; in Caracas he fell in love with a young


woman named Ana Rafaela because, as the young man said to his friend “usté comprende, el colorcito... Hay que mejorarlo, vale. Yo la he corrio en Caracas, y sé lo que es una buena hembra. Ademas hoy soy otro; me he civilizado; antes usaba alpargatas barbonas, liencillo y andaba jediondo” (Sojo, 1972, p.276).

[“you understand ... You have to tone the skin. I have been to Caracas, and I know how good a woman should look. Besides, I am a different person today; I am enlightened; before I wore espadrilles, clothes made of rough material and never smelt good” (Sojo, 1972, p. 276, own translation)].

In another novel on the Black person/on the black reality in Latin America known as Juyungo, historia de un negro, una isla y otros negros by the Ecuadorian Adalberto Ortiz, the customs of the Blacks are considered as barbaric, and Mr. Valdés, one of the members in political circles, had this to say:

Es una verdadera salvajada la de estos negros. La civilizacion no puede entrar en nuestra provincia con semejantes cosas. Mi labor en el Congreso ha de tender al progreso de este pueblo, de cualquier manera. Necesitamos que venga gente de afuera a mejorar la raza y las costumbres” (Ortiz, 1976, pp.245-246).

[African customs are really barbaric. Civilization is not possible in our province because of such things. My duty in Congress is to promote the progress of the Ecuadorian people, by all means. We need people from outside to improve the race and customs (Ortiz, 1976, pp. 245-246, own translation)].

In Diaz Sanchez’s Cumboto, one of the characters affirms:

Mi padre estaba persuadido de que hay que emanciparse de este horrible pigmento que pesa sobre la vida de los hombres mucho mas que un delito (...) Su padre (…) habia querido casarse con una blanca por mejorar la raza” (Diaz Sanchez, 1973, p.156-157).

[“my father was convinced that one must be liberated from this horrible complexion that weighs on the lives of men much more than a crime (...). His father (…) wanted to marry a white woman to improve the race” (Diaz Sanchez, 1973, p.156-157, own translation).

It is even very common in Spain to say es una gangá, es una verdadera gangá (this is a good deal or it is a real bargain, own translation).According to the Dictionary RAE, twentieth second edition ganga means something


acquired at a price far below what was to be expected. Ganga is a word that derives from slavery and is used to refer to several groups of slaves from Africa who suffered from poor health; this is why they were cheaper than other slaves.According to Rafael Pereachala Aluma, “los Gangas estaban muy mal reputados, pues su fortaleza fisica era precaria, de ahi que vendian dos en el precio de uno, surgiendo alli la palabra ganga” (Pereachala Aluma, 2004, p. 150).

[“the Gangas are of very low value, because of their poor health, resulting in a situation whereby two gangas are sold at the price of one, this is how the word ganga came into existence” (Pereachala Aluma, 2004, p. 150, own translation)].

ConclusionIn short, I would say that in Latin American discourses, the concepts of race, taxonomies, and sayings are interrelated. In the case of Blacks their status as slaves determined the negative and stereotyped aspect of racializing taxonomies and the sayings that refer to them. These negative attitudes to race and race mixing, as this paper has shown, go back to the days of scientific racism and were mainstreamed by scholars such as Ortiz and Vasconcelos. However, many relatively more positive expressions are used today to tone down the expressions that were used earlier. Moreno is one of such expressions used instead of negro, also gente de color instead of negro. Statements like I am black and not brown or Black is beautiful are now increasingly common in the Americas as affirmations of Black race pride and also as ways of assuaging the harm done by these earlier negative terms. It may appear that the ultimate goal, for most progressive scholars, is to create a space where racial discourses equally respect all groups in contexts of racial and cultural creolization.

Édouard Glissant explains what happened in Latin America and the Caribbean as creolization “une rencontre d´éléments culturels venus d´horizons absolument divers et qui réellement se créolisent, qui réellement símbrique et se confondent lún dans láutre pour donner quelque chose dábsolument imprévisible, dábsolument nouveau et qui est la réalité créole” (Glissant, 1996, p.15).

[“the coincidence of cultural elements from absolutely different settings which get really creolized, overlap and get confused with themselves in


order to create something that is absolutely unpredictable, absolutely new, something that is none other than Creole reality”(Glissant, 1996, p.15, own translation)].

However, in order for creolization to be effective, there should be no “dégradation ou diminution de l’être, soit de l´intérieur, soit de l´extérieur, dans ce contact et dans ce mélange” (Glissant, 1996, p.18).

[“no degradation or diminution of the human being, whether internally or externally, in that contact and in that mixture”(Glissant, 1996, p. 18, own translation)].


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Ogya ne atuduro nna faako - Fire and gunpowder do not sleep together: Teaching and learning Materials

Science and Engineering with African proverbs

Kwadwo Osseo-AsareDistinguished Professor

Department of Materials Science and EngineeringDepartment of Energy and Mineral Engineering

Penn State University, USAEmail: [email protected]

Submitted: June 28, 2018 / Accepted: February 15. 2019 / Published: October 4, 2019

Abstract

In 2008, on a sabbatical leave in the Department of Materials Science and Engineering at the University of Ghana, I was assigned a new course, Materials and the Future. Materials science and engineering is

concerned with the science and engineering of “stuff.” This paper recounts my motivation for using African proverbs as a medium of instruction in this course. I also share highlights of my experiences and those of the students. Engineering schools worldwide are struggling with how to promote cognitive learning and creativity among today’s generation of students. The technologically advanced countries have the challenge of weaning students away from overdependence on pre-existing solutions easily accessible via the Internet. In Africa it is tempting for students to assume that all technological advances come from abroad and that they should just wait passively to receive these blessings. This paper argues that the indirection characteristic of proverbial discourse can encourage students to develop a conceptual understanding of materials science and engineering rooted in the African soil.

Keywords: proverbial discourse, materials science and engineering, deconstruction, indirection, pedagogy


IntroductionIf all of engineering is viewed as a building, then the field of materials science and engineering represents the foundation. Materials Science and Engineering (MSE) as an academic discipline focuses on the science and engineering of “stuff.” All engineers use stuff. Civil engineers build dams with concrete, a mixture of sand, cement, and water. Mechanical engineers rely on metals, polymers (plastic), and glass to build machines and cars; transportation engineers need gravel, asphalt, and concrete to make roads; electrical and electronic engineers use silicon, other semiconductors, and metals to manufacture solar panels, build computers, and so on. It is no wonder historians of human development have used materials to mark stages of technological advancement, i.e., the stone age, bronze age, iron age, etc. (Thrower, 1991; Callister and Rethwisch, 2014). There may be some disagreement in what to call the period in which we currently live. Many will like to call it the Information Age, given the obvious dominance of computers, cell phones, and the internet. Still one may argue that without materials (metals, ceramics, glass, semiconductors, organic polymers) there would be no computers and cell phones and, therefore, this might be designated the Materials Age.

I spent the second semester of the 2007/2008 academic year as a visiting professor of materials science and engineering in the new School of Engineering Sciences at the University of Ghana. Following conversations with the then Dean, I had assumed that I would most likely be teaching the course Introduction to Ceramics. This is not a course I teach in my home university, but I was willing to consider it since I thought it could provide me with an opportunity to develop some new approaches into the treatment of the relevant topics. A few days before classes started, I found out by accident from a colleague that I had been assigned a different course. Noticing my surprise, the colleague walked me to the bulletin board where it was clearly posted that my assigned course was MSEN 325, Materials and the Future. I have since learned that this is not unusual practice in many other African universities. Instructors are assigned courses sometimes as late as the first week of classes.

According to the official course description, MSEN 325 was to focus on the “Survey of selected materials that have potential impact in the advanced economy of the future”:


• Materials for clean energy

• Porous materials

• Diamond and hard materials

• New polymers

• Surfaces and interfaces

• Photonic materials

• Materials for information storage

• Smart materials

• Biomedical materials

Clearly, I could not simply use the instructional items, including the visuals, I had prepared for the previous course (Introduction to Ceramics). Now I faced many challenges. How does one teach a course like this in an environment where:

• There are almost no textbooks,

• There are no serious library resources, and

• Internet access is temperamental at best.

Fortunately, I remembered a book I had noticed in the University Bookstore during the first week we arrived on the campus: Bu Me Bɛ; Proverbs of the Akans (Appiah et al., 2007). It occurred to me that African proverbs might provide an opportunity to link technological advances to the local (Ghanaian, African) environment, thereby encouraging engineering students in Africa to go beyond textbook engineering. I was aware of concerns being raised by various observers about the lack of connection between science education and scientific thinking. For example, as noted by Essegbey (2006),

Ghana makes science compulsory throughout secondary education, and an astonishing 46 per cent of students in Ghanaian universities and polytechnics are enrolled in science-related programmes. Yet all this activity has had little impact. There remains a huge gap between teaching and learning science and truly assimilating it so that it guides our thinking, decisions and actions.


What is Materials Science and Engineering?At a minimum, the field of materials science and engineering (MSE) may be envisioned as a four-legged-stool, the legs being property, structure, processing, and performance (Thrower, 1991; Callister and Rethwisch, 2014).

PropertyProperty may be understood in terms of stimulus-response phenomena. A property registers the response of a material to a given external stimulus. For example, if specimens of two different materials are squeezed, the subsequent shape changes may be different. The shape changes themselves are a consequence of the mechanical properties and the observed differences in shape change reveal differences in the mechanical properties of the specimens. Beside mechanical, other properties include electrical, magnetic, optical, thermal, and degradational. StructureStructure refers to the inner architecture of a material. This architecture can be perceived at different scales. At the innermost, the sub-atomic level, the structure is based on positively charged particles (nuclei) and negatively charged particles (electrons). Moving outwards, there is the atomic level which relates to how atoms are arranged with each other into larger aggregates called molecules. At the microscopic level atoms and molecules further combine into larger entities that are observable through appropriate microscopes. Finally, we get to the macroscopic level where the naked eye can recognize the structural features.

ProcessingThe third leg of the MSE stool, processing, is best appreciated through a culinary lens. A piece of yam may be boiled, roasted, or fried. These are three different processing methods. If you want the prepared yam to be crunchy when eaten you will not boil it. Thus, we can see that if crunchiness is a desired property, then we need to prepare or process the yam in an appropriate way.

PerformancePerformance, the fourth leg, links properties to the practical application of the material.


Accordingly, if the guests to a party prefer crunchy appetizers, then the performance of a fried piece of yam will be rated higher than that of boiled yam – a guest will derive more joy from experiencing the crunch-crunch.

There are three main classes of materials, i.e., metals (e.g., gold, iron), ceramics (e.g., bricks, clay pots, and glass), and polymers (e.g., plastics, leather, and wood). Just as the individual legs do not constitute the MSE stool, one must not confuse an article with the materials from which it is made.

First meeting and first assignmentWhen I entered the classroom for our first meeting the students were seated facing the chalkboard. I instructed them to organize the chairs into a circle. These were third-year engineering students and they were not used to this kind of seating arrangement. Naturally, they were a bit puzzled. Then I handed them their first assignment:

Provide six Ghanaian proverbs with a materials connection. For each proverb,

(a) Give the rendition in the relevant Ghanaian language

(b) Indicate the language

(c) Provide an appropriate English translation

(d) Explain the meaning

(e) Discuss the materials connection

Required: A written report (750-1000 words) plus oral presentation.

For in-class practice, students were asked to provide some proverbs with materials connection. At first, nobody volunteered anything. They protested, “I don’t know any proverbs,” “I don’t know how to write in my mother tongue.” I provided an example: “Dade bi twa dade bi mu” (Akan, iron sharpens iron), and asked them to discuss the materials implication. The first suggestion from the students was that this proverb points to the superiority of one material over another, in this case, concerning mechanical properties. On further discussion another student offered that the proverb illustrates the need for collaboration; if a knife wants to be sharper, it needs the help of another material.


To the students who claimed that they knew no African proverbs, I challenged them to reflect on the fact that they are engineers. They are being trained at the university to solve problems. How can they solve their problem of proverbial ignorance? The suggestions that came out of our ensuing discussion included the following: they can ask parents and friends, and they can check if the library has books on proverbs.

Second class meetingIn the next class meeting (the following week) the students provided some feedback on the assignment. Their comments included such statements as:

My parents/friends were surprised. They thought the assignment was strange. They asked, “Is this really an engineering course? It sounds more like a course in African Studies.”

Here we see that the students could not imagine that a proverb could serve as a pedagogical tool in engineering. Yet, as Achebe has noted, in Igbo (African) culture “proverbs are the palm-oil with which words are eaten” (Achebe, 1958). Thus, it cannot be assumed that the engineers of traditional societies would have found proverbial language to be incompatible with engineering imagination and practice. Still, a relevant question remains: Do proverbs have any utility beyond the world of the ancestral engineers?

Below are a few of the proverbs they provided, as they continued to work on their assignment:

“Dze mekafua edokui o” – Ewe. Salt does not praise itself.

“Ɛdɔn a ɛho apae no, ennyegye yie” – Akan. A cracked bell can never sound well.

“Gya ne atuduro nna faako” – Akan. Fire and gunpowder do not sleep together.

“Ɛnam dua so na ahoma hunu soro” – Akan. It is through the tree that the vine sees the sky (i.e., climbs up).

In the examples above, the requirement that the proverbs should have “a materials connection” was taken to mean that the proverb must explicitly refer to a “material.” Thus, based on the definition of a material as a “solid with useful structural, electrical (including electronic or magnetic), optical, or corrosion-resistance properties” (Evans and De Jonghe, 1991), the


relevant materials or materials-based articles in the above proverbs were salt (sodium chloride, NaCl), a bell (made of metal), gunpowder (nitrocellulose formulations), vine/tree (cellulosic biomaterials).

ReportsTable 1 presents a collection of proverbs taken from reports submitted by the students in response to the assignment previously described above. Clearly, once the students got over their initial fears and passivity, including the previously noted misconception that engineering and proverbial wisdom were incompatible, they were able to find sources for relevant proverbs. Regarding parts (a), (b), and (c) of the assignment, it can be seen from the table that all the proverbs submitted mentioned at least one materials-related item. These items are collected in Table 2; the most common was tree (wood) with seven mentions, metallic items were next with four citations (bell, gold, sword, and gong-gong). The multiple appearances of tree (wood) perhaps reflects the fact that the elders who first formulated the proverbs lived close to nature. Overall, the explanations given for the proverbs (part (d)) were reasonable, as further discussed below.

Part (e) of the assignment requested students to explicate the connection of their proverbs to materials science and engineering. In Table 1 the word “material (s)” appeared explicitly, at least once, in nine of the entries in the column under “(e) Materials Connection”. Adding to this, related terms, like “metals”, “alloy”, “mineral”, “vellum” (of a drum), and “gong-gong”, makes it fourteen. In Table 3 these fourteen responses to part (e), designated as Group A, are deconstructed by tracking relevant keywords found in parts (a) – (e). The remaining responses (i.e., those missing “materials” or materials-related terms in part (e)), designated as Group B, are also deconstructed, as shown in Table 4.

This section of the assignment was a call to the students to relate their proverbs to one or more of the four legs of MSE. Inspection of Table 3 reveals that, on the whole, the students put in a good effort to respond to this challenge. In Proverb No. 1, for example, the underlying thought processes can be traced along the sequence: (a, b) dua/bo/twa→ (c) tree/rock/cut → (d) you/close friend/rebuke → (e) silver/gold/select (do not reject). Gold (e) represents the rock (c) or close friend (d) that is difficult to reject because of its attractive (superior) materials properties (purity, chemical stability).


In almost all the entries in Table 3, the logic in the proverb is transferred to materials science and engineering in the form of a rule linking two or more of the four legs of MSE. In Proverb No. 3, for instance, the collaboration between the tree and the vine is transferred to that between two metals that combine to form an alloy with desired properties. In Proverb No. 10, the observation that certain changes are impossible (e.g., the transformation of a log in water into a turtle) is used to teach us that inappropriate processing protocols can never yield us materials with the desired structures and properties. It is interesting to note that Proverb No. 15 departs from this principle. Here, the relationship is reversed: materials properties are used as a vehicle for social commentary. It is the government itself that has instituted an opportunity for dialogue (People’s Assembly). Therefore, there is no need to be hesitant (do not beat the side of the drum). Rather, take full advantage of this opportunity (strike the vellum of the drum). Proverb No. 12 reminds us that the fundamental value of a material is found in its properties and performance and not in public relations. This insight is then extended to the relationship between scientific discovery and the inventor: the discovery speaks for itself.

In contrast to the above, the submissions presented in Table 4 reveal a break in the chain of the thinking process on going from Meaning (d) to Materials Connection (e). Referring to Proverb No. 2, for instance, it can be seen that the statement provided under Materials Connection is more about natural resource development than on any of the four legs of MSE. In the case of Proverb No. 8, the focus in part (e) is on scientific methodology, not on materials. Proverb No. 13 is applied to floods, erosion, and afforestation, as well as girl-child education, but not to materials science and engineering. Finally, Proverb No. 14 is directed to malaria eradication.

The assignment challenged the students’ grasp of the technical meaning of the term “material” and the associated group discussions encouraged them to link concepts and definitions to the environment around them and their everyday experiences. Thus, in Proverb No. 7 the following statement appears under column (e): “we cannot have these two above mentioned materials coming together anywhere without a deflagration”. Given the context, the two materials refer to fire and gunpowder. This statement, therefore, provides an opportunity to ask and discuss the question, “is fire a material”? Proverb No. 12 refers to common salt as a “mineral”. This can instigate an interesting conversation about the relationship between a


“mineral” and a “material.” Also, it is interesting to note for this proverb that when students cite inventors, they refer to non-African personalities of the past, i.e., Isaac Newton and James Watt (see Table 1). There is an opportunity here to encourage students to search for African inventors. For example, they may never have heard of the Ghanaian Victor Lawrence, whose pioneering inventions have led to major advances in today’s electronic data communications (National Science Foundation, n.d.; The History Makers, n.d.). Proverb No. 16 mentions “mineral resources” and links them to “raw materials,” and bemoans the fact that these are mostly exported without processing. Here, one may reflect on the relationship between “raw materials” and “engineered materials.”

IndirectionIn African societies proverbs serve as rhetorical devices which help to minimize conflict in face-to-face discourse (Yankah, 1989). Quick reactions are frustrated and possible confrontations are softened when one has to pause to decipher the hidden meaning embedded in a statement that is not expressed in direct everyday language. Often the indirection is further enriched by the multiple meanings that may be associated with a given statement.

In science and engineering pedagogy this same proverbial indirection can serve as a powerful tool for probing hidden meanings and identifying novel connections. As an illustration, consider Proverb No. 9, “Sika ano yεnam sen sekan.” It is possible that, as originally deployed, this proverb involved a play on the words “sika” and “sekan.” And sekan (knife) too could be a placeholder for afena (sword). Further, if we consider the fact that in the original context “sika”, translated here as “money”, probably referred to “gold dust”, then this proverb may be inviting us to also consider the scientific observation that gold, in the form of unaggregated particles (dust) cannot display the mechanical sharpness offered by a massive piece of metal shaped into a knife (or sword). However, here, the elders’ use of the word “sharp” may depart from everyday usage. They may be alluding to the social function of gold (money, wealth); that is, the observation that financial or economic power may be sharper (leading to conquest of nations) than military power (the knife, the sword).


Indirection frees us to direct the proverb where we want it. For example, with Proverb No. 10, we may choose to focus on the log, the water, the turtle (crocodile), or the immersion time. Thus, provided with a given starting material (log), we may be advised to face the reality that a desired product material (turtle or crocodile) will elude us so long as we choose the wrong processing conditions (water, and immersion time). On the other hand, the admonition may be intended to alert us to the fact that if we desire a particular product material (turtle or crocodile), then the starting material (log) must be selected with care.

The freedom offered by indirection can also stimulate serious scientific discussion. Regarding Proverb No. 8, we may reflect on the question: why does the cracked bell produce a dull sound compared with the undamaged bell? What is sound? How does it travel in a material, and why do the damaged and whole bells respond differently? What are the relevant materials (micro)structures? The statement “each single process is crucial to the ultimate target” also calls for further elaboration and this would require explicit consideration of specific challenges in materials processing.

In regard to Proverb No. 9 we may ask the question: How can one turn a metal powder into a massive piece of metal? For two proverbs the materials connection mentioned alloys (Nos. 3, 6). Here is an opportunity to consider some of the enhanced properties that result when two or more metals are combined to produce an alloy. What new microstructures result and how are these related to the enhanced new properties?

ConclusionAs noted above, the immediate reactions of students to the assignment was that of puzzlement and self-distancing. They had been pre-programmed to see engineering as an alien system of expertise that is disconnected from their own culture and environment. The seventeen proverbs collected in Table 1 demonstrate, however, that students were able to overcome their initial fear and disengagement.

The assignment took them outside of their comfort zone. They came face to face with the fact that knowing how to take the first step is a critical component of engineering problem solving. If you do not know any African proverbs, how should you proceed to work on the assignment? They learned that a question may serve as the first step in discovering the answer. They were used to receiving questions from instructors, but they were


less practiced in posing questions to themselves. They discovered that “I don’t know any proverbs” should lead to “Where/how can I discover some appropriate proverbs?”

Going from part (d) to part (e) of the assignment posed a major challenge to students. They could retrieve a proverb from a book, friend, or relative. But how to operationalize the request for the “materials connection”? This had to come out of their own reflections. They had to ponder the questions: “What is a ‘material’?”, “what is meant by ‘materials science and engineering’?”, and “how should one understand the term ‘materials connection’?” In the context of the course “materials connection” required that students pay attention to the technical meaning of the discipline of materials science and engineering. Accordingly, ideally the sought-after connection must be understood in terms of the relationship of the proverb to one or more of the four MSE legs, i.e., processing, structure, properties, and performance.

The method of deconstruction introduced in this paper was helpful in tracing students’ reasoning. The linkages were clear and successful when students were able to transfer the logic of the proverb to one or more of the MSE legs. When this transfer was loose, students tendered to wander into important but not immediately relevant areas, such as natural resource development, scientific methodology, natural disasters, environmental rehabilitation, girl-child education, and public health challenges.

The unsuccessful “linkages” were nonetheless instructive. They demonstrated that the assignment challenged students to reflect on the world around them, including the associated socioeconomic challenges. Further, their answers illustrated the power of indirection in proverbial discourse. A given proverb is capable of addressing multiple issues. Thus, while the focus in this paper was on materials science and engineering, it may be concluded that other engineering disciplines, such as mechanical, electrical, civil, and biomedical engineering may also provide useful opportunities for extending this approach to engineering pedagogy. Certainly, the deconstruction methodology introduced in this paper should be readily transferable to other (engineering) disciplines. And regarding sources of African proverbs, future students who plead “I do not know African proverbs” deserve no sympathy. Several collections of African proverbs are now available in books and online (Akporobaro and Emovon, 1994; Akrofi, 1958; Amadiume, 1994, 1995; Ampem, 1999; Appiah et al., 2007; Asante, 2002; Bangnikon, 1999; Dzobo, 1997; Nkansah-Kyeremateng, 2000; Knappert, 1997; Yankah, 2012).


AcknowledgementsI thank Samuel Kofi Sefa-Dedeh, the founding Dean for inviting me to spend a sabbatical semester at the then three-year-old School of Engineering Sciences at the University of Ghana. It was fun spending time with my students in the Materials and the Future course. I thank them for going with the flow and allowing me to test out the ideas reported in this paper. Without their cooperation I would not have had this opportunity to experiment this way with African proverbs. I thank my colleagues Lucas Damoah and Yaw Bensah, founding faculty of the Materials Science and Engineering department, and Titus Ofei, my able teaching assistant, for their friendship and enthusiastic support of this experiment. Sarah-Lynn Ainsaa Nuno Mansaray deserves thanks for helpful conversations and assistance with Ga translation. I thank Fran Osseo-Asare for her support and encouragement. Her original purchase of Bu Me Bɛ (Appiah et al., 2007) helped inspire this approach to engineering pedagogy. The many stimulating discussions with her plus her editorial comments were invaluable. Finally, I thank the referees for their questions and suggestions which have helped to strengthen this paper.


ReferencesAchebe, C. (1958). Things Fall Apart. London, UK: Heinemann.

Akporobaro, F. B. O. and Emovon, J. A. (1994). Nigerian Proverbs: Meanings and Relevance Today. Lagos, Nigeria: Nigeria Magazine Publication.

Akrofi, C. A. (1958). Twi Mmebusɛm. Twi Proverbs, London, UK: Macmillan.

Amadiume, C. S. (1994). Ilu Ndi Igbo: A Study of Igbo Proverbs, Vol. 1. Enugu, Nigeria: Fourth Dimension Publishing Co.

Amadiume, C. S. (1995). Ilu Ndi Igbo: A Study of Igbo Proverbs, Vol. 2. Enugu, Nigeria: Fourth Dimension Publishing Co.

Ampem, A. A. G. (1999). Akan Mmɛbusɛm Bi. Akan Proverbs in Akan and English. Kumasi, Ghana: University Press.

Appiah, P., Appiah, K. A., and Agyeman-Duah, I. (2007). Bu Me Bɛ. Proverbs of the Akans. Banbury, UK: Ayebia Clarke.

Asante, E. K. A. (2002). Akan Proverbs. Their Origins, Meanings and Symbolical Representations in Ghanaian Material Cultural Heritage. Accra, Ghana: Asempa Publishers.

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Callister, Jr., W. D. and Rethwisch, D. G. (2014). Materials Science and Engineering. An Introduction, 9th Ed. New York, NY: Wiley.

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Nkansah-Kyeremateng, K. (2000). Akanfoɔ Mmɛbusɛm Bi. Some Akan Proverbs. Accra, Ghana: Sebewie Publishers.

Knappert, J. (1997). Swahili Proverbs. Burlington, VT: Univ. of Vermont.

The History Makers (n.d.). Victor Lawrence. https://www.thehistorymakers.org/biography/victor-lawrence.

Thrower, P. A. (1991). Materials in Today’s World, 2nd. Ed. New York, NY: McGraw-Hill.

Yankah, K. (2012). The Proverb in the Context of Akan Rhetoric, 2nd. Ed. New York, NY: Diasporic Africa Press.

Yankah, K. (1989). Proverbs: The Aesthetics of Traditional Communication. Research in African Literatures, 20(3), 325-346.


AppendixTable 1: Proverbs and Materials Science and Engineering

GhanaianProverb

Lan-guage

English Transla-tion

Meaning Materials Connec-tion

1. Dua bata bo a, ne twa yε twana

Twi It is difficult to cut (chop down) a tree that is close to a rock

It is difficult to take a firm deci-sion or rebuke a family member or close friend when he or she offends you

Considering two met-als, e.g., gold and silver in jewelry production, gold is chosen because of its pureness even if it is available in smaller quantity

2. Aboa bi bεka wo a, na ɛfiri wo ntoma mu

Twi If an insect will bite you then it will be from your cloth

If someone can harm you, then it is probably a person already around you

If any group of people would want to develop their environment, they should consider first exploiting their natural resources, rather than thinking that the basic requirements for their development are found in other countries from which they have to import things.

3. Ɛnam dua so na ahoma hunu soro

Twi It is through the tree that the vine climbs up (sees the sky)

You can become a great person with the help of another

To produce an alloy, e.g., brass, two met-als – copper and zinc are mixed together to obtain the required properties.

4. Woforo duapa a, na yɛpia wo

Twi It is only when you are climbing a good tree that you receive help

It is only through lead-ing a good life that when you need help to go further you are granted it.

Any material that does not prove to conform to the specifications that you have set for a par-ticular job should sim-ply be discarded, while the potential materials for the desired need are given the necessary consideration.


5. Dua a Ananse adi awuo no, Ntikuma ntena aseε nto nko

Twi Ntikuma(son of An-anse) is not supposed to sit under a tree that has killed his father and doze off

You do not repeat an event that has landed another person in trouble.

All materials, in spite of their individual differences, can be cat-egorized into various classes and, therefore, there are some qualities that may be common. Thus, when treating such materials, tem-peratures, pressures and other variables that are known to be un-favorable to that class of materials should be looked at with care.

6. Ɛkaa deε ɔnni ntoma nko a, anka daa yεgoro asafo

Twi To the one without a cloth, asafo - a dance performed without cloth - is always preferred

This proverb frowns on laziness and encourages hard work so as to achieve greater heights in life.

A blacksmith cannot obtain good bronze without first taking the properties of tin and copper into consider-ation. The materials engineer is always in-terested in knowing the possibility of putting the materials he/she comes across into good use while probably for his/her counterparts from other disciplines this may not be of much interest.

7. Gya ne atuduro nna faako

Twi Fire and gun-powder do not sleep together

For peace of mind certain things are best left far apart

In science, we know that because of the chemical compositions of some materials we should keep them apart unless we want to generate a certain desired effect from their coming together. For instance, we cannot have these two above mentioned materi-als coming together anywhere without a deflagration or fire outbreak.


8. Ɛdɔn a εho apae no ɛnnyegye yie

Twi A cracked bell can never sound well

When something is damaged it will never give the expected output (unless it is fixed)

In science, great atten-tion is given to detail, each single process is crucial to the ultimate target. Any science project pursued outside the systematic meth-odology would lead to failure or even catastro-phe in some instances.

9. Sika ano yεnam sen sekan (afe-na)

Twi Money (gold) is sharper than the knife (sword)

Money com-mands more authority than the sword.

In materials science, certain materials become more powerful than they originally were when value is added. Money is made from mere paper whereas swords are made from strong metals but money commands so much more than the sword could ever possibly command.

10. Dua da nsuo mu kyε a εnnane akyekyedeε (ɔdɛnkyɛm)

Twi When a log lies in water for a long time it doesn’t become a tur-tle (crocodile)

Certain changes or events are simply impos-sible.

The chemical composi-tion of some materials makes them unsuited for certain applications. That is, certain things are scientifically im-possible because they defy scientific laws and principles.

11. Dua a egya anya aka ano no, ne sɔ nyε den

Twi Wood that is already touched by fire isn’t hard to set alight.

When someone already has some knowl-edge, skill or experience per-tinent to a prob-lem, it is easy to get him/her to provide help when needed.

Because some materials have certain unique properties, it is easy to get them to do partic-ular things we desire. For instance, metals have high thermal conductivity. Because mercury is metallic and fluid it is a useful ma-terial for temperature measurements.


12. Dzemekafua edo-

kui o

Ewe Salt does not praise itself.

One must not boast of his or her good quali-ties but should allow other people to see and talk about them

Common salt forms an important mineral in our diets. It adds flavor and is used for food preservation. The diverse uses of this vital mineral render it an essential part of life and make it impossible for people to deny its importance and good qualities.Inventors such as Isaac Newton, James Watt and other scientists of ancient times can be viewed as the salts of their times as well as generations to come. These people are re-membered today, not because of their words of self-exaltation but because of their great contribution to science and technology.


13. Tε ni tsutswalɔi lε tsε efɔ lε tsɔ koŋŋ tε

Ga The stone that the builders passed over became a rock in the deep forest

Something that one views as less important, can become the most valuable thing in future

In the olden days, investing in girl-child education was viewed as a waste of resourc-es since most of the girls grew up to be housewives. However, society is dynamic and with the recent surge of dual income earn-ing to ensure a good standard of living in most homes, girl-child education has become a necessity. In addition, girl-child education has encouraged gender balance in our society, and females are now given opportunities to venture into areas which were otherwise unavailable to them in the past. This has given rise to renowned female leaders such as Ellen Johnson Sirleaf (former President of Liberia), Condoleezza Rice (former U.S Sec-retary of State), Joyce Aryee (former CEO of Ghana Chamber of Mines), among others.Thus, girl-child educa-tion which was some-what rejected in the past has become very valuable in our present society.


14. Kεji tsɔ kome kpee kɔɔyɔɔ lεekuɔ

Ga When a single tree encounters strong wind, it breaks

Unity is strength or a given task is most successful when it is shared with others

Considering the recent malaria prevention program introduced in Ghana, it may be difficult to complete the program by Ghanaians alone. It therefore calls for Ghana to collabo-rate with other coun-tries or donors to pool resources to enable the program to be carried out successfully. An example of the positive outcome of such collab-oration is the donation made by the US in support of the malaria prevention program. Although Ghana could have acquired this money over a period, sharing the responsibil-ity with other countries makes it faster and relatively easier to com-plete the program.In addition, most floods and erosion can be pre-vented by embarking on afforestation pro-grams. Thus, planting an adequate number of trees will serve as windbreaks to control erosion


15. Tweneanim da hɔ a, yεmmɔ nkyεn

Twi Do not hit the side of the drum when the vellum is available

Do not be afraid to point out the mistakes of others or tell a person that he/she is at fault when he/she truly is.

When the vellum of a drum is struck, the sound produced is bet-ter than that produced by striking the side. Therefore, when people of a nation learn to put forward constructive criticisms, efficient results are obtained to enhance nation building. For instance, the government in an attempt to enable the people of Ghana assess and commend the government or bring out their griev-ances to be addressed by the appropriate authorities introduced the “People’s Assem-bly”. Therefore, if one is given such a rare opportunity to point out the mistakes of the government or offer constructive criticism for nation building and one abuses it by beating about the bush, or refuses to point out the mistakes due to fear, the desired result may not be achieved and national development may be halted.


16. Sε biribi ankɔka mpepa a, ɛnnye kyerεdε

Twi If nothing disturbs the palm frond, it does not make noise

Everything hap-pens for a rea-son or nobody takes an action without a cause to do so.

Due to the lack of the requisite technolo-gy, Ghana is forced to export important mineral resources, such as bauxite to foreign countries to be pro-cessed into alumina, which is later used in the production of aluminum products. If Ghana had the means to process the available raw materials without relying on foreign coun-tries, exportation of the raw materials would be avoided and the money gained might be used for other developmen-tal projects.

17. Dawuro mpo yεamene naεnyε n’abaa

Twi Even the gong-gong has been swallowed how much more its stick

When one over-comes a great obstacle, one is poised to over-come relatively minor ones.

The design of the gong-gong is more complex than the stick used in striking it. In addition, the gong-gong is bigger and heavier than its stick. Therefore, if one encounters a difficult situation and over-comes it successfully, one is able to tackle and overcome less-chal-lenging events.Some foreign countries are able to process raw materials to produce heavy machines for industrial use. There-fore, if Ghana should advance in technology enough to begin man-ufacturing industrial equipment and other challenging products, such as computers and airplanes as well as training people to manage our resources efficiently, it will get to a time when nothing will seem impossible for Ghanaians to do.


Table 2: Materials-related terms found in submitted proverbs

ProverbNo.

Material/Material-re-lated Entity

ProverbNo.

Material/Material-related Entity

1 Tree, rock 10 Wood (log), turtle

2 Animal, cloth 11 Wood (log)

3 Tree, vine 12 Salt

4 Tree 13 Stone, cornerstone

5 Tree 14 Tree

6 Cloth 15 Drum (vellum, side)

7 Gun powder 16 Palm frond

8 Bell 17 Gong-gong, stick

9 Gold (money), sword

Table 3: Deconstruction of students’ discussion of materials connection (part (e) of assignment)

– Group A

Proverb No.

Deconstruction (Keyword tracking) Materials Connection

1 Dua/bo/twana → tree/rock/difficult to cut → you/close friend/difficult to rebuke → silver/gold/difficult to reject

Even if compared with sil-ver, only a small amount of gold is available, it is still worth including some gold in jewelry making, because of the inherent purity of this metal

3 Dua/ahoma/hunu soro → tree/vine/climb up → another/you/attain greatness → metal1/metal2/desired alloy

Two metals (metal1 and metal2) must be combined to produce an alloy with the desired (enhanced) prop-erties. One metal helps the other.

4 Wo/foro dua pa/yɛpia wo → you/climb good tree/help (push) → you/leading a good life/you receive help to go further → material/exhibits desired properties/se-lected for task

The material with the de-sired properties (good tree) attracts the most attention


5 Dua/Ananse adi awu/Ntikuma ntena aseɛ nto nko → Tree/Ananse ate and died/Nti-kuma should avoid dozing thereunder → An event/landed another person in trou-ble/you do not repeat → environment (process, service conditions)/detrimental/avoid

Environmental, process, or service conditions that are detrimental to the stability of a given material (killed Ananse), should be avoid-ed

6 Ɛkaa deε ɔnni ntoma/yεgoro asafo → Left to one without cloth/asafo dance preferred → the lazy/avoid hard work → incompe-tent materials engineer/cuts corners

To prepare an alloy (a mixture of metals) effec-tively (i.e., a product with the desired properties and performance), one cannot bypass the need to con-sider the properties of the constituent metals (do not choose the path of the asafo dancer)

7 Gya/atuduro/nna faako → fire/gunpow-der/sleep not together → certain things/with potential antagonistic interactions/best left apart → external stimulus/mate-rial/may be incompatible

Materials properties drive materials performance. Se-lect materials with perfor-mance in mind

9 Sika/ano yεnam/sekan (afena) → Mon-ey (Gold dust)/sharper/sword → Money/greater authority/sword → economic pow-er derived by value addition to materials/may be more potent than/military power

Gold (gold dust) is sharper than the sword because it is valued more by society. Thus, one material may become more important (sharper) than another, after value addition (e.g., processing leading to de-sirable properties/ perfor-mance, or perceived great-er economic value)

10 Dua/da nsuo mu kyε/εnnane akyekyedeε (ɔdɛnkyɛm) → log/long in water/turtle (crocodile) turns not → certain changes/pursued no matter how long/simply im-possible → material/subjected to wrong processing method/cannot yield desired properties

Conversion of a log into a turtle or crocodile is im-possible, no matter the processing method im-posed. Similarly, some ma-terials are just not suited for certain applications

11 Dua/egya anya aka ano/ne sɔ nyε den → Wood/already touched by fire/is easily set ablaze → someone/already endowed with some skill/easy to help → material/known desirable properties/easily selected

Materials with established unique properties, can be readily selected for certain desired applications (per-formance)


12 Dze/mekafua/edokui o → Salt/does not praise/itself → One/must not boast/his or her good qualities → material/finds not its value in sales pitches/but in superior per-formance

The value of a material is evident in its properties and performance, not in sales pitches or advertise-ments

15 Twene/anim da hɔ a/yεmmɔ nkyεn → The vellum/is exposed/use not the side of the drum → A mistake/visible to all/no need to fear pointing it out → The People’s As-sembly/available for citizens to offer con-structive criticisms/don’t beat about the bush

When the vellum of a drum is struck, the sound pro-duced is better than that produced by striking the side. Therefore, … the gov-ernment in an attempt to enable the people of Gha-na assess and commend the government or bring out their grievances to be addressed by the appropri-ate authorities introduced the “People’s Assembly”. Therefore, if one is given such a rare opportunity to point out the mistakes of the government or offer constructive criticism for nation building and one abuses it by beating about the bush or refuses to point out the mistakes due to fear, the desired result may not be achieved and na-tional development may be halted.

16 Biribi ankɔka mpepa/εnnye kyerεdε → nothing disturbs palm frond/noise is not made → no cause/no effect → lack of tech-nology/nation cannot add value to raw materials

Without the appropriate industrial base, a nation ends up an exporter of low value raw materials

17 Dawuro mpo/yεamene/na εnyε n’abaa → Even the gong-gong/has been swallowed/how much more its stick → great obsta-cle/one has overcome/relatively minor ones easily managed → If Ghana advanc-es technologically enough to manufacture airplanes and computers/manufacture of simpler products trivial

If Ghana should advance in technology enough to be-gin manufacturing indus-trial equipment and oth-er challenging products, such as computers and airplanes as well as train-ing people to manage our resources efficiently, it will get to a time when nothing will seem impossible for Ghanaians to do


Table 4: Deconstruction of students’ discussion of materials connection (part (e) of assignment)

– Group B

Proverb No.

Deconstruction (Keyword tracking)

Materials Connection

2 Aboa/bεka wo/na efiri wo ntoma mu → insect/will bite you/will be from your cloth → If someone/can harm you/it is person already near you → natural resources/needed to advance a given society/must first be sought locally

If any group of people would want to develop their environ-ment, they should consider first exploiting their natural resourc-es, rather than thinking that the basic requirements for their development is found in other countries from which they have to import things.

8 Ɛdɔn/εho apae/εnnyegye yie → bell/cracked/can never sound well → something/is damaged/will never give expected output → systematic methodology/when absent/likely to yield poor results

In science, great attention is giv-en to detail, each single process is crucial to the ultimate target. Any science project pursued outside the systematic methodol-ogy would lead to failure or even catastrophe in some instances.

13 Tε/tsutswalɔi/tsε efɔ/koŋŋ tε → stone/builders passed over/became huge rock in deep forest → Some-thing/one views as unimportant/can become most valuable in the future → girl-child education/once con-sidered as waste of resources/now viewed as a necessity

In the immediate past, invest-ing in girl-child education was viewed as a waste of resources since girls were expected to become housewives primarily. However, today’s economic real-ities favor dual income families and girl-child education has become a necessity.

14 Tsɔ kome/kpee kɔɔyɔɔɔ/lε ekuɔ → single tree/facing storm/gets broken → a task not shared/confronted by challenges/tends to fail (Unity is strength or a given task is most suc-cessful when it is shared with others) → Ghana alone/confronting malaria eradication/cannot achieve goal

Considering the recent malaria prevention program introduced in Ghana, it may be difficult to complete the program by Gha-naians alone. It therefore calls for Ghana to collaborate with other countries or donors to pool resources to enable the program to be carried out successfully.

legon journal of the humanities · proverbs and naturalness in mother-tongue translation: the...

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