I have a request which I hope some(one) from the RT list may be able
to help with:
Riddles and proverbs play an important role in the oral cultures of
all African language groups with which I have worked. Sometimes the
meaning is clear, even to my western mind; for example:
A LUNATIC SHOULD NOT BE IMITATED (President Bush please note)
Other sayings are less transparent:
A MOTHER'S BUTTOCKS BUY A FIELD
These are both proverbs translated from the Digo language, and there
are some 250 others which some of my colleagues are analysing. Since
RT is a theory of communication and cognition, it should have
something to say about how riddles and proverbs are interpreted. Does
anyone know of any references relating to this topic?
In 1992 (shortly after his release from prison in Malawi for writing
poems critical of the then president, Hastings Banda) Jack Mapanje
presented a paper at the University of York (UK) on Relevance Theory
and African Riddles, after which he moved to the University of Leeds.
Does anyone know where Jack Mapanje is now or whether he has published
anything on (African) Riddles? (Although I'm on email I don't have
easy access to the internet.)
Please address responses to me personally rather than to the list,
Many thanks,
Steve
Oh, by the way, my Digo friends inform me that the intended meaning of
A MOTHER'S BUTTOCKS BUY A FIELD is that if a man really loves a woman,
he will provide an inheritance for all her children, including those
to whom he is not the biological father.
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