Firstly, perhaps our natural starting point should be some perspective on the unborn. Culturally, pregnancy begins the process of child formation not only physiologically but also in terms of qualities. The renowned researcher of Shona culture, Michael Gelfand (1992), reveals the following belief:
[The] mind, character and physical appearance of the foetus can be influenced by the mother, who should only look at people with particularly good characters or some admirable quality so that it can be transferred to her unborn baby. (p. 1)
In similar vein, the expectant mother must avoid unpleasant or obscene contaminants, which perhaps explains the proverb Masha41 mukadzi (Muwati, Gambashaya & Gwekerere 2011:5) to prescribe the fact that a family cannot survive without a mother. Speaking of motherhood, whilst a man’s status depends on being married and having children as well as the quantity of his possessions, a woman’s status revolves around the quality
41. The Shona concept ‘musha’ usually translated ‘home’ in this usage implies a platform for consolidating relationships and inculcating unhu/ubuntu.
of her offspring. Bourdillon (1998:53) remarks that women’s influence in the home actually is unprecedented in view of patriarchal dominance.
Muwati et al. (2011) argue that a fresh view on the status of women in Shona culture is necessary:
First is the fact that the woman is the axis around which African life, survival and perpetuation revolve. She is the centerpiece of creation. The second realization is that while the woman is the center of creation, she operates together with the male principle as embodied in the stem -na (with). Already, this brings us to issues of balance in African life in which the woman is a key participant in the search for survival. This is unlike the definition, role and status of women in Eurocentric thought in which women are marginal and have had to fight to be acknowledged as human. The Shona stand-point on women is also clear in several African creation myths where male and female principles are compatible. (p. 2)
It is for this reason that pregnancy is a delicate experience that preoccupies the mother as expressed in the proverb Mwana ndeari mudumbu, ari kunze anotambwa naye [The child, of the mother, is the one in the womb but once born everyone plays with it]. This proverb, serves to underscore the motherly preoccupation with the development of her unborn child, which usually change after the birth of the child because of the growing involvement of the community with the new born child (cf. Hamutyinei &
Plangger 1987:2 29). The Shona word for a girl, musikana, is a ‘compound which posits the woman as the one who creates together with, that is, musika- (creator) and -na (with)’ (Muwati et al. 2011:2). Applying the same rule, the Shona word for boy is mukomana made up of mukoma [brother] and na [with], implying the complimentary role of the genders.
It must be pointed out that the rich gender harmony intimated in these concepts is a far cry from current reality where male dominance is certainly pronounced and feminine subservience has given rise to various feminist movements. Gender harmony ideally places a child’s world in a conducive environment to thrive both domestically and communally.
Serpell, Mumba and Chasa-Kaball (2011) suggest that the following stands to reason:
[In] rural African societies, children were traditionally raised to believe that they were brought up by the community, that they were part of the community, and that in due course they would play an important role in the development of the community. (p. 80)
Through gender harmony and the community at large and via corporate responsibility, the home in which a child is born instils in children expressions of unhu,42 a reference to virtues, as Mandova (2013:357) indicates, ‘that celebrate mutual social responsibility, mutual assistance, trust, sharing unselfishness, self-reliance, caring, and respect for others, amongst other ethical values’. Focusing exclusively on a child becomes impossible because their world is a world of interdependent determinism.
Secondly, moving away from conception to birth, the proverb Chikuru mwana, kurwadza kwenhumbu hakuyeukwi [The importance of the child makes the mother forget her pains during child-birth] reflects the celebratory atmosphere associated with the new addition to the family (cf. Gelfand 1992:2). Gifts are brought to the child almost as a token to see the child. The proud father would express his appreciation to his wife and midwife though it must be added that there is a distinction in gratitude between a boy and girl child. The status of the girl child is represented in the proverb Kubereka mwanasikana kuchengeta mangava [To bear a daughter is to store up troubles]. It is perhaps the misunderstanding of a proverb like this which has given rise to the emancipation of women and a strong
42. Unhu is the Shona equivalent of the Nguni concept ubuntu, which prescribes patterns of behaviour acceptable to the people and subscribed to by all. Unhu practically forms one’s identity because the derivative munhu [a person] can only be assigned to one who has satisfactorily met the obligatory parameters of acceptable conduct.
focus on the girl child, which has taken centre stage in many humanitarian efforts to date.43 Although girls were generally seen as troublesome, one has to keep in mind that, within the Shona context, the father would quote this proverb when he is worried that his daughter might have misfortune in the marriage, which would cause him to return the lobola that he might have spent already. Typical of proverbs that seem to be contradictory, the proverb Mwanasikana ndimapfumise [A daughter enriches her family] is quoted at the birth of a girl to console her parents who may have wished for a boy. At the same time, the death of an infant is devastating, regardless of gender.
In their paper, Folta and Derek (1988:433) attempt to reveal the devastating impact of an infant’s death on Shona mothers and families.
In their study, they document that ‘societies with high infant and child mortality rates do not recognize infants and children as people and therefore have no burial rites’. This is rather surprising in view of the above proverb that clearly celebrates the birth of a child. Folta and Derek (1988:434) continue by asserting that the ‘implicit assumption is that in these cultures, the loss of infants and children is not mourned’, perhaps as a coping mechanism but not because they regard infants as persona non grata.
The central position that a child occupies in the community is perhaps best illustrated by the proverb Chatorwa nomucheche chatorwa nashe [What
43. Croll’s (2006) study reveals that this is not a challenge limited to African contexts only as her field research based on East, South and Southeast Asia indicate that many interventions to redress girls’ rights have mostly not translated into effective, sustained or transformative national programmes or local projects in support of girls. Kangira (2009) analyses a publication that attempts to portray the girl-child in a positive light in a patriarchal society to see how this presentation could assist in empowering the girl-child. In contrast to the above conceptions, Winer and Phillips (2012) reveal that caregivers who treat boys differently from girls, under the assumption that boys are problematic, rate boys lower than girls in these contexts.
has been taken by a child has been taken by a chief/king]. In simple terms, a child enjoys the immunity of a chief, implying communality in endorsing childhood innocence and vulnerability. Needless to say, children enjoy the best of society’s protection because of their position of dependency and hence their inferred supremacy. In this vein, one also finds the proverb Mwana mudiki chirangaranga [A child is like the top of the spinal column]. It indicates that a ‘baby has no bias and is loved by everybody [and] is freely given to anyone to hold and to look after and people are most careful in handling the child.’ This proverb is quoted freely in clarifying the position of a child in a community. (Hamutyinei
& Plangger 1987:236). This is perhaps the source of the notion ‘it takes a whole village to raise a child’. I do, however, have to qualify that the village in question has to be functional in all respects to uphold such a principle.
Thirdly, arguably the most celebrated conception of childhood is that of bringing up a child. As already indicated, this is where parental bragging rights are mostly claimed. A number of proverbs indicate the joys and challenges of this aspect of parenting more than any other. The parenting challenges are laid bare in the proverb Abereka atochena moyo [One who has borne children ought to be patient] or its variant Wabereka sekera munyasi medengu [Once you have borne a child, laugh whilst under a big basket], which advises parental patience in view of all sorts of misdemeanours to be addressed or warns them not to take pleasure in other children’s shortcomings. This is why kuudza mwana hupedzisirira [To tell a child (you) need to explain (yourself) thoroughly] is frequently cited in many parenting contexts. The benefits of careful instruction are equally recognised in the proverb Mwana chingwarire haapunyutse mbeva [A careful child does not let a mouse escape].
In his comments on the upbringing of children within the Shona context, Gelfand (1973) states:
The rich beauty of the Shona ethical code stands in sharp contrast to the material individualism of the West. The Shona possesses much that is worth retaining and the prospects are that they will save a good deal of it for succeeding generations. They will have to devise means of blending this with what the West has brought them. The concept of brotherhood, the love of a good family life with close support for its members and good neighbourliness, are the pillars of Shona culture. Africa has something to offer the world in human behaviour and this the Shona can offer to the world by their fine example. (p. 5)
I assume that the observations above relate to the world at the time of Gelfand’s research. It would be this celebrated world with which we find common ground as we reflect on the book of Proverbs – shared life (ubuntu), which Gerstenberger (2001:27), cited earlier, describes as a theology of the elementary needs of life. We note the biblical celebration of healthy children (Gn 4:1; Rt 4:14; Jr 20:15) as in the Shona culture. The naming of a child echoes the joy as the name itself is a statement not a label (cf. Gn 17:5, 15; 29:31–30:24; 32:28; 1 Sm 1:20; Ex 2:20; Rt 4:17). The importance of a name is underscored in Proverbs 22:1 (cf. 10:7; Ec 7:1), demanding living up to a desirable character and preserving the family name. It is for this reason that one finds that the precedence of parents over children projected throughout the book of Proverbs (15:20; 17:25; 20:20; 23:25; 28:24; 30:17) is a significant pre-existing order with divine sanction as Gerstenberger (2001:30) argues. As will be pointed out in the reflections that ensue, the regrettable reality is that the ideal world epitomised by ubuntu is seemingly eroding quite quickly. The world described in the proverbs cited could be a thing of the past, especially in view of the story with which we commenced this chapter. There are lessons we can extract
from these observations to inform our perspectives and, in particular, to assist with restoring our view on childhood on this continent. I now turn my attention to this.