AFL2603 Portfolio Examination 2021.

AFL2603 Portfolio Examination 2021. Literature And Society: A Perspective On African Languages. How parents educated their children in the olden days prior to formal education. Educating the young is a vital part of every culture. Prior to the western formal education Aficans had a way of ensuring that their young acquired knowledge, skills, values, and beliefs. Educational practices through the transmission of indigenous knowledge from adult to child had long been an Afrcan way of life. African children were brought up by the community and educated about the culture and traditions of the community. The curriculum that was used in the olden days included Lullaby’s (Imilolozelo,izilandelo),Riddles (iziphicaphicwano), Praises and praise names (Izibongo ne zithakazelo), Proverbs and idioms (Izisho nezaga), Poems (Izinkondlo), Culture and traditions (amasiko, nesikompilo), Tales, legends, folklores and myths (izinganekwane, izinsumansumane, iziganeko, imizekeliso) and Games (imidlalo yesintu). Each of these genres had different yet important roles to play in educating a child. All these were handed down orally from generation to generation to pass on important cultural information, build relationships, teach lessons, describe situations, and entertain each other. Tales, legends, folklores and myths (izinganekwane, izinsumansumane, iziganeko, imizekeliso). These were beneficial to children as young people develop listening and communication skills. They (story telling) help to develop the vocabularies of children, teach them about the society in which they live and how to obey norms and values. Folktales(izinganekwane) were a good form of entertainment but they had other roles they played. For instance, they educated and validated cultural and social practice. These stories were undoubtedly both recreational and educational. Folktales always contain a theme that educates or that raises some kind of awareness on very important issues in life. Through these stories children were educated about the dangers of jealousy, arrogance, greed, unfaithfulness, cruelty, laziness, while on the other hand, the importance of qualities like wisdom, bravery,cooperation, love, kindness, patience, obedience, etc. Children learned what needs to be avoided and what needs to be held onto in order to keep their identity. They taught children how to live in harmony with others; the importance of sharing and being content with what one has. for example Honeyguide's Revenge This is the story of a honeyguide who directed a man, Gingile, to a hive so that they could share honey. However, the man was greedy and had it all for himself. The guide was furious and decided to trick the man to get some more honey from a leopard’s nest. The man ended up hurting his bones because of his greed so the moral lesson here is that we should be satisfied with what we have. This study source was downloaded by from CourseH on :49:00 GMT -06:00 This study resource was shared via CourseH AFL 2603 portfolio OCT/NOV 20202 African tales taught about creation and the creator( unvelinqangi) for instance how death came about . The Curse of the Chameleon :This a story about how the chameleon allowed himself to be tricked by the snake. God the Creator had given the chameleon a package to deliver to mankind, but the chameleon allowed himself to be tricked. After that, he became the slow animal we know today. It teaches the importance of being loyal and avoiding destruction that may cause us not to fulfil our mission. Stories often end with a message or a truth to remember for the future as one grapples with life’s problems. The proverbs ( izaga) served various purposes, such as to express general truths, to warn, advise or encourage to do good. It was mainly used to comment on a social situation where a human being interacts with another human being. It also serves a educatinal function. It has impacted may be positive (encouraging, advisory) or negative (warning, judgmental). Examples: Umuthi ugotshwa usemanzi. ( The tree is bent whilst young.): A sapling is flexible and may easily bend without breaking. Any attempt to break an old tree will break and destroy it.This proverb was used in bringing up children. A child should be properly trained in the mode of behaviour the parents want of him, and when the child is old, he/she will find no difficulty in behaving as he/she is expected. Left until too late, it may never be possible to train a child properly. Unyawo alunampumulo. (The foot has no nose.) : Treat strangers with kindness because one never knows where his feet will carry him one day. Idioms( Izisho) were linguistic forms that added colour to speech and rendered expressions more effective. They were used to enrich a person’s language. In the olden days children’s language was developed and enriched by what they hear. Another reason why they may be used was euphemism, i.e. as polite ways of saying things. In african cultures children were taught to say other things in a polite manner. This instilled respect. Examples: In a Zulu culture it is disrespectful for a child to say an adult is drunk (udakiwe) he would rather say usuthi/udlile.( he is full up/ he has taken too much liquor.) Riddles can be seen as a game however, through these games children increased their vocabulary,learned about their surroundings and environment, learned to think quickly and accurately and interact with each other which develops communication skills and it promoted them to pronounce, articulate and speak their language properly especially in long riddles. Children were taught how to form meaningful sentences in simple language as well as in poetic language when posing riddle questions. Children are also introduced to a variety of vocabulary items. Riddles This study source was downloaded by from CourseH on :49:00 GMT -06:00 This study resource was shared via CourseH AFL 2603 portfolio OCT/NOV 20202 also had the potential of introducing new onomatopoeic words in a language. Onomatopoeia provides the means for the expression of shades of meaning which words like nouns, adjectives, verbs and adverbs alone cannot convey meaning Examples:1. Ngikuphica ngendlu yami engenawo umnyango. (I trick you with my house which has no door.) Answer : Iqanda (An egg). 2. Ngikuphica ngomuntu wami ohamba ngezinyawo ezine ekuseni, kuthi emini ahambe ngezimbili bese ehamba ngezintathu ntambama. (I trick you with my person who walks on four in the morning, at noon he walks on two and just before sun set he walks on three.) Answer : Umuntu, esemncane ugaqa ngezandla nezinyawo, uma esekhulile uhamba ngezinyawo uma esemdala ahambe nangodondolo. ( A human being, when very young he crawls using both hands and feet, on growing up he walks on two feet and when old he also uses a stick. ).