Botswana: Kgotla ("Kote-lah") Trials Dealing with Family Disputes
Themes: Democracy -- Southern Africa -- Botswana -- Modern History
Summary:
The Tswana people innovated participatory governance through the "kgotla," public meetings that reach decisions based on consensus and often serve to resolve civil disputes. In my Africa II class, students learn about the kgotla system and then role-play kgotla meetings using actual cases (see link below). All students are required to participate, either as principal actors in the cases, or as community members who share opinions in the forum. These sessions get LIVELY if students are willing to take the plunge. :-)
Source for case scenarios and information:J. Comoroff and S. Roberts (1981), "Principles of Tswana Customary Law: A Sociology Perspective"
Summary:
The Tswana people innovated participatory governance through the "kgotla," public meetings that reach decisions based on consensus and often serve to resolve civil disputes. In my Africa II class, students learn about the kgotla system and then role-play kgotla meetings using actual cases (see link below). All students are required to participate, either as principal actors in the cases, or as community members who share opinions in the forum. These sessions get LIVELY if students are willing to take the plunge. :-)
Source for case scenarios and information:J. Comoroff and S. Roberts (1981), "Principles of Tswana Customary Law: A Sociology Perspective"
Kanga Textiles in East Africa: Ways for Women to Insult and Praise
Themes: Islam -- East Africa -- Women
Summary:
Kanga textiles are produced along the coast of East Africa and are notable for their vividly colorful designs and the proverbs that are printed on the fabric. These items are literally wearable "texts" given as gifts, usually to women, and are used by many Swahili women to communicate messages and insults in culturally acceptable ways. In class, I ask students to examine kanga images and guess what the purpose of the textiles are, then we read a case study about their usage in class. I also pair this activity while we are reading a novel, and ask the students to think about what proverbs would literary characters like to send to each other. The students must choose two characters in the novel we are reading, and decide which character is going to give the other character a kanga. Then, they must decide what the proverb will be on the kanga (I give them a list of proverbs), and they have to explain their choice to the class.
Source: Saida Yahya-Othman (1997), "If the Cap Fits: Kanga Names and Women's Voice in Swahili Society"
Summary:
Kanga textiles are produced along the coast of East Africa and are notable for their vividly colorful designs and the proverbs that are printed on the fabric. These items are literally wearable "texts" given as gifts, usually to women, and are used by many Swahili women to communicate messages and insults in culturally acceptable ways. In class, I ask students to examine kanga images and guess what the purpose of the textiles are, then we read a case study about their usage in class. I also pair this activity while we are reading a novel, and ask the students to think about what proverbs would literary characters like to send to each other. The students must choose two characters in the novel we are reading, and decide which character is going to give the other character a kanga. Then, they must decide what the proverb will be on the kanga (I give them a list of proverbs), and they have to explain their choice to the class.
Source: Saida Yahya-Othman (1997), "If the Cap Fits: Kanga Names and Women's Voice in Swahili Society"
History as Performance and Self-Praise: Yoruba Hunter Chants
Themes: Oral history -- Pre-colonial African expressions of identity and history
Summary:
Ijalas are praise hymns performed by members of the hunter class in Yoruba society. The hymns preserve community history and also offer the opportunity for the singer to praise himself. Similar to hip hop, ijala singers use hyperbole and humor to establish their authority. From these ijalas, we can learn a lot about how the Yoruba of present-day Nigeria kept historical records in pre-colonial times and nurtured a vibrant and elaborate oral culture.
Source: Adetayo Alabi (2007), "'I am the hunter who kills elephants and baboons': The Autobiographical Component of the Hunter's Chant" - Contact me for assistance accessing the article.
Summary:
Ijalas are praise hymns performed by members of the hunter class in Yoruba society. The hymns preserve community history and also offer the opportunity for the singer to praise himself. Similar to hip hop, ijala singers use hyperbole and humor to establish their authority. From these ijalas, we can learn a lot about how the Yoruba of present-day Nigeria kept historical records in pre-colonial times and nurtured a vibrant and elaborate oral culture.
Source: Adetayo Alabi (2007), "'I am the hunter who kills elephants and baboons': The Autobiographical Component of the Hunter's Chant" - Contact me for assistance accessing the article.
Islam: Using the Hadith to Stage Interventions with Literary Characters
Themes: Islam -- Ethics -- North/West/East Africa
Summary:
Understanding Islam and its relationship to Africa is a crucial part of an African studies course. While teaching North Africa, I do a unit on Islam to familiarize the students with its early history and major religious tenets. Part of this unit is a class activity that requires them to investigate the text of the hadith (collection of sayings and deeds of the Prophet Muhammad) in class. The students are to choose a morally bankrupt or wayward literary character we have read so far in the course (in our case, we are usually reading Nahgib Mahfouz's Midaq Alley) and stage a "friendly intervention" for that character using the ethical teachings from the hadith. The students create skits in which one of them plays the literary character and the others play that character's friends staging an intervention. We have had lots of fun with this, and it gives them an opportunity to learn more about the ethical teachings of Islam.
Source: Hadith online
Summary:
Understanding Islam and its relationship to Africa is a crucial part of an African studies course. While teaching North Africa, I do a unit on Islam to familiarize the students with its early history and major religious tenets. Part of this unit is a class activity that requires them to investigate the text of the hadith (collection of sayings and deeds of the Prophet Muhammad) in class. The students are to choose a morally bankrupt or wayward literary character we have read so far in the course (in our case, we are usually reading Nahgib Mahfouz's Midaq Alley) and stage a "friendly intervention" for that character using the ethical teachings from the hadith. The students create skits in which one of them plays the literary character and the others play that character's friends staging an intervention. We have had lots of fun with this, and it gives them an opportunity to learn more about the ethical teachings of Islam.
Source: Hadith online
Performing Ancient Egyptian Love Poetry: The Body and the Gaze
Themes: Gender in Ancient Egypt -- Poetry -- Nile -- Comparative literature: the Bible, Song of Solomon
Summary:
Egyptian love poetry is very sensual and incorporates nature metaphors in dealing with sex and beauty. The theme of a woman as agent of desire is evident in a few of the poems, and they are written in much the same style as the poetry in Song of Solomon. This illustrates the relative gender equality that may have existed in Ancient Egypt. The importance of the Nile is also evident in the poems. Source: The Modern History Sourcebook: Ancient Egyptian Poems
Summary:
Egyptian love poetry is very sensual and incorporates nature metaphors in dealing with sex and beauty. The theme of a woman as agent of desire is evident in a few of the poems, and they are written in much the same style as the poetry in Song of Solomon. This illustrates the relative gender equality that may have existed in Ancient Egypt. The importance of the Nile is also evident in the poems. Source: The Modern History Sourcebook: Ancient Egyptian Poems
Usage of metaphors and indirect speech in Southern Africa
Themes: language - speech patterns - respect words - gender
Summary:
The richness of language and use of indirect speech among peoples of Southern and Eastern Africa is one topic I enjoy examining with students. A fabulous book dealing with this issue among the San peoples is Women Like Meat. There are also a number of scholarly articles about the Shona on JSTOR. Contact me if you would like resources.
Summary:
The richness of language and use of indirect speech among peoples of Southern and Eastern Africa is one topic I enjoy examining with students. A fabulous book dealing with this issue among the San peoples is Women Like Meat. There are also a number of scholarly articles about the Shona on JSTOR. Contact me if you would like resources.