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1. Selected Ika Proverbs: Their Aesthetics and Contexts of Usage (EJ790148)
Author(s):
Egede, Canon Benji
Source:
Education, v127 n4 p600-608 Sum 2007
Pub Date:
2007-00-00
Pub Type(s):
Journal Articles; Reports - Evaluative
Peer-Reviewed:
Yes
Descriptors: Proverbs; Ethnicity; Aesthetics; Consciousness Raising; Oral Tradition; Foreign Countries; African Culture
Abstract: The thrust of the paper is the contention that, in their general application, proverbs are to be understood as a communal property. In specific terms, however, and as Isidore Okpewho, in African Oral Literature... (1992) affirms, "every proverb must have started its life as the product of the genius of an individual oral artist. But it becomes appropriated by the people at large because it contains a truth about life by them and appeals to their imagination by the neatness and beauty in which it has been framed" (226). Selected proverbs from among the people of the Ika ethnic nationality in the South-South geo-political axis of the Nigerian state shall be used for analysis, to justify the point made in the foregoing that a proverbial communication cannot be divorced from its referent communal or ethnic consciousness. Considered alongside their aesthetics or literary qualities and occasions of usage, Ika proverbs have, over the years, remained a vibrant form of oral literary expression among the people. All in all, they have become a veritable instrument for the transmission of the culture, as well as the manners and ideas of the Ika people of Delta state and their kith and kin from Edo State, from one generation to another. Note:The following two links are not-applicable for text-based browsers or screen-reading software. Show Hide Full Abstract
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2. Electrophysiological and Behavioral Measures of the Influence of Literal and Figurative Contextual Constraints on Proverb Comprehension (EJ757291)
Ferretti, Todd R.; Schwint, Christopher A.; Katz, Albert N.
Brain and Language, v101 n1 p38-49 Apr 2007
2007-04-00
Descriptors: Proverbs; Language Processing; Figurative Language; Reading Comprehension
Abstract: Proverbs tend to have meanings that are true both literally and figuratively (i.e., Lightning really doesn't strike the same place twice). Consequently, discourse contexts that invite a literal reading of a proverb should provide more conceptual overlap with the proverb, resulting in more rapid processing, than will contexts biased towards a non-literal reading. Despite this, previous research has failed to find the predicted processing advantage in reading times for familiar proverbs when presented in a literally biasing context. We investigate this issue further by employing both ERP methodology and a self-paced reading task and, second, by creating an item set that controls for problems with items employed in earlier studies. Our results indicate that although people do not take longer to read proverbs in the literally and proverbially biasing contexts, people have less difficulty integrating the statements in literal than figurative contexts, as shown by the ERP data. These differences emerge at the third word of the proverbs. Note:The following two links are not-applicable for text-based browsers or screen-reading software. Show Hide Full Abstract
3. Teaching the Old Testament Book of Proverbs via a Play (EJ821022)
Branch, Robin Gallaher
Christian Higher Education, v4 n1 p57-69 Jan 2005
2005-01-00
Journal Articles; Reports - Descriptive
Descriptors: Proverbs; Drama; Stereotypes; Student Attitudes; Teaching Methods; Biblical Literature; College Students; Visual Arts; Music; Video Technology; Religious Education
Abstract: As an Old Testament professor, I struggled with how to teach the Book of Proverbs and the genre of Wisdom Literature in general to my seminary students. As I read and re-read Proverbs, however, I saw it contained many character stereotypes. It is a very contemporary book, for it shows the qualities that contribute to success or failure in life over a long period. The characters in Proverbs, exaggerated as part of the genre, make important choices about how to live. I grouped verses about the types of people one sees daily in life's marketplace and wrote a vaudevillian-style play called "Life's Choices: A Play Based on Eight Characters in Proverbs." The actors, all university students, wear nametags. The set is minimal: ladders, tables, chairs. The time is morning on Main Street in the local university town. Simple Youth, a First Year student and the play's hero, faces many choices, On Main Street he meets Sluggard, who nuzzles a teddy bear and tries to sleep all day; Drunkard, who totes a big wine bottle and looks for a fight; Satisfied Husband, a magistrate who constantly talks about his noble wife, the Proverbs 31 woman; Adulteress, a lonely woman looking for men; Gossip, who delights in breaking up friendships; Lady Folly, who likes the easy way; and Lady Wisdom, who invites everybody to her banquet. Which lifestyle will Simple Youth choose? The play, containing musical interludes and dances, was so well received that it became a video and thereby a permanent teaching tool for various Old Testament classes and modules. It clearly integrates visual art and the biblical text in a modern fashion. This paper presents excerpts from the play as a discussion tool for teaching Proverbs. Note:The following two links are not-applicable for text-based browsers or screen-reading software. Show Hide Full Abstract
4. Proverb Interpretation Changes in Aging (EJ795975)
Uekermann, Jennifer; Thoma, Patrizia; Daum, Irene
Brain and Cognition, v67 n1 p51-57 Jun 2008
2008-06-00
Descriptors: Proverbs; Comprehension; Aging (Individuals); Age Differences; Cognitive Processes
Abstract: Recent investigations have emphasized the involvement of fronto-subcortical networks to proverb comprehension. Although the prefrontal cortex is thought to be affected by normal aging, relatively little work has been carried out to investigate potential effects of aging on proverb comprehension. In the present investigation participants in three age groups were assessed on a proverb comprehension task and a range of executive function tasks. The older group showed impairment in selecting correct interpretations from alternatives. They also showed executive function deficits, as reflected by reduced working memory and deficient set shifting and inhibition abilities. The findings of the present investigation showed proverb comprehension deficits in normal aging which appeared to be related to reduced executive skills. Note:The following two links are not-applicable for text-based browsers or screen-reading software. Show Hide Full Abstract
5. Revisiting a Classic (EJ795342)
Rogers, Ibram
Diverse: Issues in Higher Education, v25 n5 p13-15 Apr 2008
2008-04-17
No
Descriptors: Classics (Literature); African Culture; Novels; Authors; African Languages; Foreign Countries
Abstract: As a 26-year-old English teacher in 1958, Chinua Achebe had no idea that the book he was writing would become a literary classic, not only in Africa but also throughout the world. He could only try to articulate the feelings he had for his countrymen and women. Achebe had a burning desire to tell the true story of Africa and African humanity. The language in which he decided to write his book would prove to be pivotal, because in stories about African people in the 1950s, they rarely spoke like humans. Achebe fused English and Igbo (pronounced "EBO"), the language spoken by the Ibo people, a cultural group in Nigeria, using English words with Igbo syntax, idioms, and proverbs. The end result was one of the most acclaimed novels in literary history: "Things Fall Apart." This novel has become a required text in schools throughout Africa and the English-speaking world. It has been translated into more than 50 languages and more than 10 million copies have been sold. It is often included on lists of the top 100 novels from Africa to the United States. Published in 1958 by London's Heinemann Press, commemorative events have already taken place and others will be held throughout the world to observe the 50-year anniversary of the novel and to honor the 77-year-old Achebe, who now teaches at Bard College in New York. Note:The following two links are not-applicable for text-based browsers or screen-reading software. Show Hide Full Abstract
6. Traditional African Modes of Education: Their Relevance in the Modern World (EJ785126)
Omolewa, Michael
International Review of Education, v53 n5-6 p593-612 Nov 2007
2007-11-00
Descriptors: Higher Education; Story Telling; Learning Strategies; Educational Practices; Foreign Countries; Vocational Education; Indigenous Populations; Educational Quality; Folk Culture; Role
Abstract: This article explores the characteristics, goals, modes of transmission, teaching and learning strategies of indigenous African education, in which the pursuit of excellence and quality has always been an important aim. Informal and vocational training constitute the core of indigenous education in Africa. Under this traditional system, each person in the community is practically trained and prepared for his/her role in society. It is a holistic system, in which story telling, proverbs and myths also play an important role. The author suggests the adoption of some of the elements of this system into modern-day educational practice as a strategy for improving quality. Note:The following two links are not-applicable for text-based browsers or screen-reading software. Show Hide Full Abstract
7. Children's Understanding of "Ubuntu" (EJ776228)
Bonn, Marta
Early Child Development and Care, v177 n8 p863-873 2007
Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Descriptors: Urbanization; Content Analysis; Cultural Maintenance; Humanism; Interviews; Childhood Attitudes; Black Dialects; African Studies; African Culture; Human Relations; Social Values; Developmental Tasks
Abstract: The concept of "Ubuntu" has recently received a lot of attention in spite of the fact that there is no consensus about its meaning. African scholars have strived to attain a common meaning and English translation, and while they agree that it is typically and solely African, the closest some have come up with is "African humanism". A South African saying is frequently used to illustrate the core tenet of the ethics of "Ubuntu": "unumtu ngumumntu ngabantu", which translated into English means: "A person depends on others to be a person." The principles underlying the way of life proposed by "Ubuntu" are transferred from generation to generation through fables, sayings, proverbs and by tradition through the socialization of children in which the whole community is involved. Bearing in mind that traditional values may become diluted or lost during times of change and urbanization, 215 South African black children of two different age groups and from three geographical areas--rural, urban and semi-urban--were interviewed about their understanding of the concept of "Ubuntu". A content analysis of their responses refutes the belief that the traditional ethics of "Ubuntu" are disappearing with the changes taking place and the rise in urbanization. While the replies of the children sometimes reflected the prominence of those facets of "Ubuntu" which might have had more significance in their specific milieu and age, perhaps denoting that the community selected views of "Ubuntu" which made more sense to them, from the results of this study, it can be said that "Ubuntu" is still alive and thriving as far as these children were concerned. (Contains 3 tables.) Note:The following two links are not-applicable for text-based browsers or screen-reading software. Show Hide Full Abstract
8. Exploring African Life and Literature: Novel Guides to Promote Socially Responsive Learning (ED497897)
Glasgow, Jacqueline N., Ed.; Rice, Linda J., Ed.
International Reading Association
Books; Collected Works - General
N/A
Descriptors: Foreign Countries; Classics (Literature); Novels; Oral Tradition; Citizenship Education; Global Education; Social Responsibility; Folk Culture; Childrens Literature; Adolescent Literature; Secondary School Curriculum; College Curriculum; Classroom Techniques; Civil Rights; Gender Differences; African Culture; Academic Standards; Films; Cultural Pluralism; Arabs; Females; Slavery; Political Issues; International Cooperation; Racial Relations; Equal Education; Conflict
Abstract: In today's interconnected and global society, socially responsive learning is an integral part of educational excellence. This book encourages socially responsive learning by showing the reader how to use traditional African folk tales and quality children's books, young adult novels, classic literature, and film media about Africa as the mode for examining diversity, equity, and human rights issues in high school and university classrooms. Each Novel Guide chapter in this unique and remarkable resource offers the following features to provoke critical thinking and challenge students to become socially responsive learners: (1) An overview of the novels and activities how those activities are aligned with standards; (2) An exploration of each novel's social and historical context; (3) About the author descriptions and plot summaries; (4) "Making Connections" question sets; (5) A critical exploration of themes; (6) "Teacher Talk" questioning strategies; (7) Cross-curricular activities; and (8) A "Making-A-Difference Project." The literature explored in this book helps students and teachers to expand not only their concept of global issues and awareness of what is at stake when various kinds of injustice are ignored, but also how they may become activists on the global scene, citizens who can make a positive difference in the world. After a Foreword (Allan Stratton) and Preface ("Teaching Human Rights in the Era of Globalization," Jacqueline N. Glasgow and Linda J. Rice), this book is divided into five parts. Part I: Getting Started, contains the following chapters: (1) Rationale for Using Novel Guides to Explore African Life and Culture Through Literature (Jacqueline N. Glasgow and Linda J. Rice); and (2) Building Students' Background Knowledge of African Life and Culture (Jacqueline N. Glasgow and Linda J. Rice). Part II: Novel Guides to Explore the Arab World in Northern Africa, contains the following chapters: (3) Life in Sudan: From Slavery to Freedom (JacquelineN. Glasgow); and (4) The Struggle of Arab Women to Lead Self-Determining Lives (Jacqueline N. Glasgow). Part III: Novel Guides to Explore the Life and Culture of People in Central Regions of Africa, contains: (5) Voices Resisting Colonial Rule in Nigeria (Jacqueline N. Glasgow); (6) Conflicts in Rituals and Politics in Kenya (Linda J. Rice); (7) Rites of Passage for Young Girls in the Central Regions of Africa (Jacqueline N. Glasgow); and (8) Connections and Communication across the Continents: From Ethiopia to the United States (Alexa L. Sandmann). Part IV: Novel Guides to Explore the Life and Culture of People in Sub-Saharan Africa, contains the following chapters: (9) Exploitation Through Child Labor and Animal Poaching in 19th-Century South Africa (Linda J. Rice); (10) Racial Tensions, Injustice, and Harmony in South African Literature (Linda J. Rice); (11) The Struggles for Human Rights in the Young Adult Literature of South Africa (Jacqueline N. Glasgow); (12) Life and Literature in Botswana: Resolving Cultural Conflicts to Create a Better World (Jacqueline N. Glasgow); and (13) Cultural Conflicts and Choices for Education of Young Women in Pre- and Post-Colonial Zimbabwe (Jacqueline N. Glasgow and Kara Haas). Part V: Resources to Explore Africa Through Film, Children's Literature, and the Oral Tradition, contains the final chapters: (14) Using Film Media as Visual Text for Studying the Rwandan Genocide (Ruth McClain); (15) Children's Literature as a Means of Exploring African Life (Allison L. Baer); and (16) Exploring the African Oral Tradition: From Proverbs to Folk Tales (Jacqueline N. Glasgow). (Contains author and subject indexes.) Note:The following two links are not-applicable for text-based browsers or screen-reading software. Show Hide Full Abstract
9. Making Non-Fluent Aphasics Speak: Sing along! (EJ769356)
Racette, Amelie; Bard, Celine; Peretz, Isabelle
Brain, v129 n10 p2571-2584 Oct 2006
2006-10-00
Descriptors: Aphasia; Singing; Speech Communication; Recall (Psychology); French; Speech Therapy; Patients; Neurological Impairments; Experiments
Abstract: A classic observation in neurology is that aphasics can sing words they cannot pronounce otherwise. To further assess this claim, we investigated the production of sung and spoken utterances in eight brain-damaged patients suffering from a variety of speech disorders as a consequence of a left-hemisphere lesion. In Experiment 1, the patients were tested in the repetition and recall of words and notes of familiar material. Lyrics of familiar songs, as well as words of proverbs and prayers, were not better pronounced in singing than in speaking. Notes were better produced than words. In Experiment 2, the aphasic patients repeated and recalled lyrics from novel songs. Again, they did not produce more words in singing than in speaking. In Experiment 3, when allowed to sing or speak along with an auditory model while learning novel songs, aphasics repeated and recalled more words when singing than when speaking. Reduced speed or shadowing cannot account for this advantage of singing along over speaking in unison. The results suggest that singing in synchrony with an auditory model--choral singing--is more effective than choral speech, at least in French, in improving word intelligibility because choral singing may entrain more than one auditory-vocal interface. Thus, choral singing appears to be an effective means of speech therapy. Note:The following two links are not-applicable for text-based browsers or screen-reading software. Show Hide Full Abstract
10. Idea Habitats: How the Prevalence of Environmental Cues Influences the Success of Ideas (EJ747036)
Berger, Jonah A.; Heath, Chip
Cognitive Science, v29 n2 p195-221 2005
2005-00-00
Descriptors: Incidence; Cues; Success; Hypothesis Testing; Competition; Newspapers; Proverbs; Content Analysis; Cultural Context; Change; Adoption (Ideas); Cultural Influences; Verbal Communication; Language Styles
Abstract: We investigate 1 factor that influences the success of ideas or cultural representations by proposing that they have a habitat, that is, a set of environmental cues that encourages people to recall and transmit them. We test 2 hypotheses: (a) fluctuation: the success of an idea will vary over time with fluctuations in its habitat, and (b) competition: ideas with more prevalent habitats will be more successful. Four studies use subject ratings and data from newspapers to provide correlational support for our 2 hypotheses, with a negative factoid, positive rumor, catchphrases, and variants of a proverb. Three additional experimental studies manipulate the topic of actual conversations and find empirical support for our theory, with catchphrases, proverbs, and slang. The discussion examines how habitat prevalence applies to a more extensive class of ideas and suggests how habitats may influence the process by which ideas evolve. Note:The following two links are not-applicable for text-based browsers or screen-reading software. Show Hide Full Abstract
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