MAKERERE UNIVERSITY

COLLEGE OF HUMANITIES AND SOCIAL SCIENCES

SCHOOL OF WOMEN AND GENDER STUDIES

NAME: BABIRYE JOAN NAKIBUUKA

REG.NO: 20/U/18196/PS

COURSE: BASS

SUBJECT NAME: GENDER, CONFLICT AND DISPLACEMENT

SUBJECT CODE: 2106

QUESTION.

SELECT A SOCIETY OF YOUR CHOICE, IDENTIFY 10 PROVERBS WITHIN THE SOCIETY AND DISCUSS
THE CONSTRUCTION OF GENDER IDENTITIES WITHIN THOSE PROVERBS.
The proverb is one of the well-researched genres of textual studies. Nevertheless, it continues
to be the subject of many scholarly studies from various disciplinary perspectives including,
Cultural Studies, Literature (Hussein, 2005, 2009; Jayawardena, 2015) and Philosophy
(Gyekye,1975) among others. Although it is generally perceived as a universal genre, in its
definition, it is referred to as being traditional or cultural. The Oxford Dictionary of Proverbs
(Speake 2015) defines a proverb as ‘a traditional saying which offers advice or presents a moral
in a short and pithy manner’. Mieder (2004:4) defines it as ‘a concise statement of an apparent
truth which has, had, or will have currency among the people.’ Storm (1992:168) states that
proverbs are ‘based on accumulated experience and transmitted from generation to
generation; they reveal many hidden aspects of a people's culture and way of thought.’

Proverbs reflect the realities of the moral fiber of the societies they belong to, and although
they may be cross-linguistic to some extent; they are not universal. Many scholars, in defining
proverbs from African perspectives have defined them in a way that portrays them as distinct
from those of the rest of the world. Ssetuba (2002:1), for instance states that ‘the proverb is
regarded as a noble genre of African oral tradition that enjoys the prestige of a custodian of a
people's wisdom and philosophy of life.’

Proverbs in various languages are numerous and can be subcategorized under several groups,
such as those that contain animals; humans; objects; instruments; and professionals. Although
gendered proverbs may not form high percentages of the repertoire of the proverbs of
particular societies, they have been the focus of many scholars such as Schipper (2006), Diabah
and Amfo (2015), Yusuf (1997), and Hussein (2009). Gendered proverbs refer to proverbs in
which males or females are represented explicitly or implicitly. Although most African
languages are not gender sensitive with regards to their grammar, perceptions of gender with
regards to roles and functions are historically significant. The portrayal of masculinity and
femininity in proverbs, therefore represent a society's perceptions of males and females from
various perspectives based on the gender ideology that pertains in it. Schipper (2006: 28) points
out that some proverbs are direct and literal statements, and this applies to gendered proverbs.
The fact that the literal meaning of some gendered proverbs may or may not have a direct
bearing on males or females does not mean their representation of real life perceptions and
ideologies (Schipper, 2006). In other words, the perception of gender in a particular way is
conveyed in a proverb literally or figuratively. These perceptions are embedded in the history,
culture and traditions of a society.

Among the Baganda, children begin in the early stages of life to develop lifelong attitudes
towards themselves. Baganda society pits a lot of pressure on the woman to give the man and a
clan a son. If a woman gives birth only to girls both the male and female relatives of the man
along with other members of society blame her for not giving the male a male heir. In many
folktales from Baganda and elsewhere in other places, less favored women redeem themselves
by producing daughters. Other tales tell women who produce twins and in an act of self-
preservation, choose to abandon their daughters and present only the son to their husbands.
The following are the proverbs that construct gender identities between men and women,

Anaaganja, asooka ddenzi 'one who will become a favorite, begins by giving birth to a baby
boy'. This means that for a wife to achieve being favorite, she must produce a son. The word
ddenzi which is used in the proverb above is an endearing one, leaving no doubt that what is
being talked about is a treasure therefore the boy child was considered as a treasure than a girl
child.

Ndifiira ku biggya bya baze, nga y'azaala omusika ' I will die at the graveside of my husband,
so says the mother of the heir'. This means that with the emphasis on the birth of a male child,
a woman acquires social power that she can use to challenge the men and women of her
husband's clan, and importantly her principal rival co-wives. This shows boys as a social triumph
for a mother of a baby boy unlike the baby girl.

Omwana omuwala mutuba, ataagusimba y'asuubula ' a female child is like a mutuba tree, it
is harvested by the one did not plant it'. In this proverb, the girl is likened to a mutuba tree,
the tree from which traditional clothes and bedding of the Baganda were made. It takes more
than 40years to grow to maturity, it doesn't benefit the one who planted it. Like the mutuba
tree, the girl is brought by one family and she marries into another who enjoy the benefits of
her upbringing. This proverb states the basic truth but the metaphor of the tree that is used her
underlying plight of the girl as an outsider in both her fathiand her husband's families. In one
she is planted and in another she is harvested. This makes a girl an item to be simply used in a
social game whose main players are men.

Abalungi ndagala nnamu, teziggwa mu lusuku ' the beautiful ones are like fresh banana
leaves, banana plantations are always full them'. This proverb means that beautiful women
are so many so there is no need for one to cause oneself inconvenience by senselessly pursuing
a particular beautiful woman. This means that a woman's beauty is perishable.

Bulungi bwa musajja, buzaala obunafu' The beauty of a man produces laziness'. This proverb
suggests that when a man is handsome, society has less to expect of him in terms of work and
security and makes it sound as if it is better for a man to be ugly. So beauty is a serious matter
for a woman and determines her social position and chances in life, the man's beauty is
something to be simply noted and sometimes even scorned, certainly it is hardly of any
consequence and there is categorized rejection of male beauty as a factor of any consequence
while the beauty of girls receives overwhelming emphasis. This means that a man's beauty is
less considered than a woman's beauty.

Sajjabbi liwomera mu ngabo ' An ugly man looks good when he is holding a sheild (to fight an
enemy) This proverb dismisses male beauty by directly playing down the man's physical
appearance and emphasizing his other attributes such as his ability to provide security by '
holding the sheild' and the effect to emphasize the practical aspects of the man's attributes o
ignore his appearance. This proverb means that a man beauty is not considered but his abilities
unlike that of a woman whose appearance is more considered.

Abuulira omulungi, anyumiza bangi ' Whoever confides in a beautiful one, tells many'. This
proverb accuses all beautiful women of promiscuity'. This proverb accuses all beautiful women
of promiscuity. The warning is that if you tell your secret to a beautiful woman, she would have
told many people because it is considered regular practice for such women to have many
lovers, so the secrets told by one is shared with all. This means that beautiful women are
socially untrustworthy with secrets.
Obulungi bukira obugaga ' beauty is better than wealth'. This means that the proverb is rooted
in the popular belief that the majority of women utilize their beauty to obtain gifts from rich
men who pursue them, so one who beauty, has it all. This proverb acknowledges women's
beauty as a blessing.

Sajjabbi, teribulako karungi kaalyo. ' An ugly man cannot fail to have a good aspect of
himself'. This proverb means that it is the spirit that gives birth to the thinking that a man of
whatever appearance is entitled to a beautiful woman if he is hardworking, rich from a
creditable family or other attributes socially respected in a man. This proverb acknowledges
that if a man is hardworking, rich or comes from a respectable family he can get everything he
wants including beautiful women.

Omulungi mwannyina abangi ' The beautiful one is the sister of many'. This proverb is open to
several interpretations. Some men call beautiful women their sisters as a starting point towards
befriending them, while others seek to use their association with them as a status symbol.
There are also those who want to hang around beautiful women in order to benefit from the
gifts that rich men give them. This proverb acknowledges that it is a blessing to be with a
beautiful woman because one benefits from it like receiving gifts from rich men who admire
her.

In conclusion, these proverbs show that it is necessary to emphasize the construction of gender
identities between men and women in a way that that shows that men are mostly favored than
girls and this is part of the complex socialization process that begins in infancy. The images of
both girls and boys are presented in the proverbs of the Baganda make it easier for both of
them to succumb to stereotypical understanding of the way society wants them to relate to
each other.
REFERENCES

Abasi Kiyimba 2005 Gendering social destiny in the proverbs of the Baganda. Reflections on
boys and girls becoming men and women. 04/16/2022. Journal of African Cultural Studies Vol.
17, No.2 pp253- 270.

Josephine Dzahene- Quarshie 2020 viewing gender through the eyes of proverbs Reflections of
gender ideology in the Akan and Swahili societies 04/16/2022 Journal of Pragmatics
174(2021)128-142...

Atemu Ishiabwe 2019 A collection of 100 Ganda/ Kooko (Uganda) proverbs and wise sayings.