Proverbs: Metaphors That Teach

BOSOM BISCUITS A Study of African American Intergenerational Communication

“…Hence oppressive circumstances reinforced African Americans' use of the communication strategies associated with what Ong (1989) has called &dquo;orally based thought and expression&dquo; (p. 36). Commenting on the specific nature of this oral literacy legacy found in traditional African societies, Penfield and Duru (1988) stated, Oral literacy may be one of the strongest forces available for learning in many African societies and one which can inform us a great deal about the teaching process itself in general.... We argue that one of the primary ways that abstract thought is developed in a folk society with a strong oral tradition is through the metaphorical language of proverbs. Proverbs are highly valued in African societies because they are the backbone of oral literacy and tradition.…”

Selected Agricultural Proverbs and Sindhi Peasants’ Indigenous Knowledge – A Source of Oral History

“…The informal usage of the proverbs indirectly trains the younger generation to step in the sphere of maturity. 7 The peasants' maturity demands hard work in fields, honesty, dedication, self-reliance, and wisdom. Therefore, agriculture proverbs orient the peasant to observe, learn and understand the various traditional skills related to the land, its preparation, sowing, harvesting, and its sociology -how possession of grains determine the status of the holder in the society.…”

An analysis of indigenous knowledge systems: implications for agricultural extension education with particular reference to natural resource management in Zimbabwe

“…, 1964;Bascom, 1965;Abrahams, 1976;Ben-Amos, 1976). Penfield and Duru (1988) Can the inferences from proverbs provide data which can be verified by behavioral practices or checked against other evidence? How can the findings be applied to current natural resource management (NRM) or environmental education programs?…”

“…Third, the analytical framework used in this study (see discussion below) shows the pedagogical role of proverbs. This framework combined with the metaphorical, and abstract reasoning in the imagery and structure of Shona proverbs, can be used in the teaching and learning of concepts like analogy, inferences, causality and generalizations (Penfield and Duru, 1988). These concepts apply to many academic disciplines, some of them such as inferential statistics, deemed to be hard.…”

“…What is of relevance is the concept of literalization involved in the interpretation of a proverb from Penfield and Duru's (1988) Complete literalization is usually used in adult conversation because of its complexity and deeper meanings involved.…”