Abstract

This paper presents how Nzema proverbs portray women in society. An analysis of the

images of women in Nzema proverbs shows that most of the key images used relate to sexuality

and procreation and therefore perpetuate traditional perceptions of women. Qualities that are

praised in men, such as authority, economic independence and aggression, are not appreciated on

equal terms in women. Women are praised for their fertility, humility, kindness, loyalty,

reliability and dependence. Examples of such Nzema proverbs include: Saa raalɛ tɔ etu a ɔgyi

nrenyia sua nu –“when a woman buys a gun it is kept in the custody of man”. This implies that

whatever belongs to a woman is under the care of her husband. Samples of similar Nzema

proverbs relating women are taken from books, native speakers of the language and analysed

thematically. Among the themes include proverbs that portray women as subordinate, weak,

secretive and obedient. The paper rests on the premises that the images of women as projected in

Nzema proverbs are meant to maintain a status quo where women are seen as partners to their

husbands and as co-citizens to their males of their land by virtue of their psychological and

physiological make-up.

Key words: socialization, gender, philosophy.

1. Introduction

According to Njau (1994), social construction of gender is an end result of the process of

socialization – a process through which the values, norms, beliefs, wisdom, philosophy, customs,

skills and practices of the community and the society are learned, accepted and internalized.

Socialization, therefore, means that people are taught to accept and perform the roles and

functions fixed by society. Men and women are socialized into accepting different gender roles

from birth. Establishing different roles and expectations for men and women is a key feature of

socialization in most societies. While men and women differ on account of their biological and

anatomical constitution, gender differences are a product of socio-cultural traditions which are

created and perpetuated through cultural forms such as belief systems and rites as well as

through proverbs and tales, among others, as asserted by Kabira (1994).

A person’s gender behaviour is affected by social or cultural expectations. These

expectations originate from the preconception that certain qualities and therefore roles are

‘natural’ for women while other qualities and roles are ‘natural’ for men. Based on that

assumption, males and females are socialized through social pressure and conditioning to learn

and act according to the different qualities that society considers ‘natural’ for them. Socialization

aims at preparing individuals for their respective roles in society, installing principles, forming

individuals and making them useful members of society.

Based on the above assumptions, this paper seeks to examine one agent of socialization,

namely proverbs and the role they play i0n the social construction of gender. Proverbs are a

literary genre which has been used from times immemorial by the most different people all over

the world, expressing in physical and abstract terms people’s understanding of their

surroundings. Culler (1975) observes that proverbs represent an “anonymous collective voice

whose origin is human wisdom”, Madumulla (1995) notes: “The fact that proverbs are said to

express the collective wisdom of people implies that they constitute the philosophy of the people

reflecting their modes of thinking, embodying their traditional values and means of safeguarding

them.”

Such social constructs are not prejudices against women as many researchers point out. The

stand of this paper is that, the proverbs about women only report what women are and what they

have ever done in society. Though some of such reportages may be ‘bad’, they are, in no way

hindrances to women’s desire to achieve the best in life. In the midst of all these so-called

negative images some proverbs create about women, there are a number of them whose names

are recorded in the hallmark of success robbing shoulders on equal terms with men. Among them

are Yaa Asantewa, the Queen mother of Ejuso who led her people to war, Hillale Johnson, the

president of Liberia and a former president of Congo Republic.

1.1. Research Questions

The study sets out to answer the following questions:

(1) How are women depicted in Nzema proverbs?

(2) In how far does the portrayal of women in Nzema proverbs reflect gender-related ideologies

in the communities?

(3) In which way do images of women in Nzema proverbs affect the gender roles and attitudes

prevailing in these communities?

2. The Concept of Proverbs

Defining a “proverb” is a difficult task. Proverb scholars often quote Archer Taylor’s

classic. “The definition of a proverb is too difficult to repay the undertaking... An

incommunicable quality tells us this sentence is proverbial and that one is not. Hence no

definition will enable us to identify positively a sentence as proverbial” Another common

definition is from Russell (1850) “A proverb is the wit of one, and the wisdom of many.”

Proverbs are generally referred to as sayings of the wise (men), they are used to convey

certain messages which reflect the norms and values of the society and are passed on from one

generation to the other. Proverbs are mostly a domain of adults but children also use them.

Proverbs cover every sphere of life. They are generally not explained but members of the given

community understand their message through the context. Proverbs help to maintain certain

attitudes.

Hence those which are used in reference to men or women help to convey a certain

picture of what women or men are what they should be, how they should be treated in society as

Ayanga (1996) supports.

Proverbs are often poetic in and of themselves, making them ideally suited for adapting

into songs. Proverbs have been used in music from opera to country to hip-hop. Proverbs have

also been used in music in other languages, such as the Akan language.

2.1. Cultural values and Proverbs

There is a longstanding debate among proverb scholars or paremiologists as to whether the

cultural values of specific language communities are reflected (to varying degree) in their

proverbs. Many claim that the proverbs of a particular culture reflect the values of that specific

culture, at least to some degree. Many writers have asserted that the proverbs of their cultures

reflect their culture and values; this can be seen in such titles as the following: Vietnamese

cultural patterns and values as expressed in proverbs, Huynh Dinh Te. (1962), Fatalistic traits

in Finnish proverbs, Kuusi (1994).The Wisdom and Philosophy of the Gikuyu proverbs: The

Kihooto worldview, Wanjohi (1997), Prejudice, power, and poverty in Haiti: a study of a

nation's culture as seen through its proverbs, Tavernier-Almada (1999), Proverbiality and

worldview in Maltese and Arabic proverbs, Mifsud-Chircop (2001).

However, a number of scholars argue that such claims are not valid. They have used a

variety of arguments. Related to this line of argument, from a collection of 199 American

proverbs, Jente (1932) showed that only 10 were coined in the USA, so that most of these

proverbs would not reflect uniquely American values. Grauberg (1989) argues that since many

proverbs are so widely circulated they are reflections of broad human experience, not any one

culture's unique viewpoint. Giving another line of reasoning that proverbs should not be trusted

as a simplistic guide to cultural values, Mieder (1993) once observed “proverbs come and go,

that is, antiquated proverbs with messages and images we no longer relate to are dropped from

our proverb repertoire, while new proverbs are created to reflect the mores and values of our

time”, so old proverbs still in circulation might reflect past values of a culture more than its

current values. With so many barriers to a simple calculation of values directly from proverbs,

some scholars like Prahlad (1996) feel "one cannot draw conclusions about values of speakers

simply from the texts of proverbs". Also, within any language’s proverb repertoire, there may be

as Doyle (2012) puts it, “counter proverbs”, proverbs that contradict each other on the surface.

When examining such counter proverbs, it is difficult to discern an underlying cultural value.

Many outsiders have studied proverbs to discern and understand cultural values and world

view of cultural communities. These outsider scholars like Larry (1982) are confident that they

have gained insights into the local cultures by studying proverbs, but this is not universally

accepted.

Seeking empirical evidence to evaluate the question of whether proverbs reflect a culture’s

values, some have counted the proverbs that support various values. For example, Moon (2009)

lists what he sees as the top ten core cultural values of the Builsa society of Ghana, as

exemplified by proverbs. Moon (2009) found that 18% of the proverbs he analyzed supported the

value of being a member of the community, rather than being independent. This was

corroboration to other evidence that collective community membership is an important value

among the Builsa.

There are many examples where cultural values have been explained and illustrated by

proverbs. For example, in Nzema there is a proverb that shows the peoples’ cultural value does

not favour friendship: Too much friendship made the crab lose its head. The Gurunis also have it

that: A running cow has no faeces, which shows the significance of faeces in that society. These

are significant evidence that some proverbs reflect the cultural values of a group of people.

Identity as a cultural element is one of such reflections of proverbs among the Nzema. A number

of proverbs relating women actually construct their social and political identity. But the

controversy is shifted to another dimension of whether the proverb portrays the women the way

they are not or proverbs only describe the nature of women as seen by society.

In this write-up the analysis is based on establishing how proverbs portray women in the

Nzema society. This could further be explained that women are seen in peculiar ways which are

informed by Nzema proverbs and such images depicted are accepted by the society by the belief

that a proverb is a doubtless statement that reveals only the truth. The view that proverbs report

only facts could also be a subject of debate because until recently, society is refusing to accept

everything reported by proverbs.

2.2. Conservative language of Proverbs

Because many proverbs are both poetic and traditional, they are often passed down in fixed

forms. Though spoken language may change, many proverbs are often preserved in conservative,

even archaic, form. In Nzema, for example, words like akɔkɔsekyi (vulture), Kwesi & Quarm

(1998), is no longer in everyday usage, ɛkpɔtɛ is rather common. Others are ayedɛ (knife), now

dadeɛ, ahweanga (slim), now ɛdenra and belandane (shed), now kpɔda. In English, for

example, "betwixt" (now “between”) is not used by many, but a form of it is still heard (or read)

in the proverb "There is many a slip 'twixt the cup and the lip." The conservative form preserves

the meter and the rhyme. This conservative nature of proverbs can result in archaic words and

grammatical structures being preserved in individual proverbs. The conservative form of

proverbs explained should help one to understand why some proverbs contain archaic words or

words from other languages.

In addition, proverbs may still be used in languages which were once more widely known in

a society, but are now no longer so widely known.

Proverbs are often handed down through generations in the Nzema society. Therefore, many

proverbs refer to old measurements, obscure professions, outdated weapons, unknown plants,

animals, names, and various other traditional matters. Therefore, it is common that they preserve

words that become less common and archaic in broader society. For example, English has a

proverb The cobbler's children have no shoes. The word "cobbler", meaning a maker of shoes, is

now unknown among many English speakers, but it is preserved in the proverb. In Nzema, dwɛtɛ

used to be money instead of ezukoa as used today hence the proverb Dwɛtɛ yɛ fɛ na bɛnga

bɛntafe, meaning money is delicious yet it cannot be tasted.

3. Materials and Procedures

The proverbs considered in this study were collected from a book of Nzema proverb. In the

past, there was a tendency to examine African proverbs that talk exclusively about womanhood

to understand the role and position of women in Africa (Mbiti, 1988). The major pitfall of such

an approach is that it does not give one a fuller understanding of gender relationships between

men and women. It would be difficult for one “to understand the social construction of either

masculinity or femininity without reference to the others” (Kimmel, 1987: 12) “as the two are

relational constructs” (Jackson, 1993: 66). In Africa even proverbs that principally point out

men’s and women’s occupation of distinct physical and psychological dimensions of existence

basically communicate the contested relationship between them. In this study, proverbs about

manhood were included for a better analysis of the relationship between the sexes.

3.2 . Method of Data Collection

The proverbs for the study were selected from a book of Nzema proverbs published at the

Bureau of Ghana Languages. In addition, speakers of the language were asked to give proverbs

related to women, their meaning and the situation where they are used, after that the writer, as a

native speaker, added some few. Inquiries about the authenticity of the proverbs were made

through further questioning of the speakers. The people consulted, stay in the community, use

the language very often at funerals, gatherings and other social functions where proverbs are in

daily use. Some of them hold the position of chiefs, council members, staff bearers and family

heads. In the Nzema society, these people are considered custodians of the culture and the most

reliable persons to resort to for such information.

3.1. Method of Data Analysis

Any study on African proverbs should start from the complex cultural, social and

psychological factors that influence the production and consumption of the proverbs. For

example, the Nzema proverb,

Raalɛ biala lɛ ye kodoka.

Woman every has her corner

‘Every woman has her secret’,

may be used to inform or warn a husband who wants to know everything about his wife. This is a

circumstance meaning of the proverb. The same proverb could be used to socialize males in

general so that they would know how to “properly” handle their future wives. This means that

the domain of discourse affects the meaning of a proverb.

The kind of a sexist proverb a person uses and the degree of explicitness in which the

proverb and the situation that triggered its utterance relate to each other are partially determined

by the kind of assumption the speaker of the proverb makes about the knowledge the receiver

shares with him or her. In turn, the way a listener perceives a proverb may be affected by the

kind of hypothesis or proposition he/she constructs about the speaker’s plans and intentions upon

hearing the proverb. Just as in the reading process, Kramsch (1997) said the listener of a proverb

may adjust, revise or discard his or her schemata as the transparency of the rhetorical situation of

the proverb increases.

As other researchers like Paltridge, (1994) and Tyler (1994) stressed, the structural

simplicity of a text (proverb) may not guarantee increased comprehensibility. A reasonable

understanding of the proverb should take into account the historical and cultural contexts within

which they were structured. Without such information, one can hardly make out the meaning of

the proverb. In general, a listener is required to look for interlocking relationships between

language (lexis and syntax) and what is not language according to Bell, (1991) and Paltridge,

(1994). These extra textual factors may include context of situation (e.g., sociological variables

and the physical and temporal occurrence of the proverb), discourse features (e.g., the tenor of

discourse and the domain of discourse), and the semiotic occurrence of the proverb. Since a

single proverb can have divergent meanings used under varied circumstances, it is difficult to

sharply distribute individual proverbs across distinct themes. For example, there is a situation

where a proverb chiefly used to indirectly denigrate femininity suggests how the ideal of

masculinity potentially leads men to pronounce risk. This fact requires one to combine two

methods of analyzing qualitative data: content analysis and hermeneutics, Frey et al., (1991),

Hitchcock & Hughes (1995).

4. Thematic discussion of the construction femininity in sample proverbs

After collecting the proverbs, they are categorized according to their general propositional

content. The categorizations are made by looking at the most obvious superficial meanings of the

proverbs. There is no fixity in the categorization made. It is obvious that if the researcher works

again and again over the proverbs, he may find intra-textual synonymy between them.

Here, the researcher discusses the meaning of the proverbs and their social and

psychological implications on women as well as men. Due to space limitation and to avoid

unnecessary repetition of similar ideas, the researcher avoided discussing the meaning of each

proverb separately. The discussion has therefore been done under themes and proverbs that fall

under each theme have been enlisted under it.

A theme is the major idea or moral precepts in a particular work (Agyekum, 2007). A

theme generally can be referred to as the main idea within a piece of information; be it written or

oral. Braun et al (2006) see a theme in research as a representation of a level of patterned

response or meaning from the data that is related to the research questions at hand.

It must also be known that references have been made to some proverbs about men in some

cases as the subject about women could not be completely dealt with if it is done in isolation.

4.1. Proverbs depicting the subordination of women and the superiority of men.

Some proverbs show that women have no or little power over their men counterparts and in

marriage, power is in the hands of the husband, the woman is to be submissive and obedience to

her husband without complaining. Others go further to point out that whatever a woman

possesses belongs to her husband. First, this informs the husband about his responsibility in

taking care of his wife. It socializes men to care for their wives and what their wives possess.

Secondly, it tells women to respect and obey their husbands. Women are to eschew stubbornness

to the authority of their husband and no matter how rich a woman may be, the man is still the

commander in chief and administrator of the marriage household. The essence of such proverbs

is to ensure peace and order in the marriage home and society at large. It establishes the need for

a leader who serves as a uniting and controlling force in societal life, without which there could

be lawlessness. Imagine what would happen if everybody is a leader in all affairs. An organized

society therefore requires a hierarchy of administration. This is sometimes seen as oppression to

women but we should not lose sight of the fact that even in every country, however wise her

people, they still need a national leader who steers national affairs towards its set goals. Among

such proverbs are:

a) Raalɛ sie boane a nrenyia a pɛ ye bolɛ a.

Woman rears sheep (Part.) man that burgain its price

(Part.)

“When a woman rears a sheep, it is her husband who determine the price”.

It means a woman’s authority lies with her husband. It also means a woman is under her

husband. It is used to show a woman that she is under her husband in terms of power relation or

authority.

Traditionally, rearing of animals is the occupation for men while the woman provides

assistance in feeding, bathing or cleaning the pens. If a woman is given a goat as a gift, she

would add to her husband herd because the two make a family and what belongs to her also

belongs to him. The proverb therefore shows women as belonging to their husbands.

Again, it could also be explained that so far as the man has not traveled he remains the

supreme authority and in his absence his wife is the next in command unless he stated

categorically of some other person such as his first son in his place. Even in this case, a son

cannot bypass his mother and take decisions when his father is away and he has been assigned

some responsibilities. His mother still remains the next in command. The woman remains a

subordinate among the extended family households as far as her husband is in control, but not to

her own children or the children of other household members. Her subordination is felt only

when her husband or parents-in-law are around.

(b) Nrenyia a kposa maa raalɛ di a.

Man that chew for woman eat (Part.)

It is the duty of the husband to chew for the wife.

It means a man must care for his husband. He must provide her with clothing, housing and

feeding, among others. It is used to advise a man to take active responsibility of his wife in terms

of expenditure. Contrary, the woman does not spend even if she has the money. This practice is

now fading in the society as women are now also expected to work and earn living for the

family. This has become necessary due to the increased burden of caring for the family on the

man alone, especially in this time of economic hardship. Formal education and paid jobs have

also made it possible for women to have employable skills, unlike the past when women were

glued to the home as housewives. However, when situation arises, such as the man refusing his

responsibilities and relying heavily on the supplementary effort of the woman, his attention is

quickly drawn to the norm or tradition of society.

b) Nrenyia le ekyi a bɛfɛlɛ ye nrenyia.

Man is small (part) theycall him man

“No matter young a male person is, he is called man”.

This means that women should respect the authority of even a boy just as they would for a

man. In family issues, the boy’s view should be considered. A woman cannot be abusua

kpanyinli, family head, if the only man available is a boy. It shows that certain positions are

solely reserved for men only in all situations. A woman can also be head in the group of other

women but when the group members consist of both sexes, even the youngest boy available

could be made head of the family.

In another context, the proverb is used when physical strength of a man is needed. It

explains that in the absence of a grown man, the strength of a boy cannot be underrated. Hence,

the proverb depicts that males are stronger than females and the strength of the youngest boy

must not be underrated or equated with that of females. As a result of this image about women as

weak, all work that requires physical strength is to be done by the men. During farming, for

instance, cutting of trees, removing stumps and up-rooting cassava have to be done by the men

while the women perform such easy jobs like weeding, burning, gathering and peeling. There are

a number of cases in the society where a woman is ridiculed as ‘man’ or ‘Adwoba Nrenyia’ that

is, ‘Adwoba Man’( Adwoba is a name for females born on Tuesday. Such children are noted for

their outstanding strength and braveness like men. The male name for Adwoba is Kodwo). If a

woman is called Adwoba Nrenyia it means her strength is equal to that of a man. Such women

are not liked by men for marriage because they might prove stubborn to their husbands.

c) Raalɛ si sua a nrenyia a da anwuma a.

Woman builds a house (part.) man that sleeps top (part)

‘If a woman puts up a building, it is man who sleeps upstairs’.

It means the husband is the owner of his wife’s property. It is used to show that the

authority of a man supersedes that of a woman. In the Nzema society a man is the head of the

household and so all other members fall under his authority, including the wife.

4.2. Proverbs about gender-based activities

Among the Nzemas and elsewhere in Africa, the physical make-up of woman restricts

them from undertaking certain activities in the society. Hence, there is a direct dichotomy

between what should be done by a woman or a man. Here are some of such proverbs:

a) Raalɛ tɔ ndumunli na ɔndɔ etu.

Woman buys gunpowder and buys not a gun

‘A woman buys gunpowder, not a gun’

This means that a woman is not supposed to sell gunpowder since that relates to man’s

occupation. Gunpowder is used by hunters during hunting an occupation for men. Hunting is

associated with men because of its tediousness and the risk involved. Hunters move in the night

into deep forest to kill wild animals. It therefore requires braveness and courage to do it which

the society thinks women do not have. Women are seen as cowards and easily frightened beings.

There are several items associated with the occupation of men which are not support to sell

because they lack the technical know-how on their usage and maintenance.

b) Raalɛ tɔne adwobanenɛne na ɔndɔne etu ndumunli.

Woman sells cane and sell not gun powder.

‘A woman sells cane not gunpowder.’

This also means that what women sells be related to women’s work and should be different

from the work of their men counterparts. A cane and gunpowder are all used in war but while

gunpowder requires extra skills and care because it involves the use of gun or because it is

explosive, a cane does not need any special skill to sell.

4.3. Proverbs depicting women as the source of kinship

Among the Nzemas and the Akans, inheritance and kinship is matrilineal. A person inherits from

the brother of his or her mother not from his father finds him or herself as a member of his or her

mother’s family. A person whose mother is no more becomes miserable and lonely in the family

for a number of reasons. First, the mother is not available to provide for him or her. Secondly,

the mother is not available to unite the siblings together. Each sibling moves his or her individual

way when the mother dies. Examples of such proverbs are seen below:

a) Abusua bɛdi ye bɛ nli akunlu

Family they take it their mother’s stomach

‘Kinship is traced from the mother’

This means that child’s kinship is the same as that of his or her mother. People of the same

grandmother or great grandmother see themselves as kinsmen or kinswomen. They provide for

one another because of the bond. A brother has a stronger love that a cousin or nephew because

the two have one mother. In the society, one’s family members are likely to reject him or her

when the mother dies. He or she is left alone to fend for him or herself. When there is any family

property, a child continues to enjoy from it but the moment the mother dies that ends the

enjoyment. Hence when your mother dies, your kinship also ends.

b) Bɛnlɛ bɛ nli a bɛngyi ɛhɔlɛ.

They do not have a mother, (part.) they do not deslike a crab

‘One without a mother should not dislike a crab.’

It means that an orphan has no option to choose what he or she wants to eat. An orphan is not

expected to bluff towards people who are not his or her mother. You can only bluff when your

mother is alive. That is when you decide what to eat from a number of dishes. In her absence,

you even lack what you would eat so you have no option to choose what you would eat.

c) Saa ɛ nli wua ɛnee wɔ abusua ɛwie

If your mother dies then your family finishes

‘If your mother dies you have no family.’

This means that the presence of our mother makes us part of the family but when she dies, no

family member remembers us any longer. This is seen in the family very often when one loses

his or mother. He or she is not treated the way they would when the mother was alive.

d) ɛrɛladane yɛɛ aze mɔɔ ɔ mra bali a.

A mother that know what her children will eat (part.)

‘Only mothers know how to provide for their children.’

This means that mothers have greater care for their children than anyone else. No one could

replace the mother and no one could treat children better than their mother. Only she could care

and love her children. In her absence, orphans become miserable. Even if there is someone who

provide for such orphans, their happiness could be equated to the one they had when their mother

lived. Women are therefore the hope of their children when they are alive.

4.4 Proverbs showing the patience of women

The Nzema society believes that a woman has a lot of patience. It is an endowed gift of

nature to be able to withstand intolerable children and husbands. Hence if a woman loses her

patience, it implies that she has endured the pain for so long.

a) Raalɛ munla kpole a ɔngola anongole kɔ.

Woman frowns big (part.) she cannot part away go

‘ A wife with deep anger against her husband loses the will to part with her husband.’

It means no woman could be very furious against something they dislike. Their anger is

short brief and is easily forgotten. Those who try to act upon deep anger are not able to do what

they decide to do; such as running from the marriage home. Hence women are seen as being

patient and long-enduring people.

b) ɛkolɛzɛne sie ninyɛndane.

Bigstomach keeps filty-things

‘A big stomach contains all sorts of things.’

This means that women have a big stomach to accommodate or tolerate all sorts of issues.

They are tolerant because of the large ‘stomach’ they have. A woman is supposed to tolerate all

her children regardless of their different character traits. Some may be humble while others may

be stubborn but a mother must accept them all without discrimination.

Again, the proverb could mean that the character of a child is independent of the mother. A

child may be wise or foolish depending on his or own character trait and that does not mean that

he or she took after his or her parent and for that matter the mother. Both wise and unwise

children come from the stomach.

4.5. Proverbs showing women as having great love for their husbands

Among the Nzemas, women are seen to express greater love for their husbands. A good is

therefore evaluated by the amount of love she has for her husband. This is expressed in proverbs

such as a woman’s inability to leave her husband when she becomes deeply angry. Examples are

a) Raalɛ munla kpole a ɔngola anongole kɔ.

Woman frowns big (part.) she cannot part away go

‘A wife with furious anger against her husband loses the will to part with her husband.’

This means out of the great love a woman has she could not be so angry as to hate her husband

forever. Her anger is easily forgotten due to the abundant love in her.

b) Raalɛ kulo wɔ a ɔse ɔ diema a le wɔ

Woman loves you (part.) she says her brother (part.) is you

‘When a woman loves you she introduces you as a brother’.

This means a woman would want to treat you as a family member if she loves you and she

would do all she could to prevent losing you. Like the story of Abraham who introduces Sara as

the sister, this proverb is allusively used to show the faithfulness of a woman’s love.

4.6 Proverbs showing that women are the source of procreation

Just as a child is seen as property of the mother and not the father among the Nzemas, so is a

mother seen as the source of procreation, though she cannot produce a child without a man. This

is in line with the historically famous quotation of Dr Kwegyir Aggrey that “If you educate a

man you educate an individual but if you educate a woman you educate a whole nation.” A man

matters less in procreation among the people. This gives the women greater value over their men.

Hence many women loves their daughters more than their sons and would prefer to side with

their daughters in quarrels between sons and daughters. Examples of such proverbs are given

below.

a) Nrenyia le abɛlɛ baka ko, raalɛ le bana sira.

Man is corn stick one, woman is plantain sucker.

‘A man is like a corn stalk but a woman is like a plantain sucker.’

This shows that women are seen as more productive than men. Because when a man

produces a man, the procreation ends there. His son may marry and give birth but the children go

into the family of the woman. But the daughter of a man would marry and produce children who

come in to swell the family, together with their grandchildren and great grandchildren, producing

an endless generation for the family.

b) ɛkolɛzɛne sie ninyɛndane.

Big stomach keeps filty things

‘A big stomach contains all sorts of things.’

Just as the one above, this proverb means that women are producers of both wise and

foolish people. Their stomach being large has the ability to contain all sorts of people. Hence

women are the source of procreation.

Conclusion

In this paper an attempt has been made to show how Nzema proverbs portray women in

contrast to other scholars who argue that proverbs do no portray cultural values. It has been

established that women are shown differently from men and the reason for this dichotomy is not

to prejudice women and it is also not as a result of men’s bias on women. The fact is that women

are naturally different by the biological, physical and psychological make-up. The paper

therefore takes a stand that proverbs only report what is truth as proverbs are truthful or factual

in nature.

It further implies that any negative description of women such as women being subordinates,

inferior or unwise are what women are except that they try to overcome those tendencies in their

life. In other words men too have negative tendencies that proverbs could portray.

Aside all these, women are seen as life partners to their males in society without which the man

is incomplete in his responsibilities as a father, a husband, as a head of the home and as the bread

winner of the family.

Finally, Nzema proverbs seem to legitimize the superiority of the men with the reservation

that women could exercise their power only in the absence of men and this is in accordance with

natural law.

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