The ‘placenta’ of the nation
Motherhood discourses in Tswana marriage ceremonies
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.1558/genl.v6i1.79Keywords:
motherhood, discourses, marriage ceremonies, BotswanaAbstract
This paper explores the construction of motherhood in Tswana marriage ceremonies, especially in Patlo or marriage negotiations. The data used comprise a chant known as Rutu (from the repeated use of the lexical item) from a wedding in Kopong in southern Botswana, and interviews of participants in the weddings studied as part of a larger project on marriage discourses (Ellece 2007). The paper uses Critical Discourse Analysis as an overarching framework. At the micro-level, the paper combines content analysis of narratives of motherhood and lexical choices in the ‘Rutu’ chant. It also examines the re-contextualization of the discourses articulated in this ceremony by the interviewees. The main argument of the paper is that, in Botswana, motherhood is constructed as a compulsory and indispensable aspect of feminine identity, crucial for success in marriage.
References
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Barker, C. and Galasi?ski, D. (2001) Cultural Studies and Discourse Analysis. London, Th ousand Oaks and Delhi: Sage Publications.
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Ellece, S. E. (2011). ‘Be a fool like me’ – Gender construction in the marriage advice ceremony in Botswana: a critical discourse analysis. Agenda: Empowering Women for Gender Equity 25 (1): 43–52.
Emecheta, B. (1994) Th e Joys of Motherhood. London: Heinemann.
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Grillo, E. (2005) Power without Domination: Dialogism and the Empowering Property of Communication. Amsterdam and California: John Benjamins.
Jennings, A. E. (1933) Bogadi: A Study of the Marriage Laws and Customs of the Bechuana Tribes of South Africa. Vryburg: London Missionary Society.
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Pierce, J. L. (1999) Re-orienting western feminisms: women’s diversity in a postcolonial world. International Journal of Comparative Sociology 40: 560.
Pitso, J. and Carmichael, G. (2003) Pre-marital childbearing in Th amaga village, Botswana. Journal of Population Research 20(2): 187–202. http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/BF03031851
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Rembe, S., Chabaya, O., Wadesango, N. and Muhuro, P. (2011) Forced and child marriage as violation of women’s rights, and responses by member states in Southern African Development Community. Agenda: Empowering Women for Gender Equity 25(1): 65–74.
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Schapera, I. (1955) A Handbook of Tswana Law and Custom. London: Oxford University Press for the International Institute of African Languages and Cultures.
Schapera, I. (1957) Marriage of near kin among the Tswana. Africa 27(2): 139–59. http://dx.doi.org/10.2307/1156807
Schipper, M. (2003) Women in Proverbs from around the World. New Haven and London: Yale University Press.
Steady, F. C. (1996) African Feminism: A Worldwide Perspective. In R. Terborg-Penn and A. B. Rushing (ed.) Women in Africa and the African Diaspora 3–21. Washington DC: Howard University Press.
Sunderland, J. (2004) Gendered Discourses. Basingstoke and New York: Palgrave Macmillan.
Women and Law in Southern Africa Trust (2003) Lobola: Its Implications on the Reproductive Rights of Women in Botswana, Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambique, Swaziland and Zambia. Harare: Weaver Press.
Women’s NGO Coalition (2005) Beyond Inequalities: Women in Botswana. Harare: Southern African Research and Documentation Centre.
Atanga, L. L. (2010) Gender, Discourse and Power in the Cameroonian Parliament. Yaonde: Langaa.
Barker, C. and Galasi?ski, D. (2001) Cultural Studies and Discourse Analysis. London, Th ousand Oaks and Delhi: Sage Publications.
Bourdieu, P. (1991) Language and Symbolic Power. Cambridge: Polity Press.
Davies C. B. (1986a) Introduction: African feminist consciousness and African literary criticism. In C. B. Davies and A. A. Graves (eds) Ngambika: Studies of Women in African Literature 1–23. Trenton: Africa World Press.
Davies, C. B. (1986b) Motherhood in the works of male and female Igbo writers: Achebe, Emecheta, Nwapa and Nzekwu. In C. B. Davies and A. A. Graves (eds) Ngambika: Studies of Women in African Literature 241–56. Trenton: Africa World Press.
Eagleton, T. (1991) Ideology. London and New York: Verso
Ellece, S. E. (2007) Gendered Marriage Discourses in Botswana. PhD Th esis, Lancaster University, UK.
Ellece, S. E. (2011). ‘Be a fool like me’ – Gender construction in the marriage advice ceremony in Botswana: a critical discourse analysis. Agenda: Empowering Women for Gender Equity 25 (1): 43–52.
Emecheta, B. (1994) Th e Joys of Motherhood. London: Heinemann.
Fairclough, N. (1992) Discourse and Social Change. Cambridge: Polity Press.
Fairclough, N. (2003) Analysing Discourse: Textual Analysis for Social Research. London and New York: Routledge.
Graves, A. A. (1986). Motherhood in the works of male and female Igbo writers: Achebe, Emecheta, Nwapa and Nzekwu. In C. B. Davies and A. A. Graves (eds) Ngambika: Studies of Women in African Literature. Trenton: Africa World Press.
Grillo, E. (2005) Power without Domination: Dialogism and the Empowering Property of Communication. Amsterdam and California: John Benjamins.
Jennings, A. E. (1933) Bogadi: A Study of the Marriage Laws and Customs of the Bechuana Tribes of South Africa. Vryburg: London Missionary Society.
Lazar, M. (2002) Consuming personal relationships: Th e achievement of feminine self-identity through other-centredness. In L. Litosseliti and J. Sunderland (eds) Gender Identity and Discourse Analysis 111–28. Amsterdam and Philadelphia: John Benjamins.
Makward, E. (1986) Marriage, tradition and woman’s pursuit of happiness in the novels of Mariama Bâ. In C. B. Davies and A. A. Graves (eds) Ngambika: Studies of Women in African Literature 271–82. Trenton: Africa World Press
Mokomane, Z. (2001) Laws a? ecting unmarried and married women in Botswana: a theoretical review. Paper Presented at the International Colloquium: Gender, Population and Development in Africa. Abidjan, 16–21 July.
Molokomme, A. (1991) Children of the Fence: Th e Maintenance of Extra-marital Children under Law and Practice in Botswana. Leiden: African Studies Centre.
Nasta, S. (ed.) (1991) Motherlands: Black Women’s Writing from Africa, the Caribbean and South Asia. London: Th e Women’s Press.
Oyewumi, O. (2003) Abiyamo: Th eorising African motherhood. Jenda: Journal of Culture and African Women Studies, Vol. 4 n.p. http://www.africaknowledgeproject.org/index.php/jenda/article/view/79 Accessed on 2 August 2011.
Oyewumi, O. (1997) Th e Invention of Women: Making an African Sense of Western Gender Discourse. Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press.
Phillips, L. and Jørgensen, M. (2002) Discourse Analysis as Th eory and Method. London, Th ousand Oaks, Delhi: Sage Publications.
Pierce, J. L. (1999) Re-orienting western feminisms: women’s diversity in a postcolonial world. International Journal of Comparative Sociology 40: 560.
Pitso, J. and Carmichael, G. (2003) Pre-marital childbearing in Th amaga village, Botswana. Journal of Population Research 20(2): 187–202. http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/BF03031851
Posel, D., Rudwick, S. and Casale, D. (2011) Is marriage a dying institution in South Africa? Exploring changes in marriage in the context of ilobolo payments. Agenda 25(1): 101–111.
Rembe, S., Chabaya, O., Wadesango, N. and Muhuro, P. (2011) Forced and child marriage as violation of women’s rights, and responses by member states in Southern African Development Community. Agenda: Empowering Women for Gender Equity 25(1): 65–74.
Rushing, A. B. (1996) ‘Introduction’. In R. Terborg-Penn and A. B. Rushing (eds) Women in Africa and the African Diaspora ix–xi. Washington DC: Howard University Press.
Schapera, I. (1940/71) Married Life in an African Tribe. London: Faber and Faber; Toronto: Ryerson Press; New York: Sheridan Press.
Schapera, I. (1950) Kinship and marriage among the Tswana. In A. R. Radcli? eBrown and D. Forde (eds) African Systems of Kinship and Marriage 140–65. London: Oxford University Press for the International African Institute.
Schapera, I. (1955) A Handbook of Tswana Law and Custom. London: Oxford University Press for the International Institute of African Languages and Cultures.
Schapera, I. (1957) Marriage of near kin among the Tswana. Africa 27(2): 139–59. http://dx.doi.org/10.2307/1156807
Schipper, M. (2003) Women in Proverbs from around the World. New Haven and London: Yale University Press.
Steady, F. C. (1996) African Feminism: A Worldwide Perspective. In R. Terborg-Penn and A. B. Rushing (ed.) Women in Africa and the African Diaspora 3–21. Washington DC: Howard University Press.
Sunderland, J. (2004) Gendered Discourses. Basingstoke and New York: Palgrave Macmillan.
Women and Law in Southern Africa Trust (2003) Lobola: Its Implications on the Reproductive Rights of Women in Botswana, Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambique, Swaziland and Zambia. Harare: Weaver Press.
Women’s NGO Coalition (2005) Beyond Inequalities: Women in Botswana. Harare: Southern African Research and Documentation Centre.
Published
2012-04-30
Issue
Section
Gender and Language in Sub-Saharan African Contexts: Research Agendas
How to Cite
Ellece, S. E. (2012). The ‘placenta’ of the nation: Motherhood discourses in Tswana marriage ceremonies. Gender and Language, 6(1), 79-103. https://doi.org/10.1558/genl.v6i1.79
