The wisdom we lived and live by: the Setswana question

Abstract

The aim of this paper is to present the Setswana proverbs in terms of contexts of both traditional and modern social lives and in ways relevant to the cultivation of social and psychological issues. The approach we adopt is that of giving a brief definition of the formal identity of the proverb, of discussing the metaphorical and truth elements of the proverb, and of giving both the literal or figurative meaning of each proverb and its usage as a basis of a thought for the day or mediation in specific human situations. The paper proposes to take a proverb, to conceive its appropriate traditional and modern social contexts and to discuss it in a manner that is morally enlightening and educative. It also seeks to discuss the Setswana prose-writers' innovative path of twisting and altering the proverbs in order to achieve specific effects. This particular section will also be discussed with illustrations from selected short story writers.