IMPORTANCE OF LEARNING PROVERBS
What is a Proverb?
Aproverb is a short saying that is widely used to express an obvious truth.Or,Proverbsarewise sayings that give advice about life.
They are the gems of wisdom. Proverbs areculturally specific, yet their meaning has the universality; everyone canrelate to them in some way and on some level. There is a proverb for almost anysituation. We may sometimes not understand a big lecture but we understand asmall proverb very easily because the truth they speak can span the globe. Theycan also give a greater potency to what is being conveyed. For example, intrying to explain the consequences of evil deeds, the proverb“ As yousow, so shall you reap.”teaches the lesson- “You can’t escape theconsequences of your actions.”
If you reallywant to take your English to a higher level, or you want to speak English likeanative speaker, it is important to learn as many proverbs aspossible.
There is a widespread opinion that the proverbplays an important role in language teaching as a part of gaining culturalknowledge, metaphorical understanding and communicative competence.
Proverbs are a part of every language as well asevery culture. Proverbs have been used to spread knowledge, wisdom and truthsabout life from ancient times up until now. They have been considered animportant part of the fostering of children, as they signal moral values andexhort common behaviour. Proverbs belong to the traditional verbal folkloregenres and the wisdom of proverbs has been guidance for people worldwide intheir social interaction throughout the ages. Proverbs are concise, easy to rememberand useful in every situation in life due to their content of everydayexperiences.
Here there is the general description of theproverb: “A proverb is a short, generally known sentence of the folk whichcontains wisdom, truth, morals, and traditional views in a metaphorical, fixedand memorizable form and which is handed down from generation to generation.”
According to the paroemiologistWolfgangMieder (2004), proverbs have been used and should be used in teaching asdidactic tools because of their content of educational wisdom. When it comes toforeign language learning, proverbs play a role in the teaching as a part ofcultural and metaphorical learning. Linguists also claim that the use ofproverbs in the teaching of English as a second or foreign language isimportant for the learners’ ability to communicate effectively.
The use of proverbs and its declining in theteaching of modern languages has long been discussed.
Durbin Rowland (1926) points at some arguments prothe use of proverbs in language teaching. Rowland says that proverbs “stick inthe mind”, “build up vocabulary”, “illustrate admirably the phraseology andidiomatic expressions of the foreign tongue”, “contribute gradually to a surerfeeling for the foreign tongue” and proverbs “consume very little time”.
Significanceof Proverbs in Africa and Beyond
The sayings ofAfrica are some of the most profound words you’ll ever hear. My mother neverfailsto throw in a handful of Ibo proverbs to keep in mind and keep me groundedwhenever we’re deep in conversations. Take the famous Tanzanian proverb “manyhands make light work”. This is a saying that’s been adopted all over the worldand encourages people to work together. Another famous example is the Nigerianproverb “It takes a village to raise a child”. These words of wisdom span theglobe even appearing in American movies and books.Proverbshavehad a great influence on the lifestyles of many people, mainly through means ofreligion and culture. The word “proverb” from the Latin “pro-verbium” (“pro”meaning “in front of” and “verbium” meaning “word”), suggests that a proverbtakes the place of ordinary words. The ways in which proverbs vary from peopleto people demonstrates the differences between cultures; however it’s commonfor proverbs to show how very similar people really are. A proverb fromSoutheast Asia demonstrates this factor. The Malay proverb “Give him your footand he will demand your thigh” is very similar to the British proverb “Give himan inch and he will take a mile.” The value of African and non African idiomsand proverbs is far reaching and there are numerous examples of their benefits.
“…it’s common forproverbsto show how very similar people really are…”
They share withthe world the practical wisdom the people have learned in their way of life.The Zulu proverb “You cannot chase two antelope at once” developed when Africanpeople found they could only capture one animal at a time because if they triedto focus on more than one, the animals they hunt would all get away. Thispractical wisdom of tackling one thing at a time applies to people all over theworld not just those chasing after wildlife. Proverbs also provide anunderstanding of the way of life in Africa. The view on gender roles in Africais summed up by the proverb from Ghana that says “A woman is a flower in agarden; her husband is the fence around it”. Proverbs help to dispel the beliefthat a people are barbaric and uneducated for there’s often a stigmasurrounding people who can’t speak English and aren’t educated in a typical westernmanner. When these proverbs are translated it’s easy to see the intelligenceand life experience the people possess. It also shows that a society and itsway of life aren’t superior to that of another society.
It’s often saidthat a picture can tell a thousand words and proverbs have the ability toexplain a thousand words in one simple sentence or statement. There are manylong winded essays, articles and papers on how thinking positively isbeneficial. The Tanzanian proverb “One who bathes willingly with cold waterdoesn’t feel the cold” sums this up in one line. In addition to positivethinking, proverbs tend to be uplifting and inspiring. One such example is theZulu proverb “You should face your responsibilities squarely; no elephant everfound its trunk too heavy”.
The sayings ofAfrica are some of the most profound words you’ll ever hear. My mother neverfails to throw in a handful of Ibo proverbs to keep in mind and keep megrounded whenever we’re deep in conversations. Take the famous Tanzanian proverb“many hands make light work”. This is a saying that’s been adopted all over theworld and encourages people to work together. Another famous example is theNigerian proverb “It takes a village to raise a child”. These words of wisdomspan the globe even appearing in American movies and books. Proverbs have had agreat influence on the lifestyles of many people, mainly through means ofreligion and culture. The word “proverb” from the Latin “pro-verbium” (“pro”meaning “in front of” and “verbium” meaning “word”), suggests that a proverbtakes the place of ordinary words. The ways in which proverbs vary from peopleto people demonstrates the differences between cultures; however it’s commonfor proverbs to show how very similar people really are. A proverb fromSoutheast Asia demonstrates this factor. The Malay proverb “Give him your footand he will demand your thigh” is very similar to the British proverb “Give himan inch and he will take a mile.” The value of African and non African idiomsand proverbs is far reaching and there are numerous examples of their benefits.
“…it’s common forproverbs to show how very similar people really are…”
They share withthe world the practical wisdom the people have learned in their way of life.The Zulu proverb “You cannot chase two antelope at once” developed when Africanpeople found they could only capture one animal at a time because if they triedto focus on more than one, the animals they hunt would all get away. Thispractical wisdom of tackling one thing at a time applies to people all over theworld not just those chasing after wildlife. Proverbs also provide anunderstanding of the way of life in Africa. The view on gender roles in Africais summed up by the proverb from Ghana that says “A woman is a flower in agarden; her husband is the fence around it”. Proverbs help to dispel the beliefthat a people are barbaric and uneducated for there’s often a stigmasurrounding people who can’t speak English and aren’t educated in a typicalwestern manner. When these proverbs are translated it’s easy to see theintelligence and life experience the people possess. It also shows that asociety and its way of life aren’t superior to that of another society.
It’s often saidthat a picture can tell a thousand words and proverbs have the ability toexplain a thousand words in one simple sentence or statement. There are manylong winded essays, articles and papers on how thinking positively isbeneficial. The Tanzanian proverb “One who bathes willingly with cold waterdoesn’t feel the cold” sums this up in one line. In addition to positivethinking, proverbs tend to be uplifting and inspiring. One such example is theZulu proverb “You should face your responsibilities squarely; no elephant everfound its trunk too heavy”.
OTHER ISSUES ON LEARNING PROVERBS
Proverbs change with time and culture. Some oldproverbs are not in use any longer because they reflect a culture that nolonger exists, e.g.Let the cobbler stick to his last, which hasvanished more or less, because the profession of the cobbler nowadays is rare.However, new proverbs that reflect the contemporary society are createdinstead, e.g.Garbage in, garbageout, a proverbcreated due to our computerised time. Old proverbs are also used as so calledanti-proverbs today, i.e. “parodied, twisted, or fractured proverbs that revealhumorous or satirical speech play with traditional proverbial wisdom”. Oneexample isNobody is perfect, which as an anti-proverb is changed toNobody is perfect.
Work with proverbs and sayings at the lessons notonly helps to diversify educational process and to make its brighter andinteresting. Moreover it helps to solve a number of very important educationalproblems: proverbs in the classroom can improve students’ learning experiences,their language skills, and their understanding of themselves and theworld.This happens because:
- Proverbs provide an opportunity for students to be knowledgeable experts as well as learners.
- Proverbs provide an opportunity for students to learn about each other and their shared values.
- Proverbs provide an opportunity for students to gain insight as they discuss their experiences and work out their understanding of proverb meanings.
- Proverbs provide an opportunity for students to use their home culture as a stepping stone into school culture.
- Proverbs provide an opportunity to improve thinking and writing as students both provide and receive information.
