Arts/Literary
Books On Shaka, The Zulu
All it took and still counting were 11 authors including a poet to write 11 books on Shaka,the Zulu warrior and King who lived and reigned in the 19th century in South Africa.
They include the pioneer writer, Thomas Mofolo 1925, E A Ritter 1955, Donald R Morris 1965, Mazizi Kunene 1979, Diane Stanley 1988, Carolyn Hamilton 1998, Dan Wylie 2006,Walton Golightly 2011, Joshua Sinclair 2013, Luke Molver 2019 and Lynn Bedford.
The novels are all on one subject…King Shaka and tell of the origins of the Zulu nation ,his birth, trials,rise to power, victories and death.
The first author, Thomas Mofolo from Lesotho who started the series took about three years to do his research between 1907 to 1910. The write-up was supported by the Paris Evangelical Missionary Society.However, the novel was not published until 1925 in the Sotho language of the author. The English translation was done in 1931.
The delay in the publication by 15 years was due to the publisher’s being disturbed by the author”s refusal to condemn what is interpreted as pagan customs potrayed in the novel. According to research, some vital chapters on Zulu traditions deemed to be too fetish were removed from the completed manuscript submitted for publication. This were some of the reasons that frustrated Mofolo from writing more books. But despite all these setbacks, the novel became a regional and international bestseller and in 2002, Shaka was named as one of the 12 best works of African literature by a panel organized by Professor Ali Mazrui as part of the Zimbabwe international book fair.
Mofolo’s approach and style is totally different from others as his use of oral tradition is unique. His narrative flows easily and reminds one of the moonlight settings of the real African environment where a grandmother will gather little children and tell them of the happenings of the years of of old. Although some critics might be of the view that his version was too harsh on the shaka story is really entertaining and if seen through the lens of the 19th century, there is nothing wrong with it. The story tells of events as they ought to be in the then Zulu society.
A careful look at the history of Shaka shows that he had a troubled childhood which made him to be fearless in life.
Shaka is also said to be emotionally attached to his mother who was his Chief adviser and her early death later led to his erratic behavior few years before he was killed by his half-brothers.
Although he could be described as merciless, he had soft spot for his brothers which was his undoing.
Almost all the authors agree that Shaka between the ages of 12 and 18 had battled hyenas and lions and emerged victorious while his age mates were yet to venture into the wilderness on their own.
Although where the narratives differ from the various authors is not too worrisome they basically agree that he was a war genius. He could be described as cruel, sadistic or tyrannical .It is like telling an Arab slave trader in the 9th century that what he is doing is evil.
While E A Ritter, Joshua Sinclair and Luke Molver have some similar approach in there narratives, Diane Stanley, Lyn Bedford Hall and Carolyn Hamilton styles are a bit different as their writeup range from the political system to modern interpretation of what happened in the 19th century.
The novels on King Shaka no matter who is the author remains one of the best narratives of African story telling ranging from the moonlight styles of traditional societies to entertain new ways of story telling by using illustration and films.
I will recommend lovers of African literature to read any of the versions that catches their fancy.
It is the idea of God that family should exit. Children form part of the family. God loves family so much that Jesus was born into the family of Joseph.
Everyone’s family is good and important. Children should not look down on their family whether they are rich or poor.
Children should respect and honour their family and foster love among their siblings. They should work together and make peace in the family. They should always stand in the gap. It is good for family members to carry all along since everyone may not be doing well.
The Christianity that children learn is practised in family. Faith-based organisations do a great job in moulding children’s character. Those are the behaviours that children exhibit towards siblings in family.
Every child born in a family is there for a purpose. A baby born into a family is supplying something. It may be joy, wealth and so on. Everyone is important in a family.
Adolescents who have graduated from school but may not be contributing financially can do one or two things at home. You can engage in preparing meals at home while parents are away for a job or business. Contributing in house chores will go a long way to relieve parents of stress after a day’s job.
What do you contribute to your family, especially during holidays both in nuclear and extended family?
The family you were born is constant but friends are temporary. You can decide not to continue in friendship but you cannot cut off your family. No matter how bad you think your family is and you decide to leave home, you must surely return. Your friends can harbour you for a while.
The child’s first identity comes from the family. What the child learns first comes from the family.
Family is the centre of love and care. People have started playing down on marriage because of neglect on basics of family. Marriage starts today and and the next few months, it is threatened. Respect for family plays a crucial role in marriage.
No child grows without parental control and influence. If a child refuses to grow without taking instructions from parents, he may grow up being wild. There are consequences when children do not obey their parents. There are those who want to be rebellious against their parents. They should know that their length of days are tied to their parents.
Your bioligical parents know you more than every other person. There is the wisdom and knowledge your parents have that you do not so it is proper to listen to them before choosing carriers both in academics and job. A young man or woman can choose who to get married to, but a greater role in the choice of who to marry and the marriage proper comes from the parents.
They know what is best for you. No matter how modern trends will influence you and prove it wrong, parent is the key. No one can love you more than your parents because they are your blood.
A lot of parents have been traumatised due to the fact that children they nurtured and trained turned their back on them at older age. Children should not abandon their parents for any reason.
As you grow up, situations may arise in marriage when you decide it is over with your spouse, but no matter the level of provocation with your parents, they will not despise you. Parents will also play a role in that regard. Problem arises in every family but how it is handled matters a lot.
Some children honour their mentors more than their parents. Although there are parents who shy away from their responsibilities. It is important that parents take full responsibility of their children. You cannot bring a child to the planet earth and refuse to perform roles as a parent. But parents may not quantify what they spent from childhood to adolescence. That is a blessing children cannot get from another person.
There are people who have attributed their failure in life to the fact that their parents, especially mothers are witchcraft. It is wrong to feel that your mother is instrumental to your failure in life. The only way to success is hardwork.
Let money not determine the level of love for your parents. Wherever a child goes, family is constant.
Eunice Choko-Kayode
Naturally, when a child is born, it is the role of the father and mother to decide a suitable name for the child. The husband and wife normally discuss and suggest the English or vernacular name of the baby.
But sometimes, when a baby comes into a family, grandparents hearts are usually filled with joy to the extent that they want to answer present, by giving their own names not minding the fact that the biological parents have given theirs.
This happens mostly when the marriage is an inter-tribal one. It also happens even in intra-tribal marriage. Grandparents want equal representation as far as naming a child is concerned. They also have special names as a result of circumstances surrounding the birth of the child.
This is still happening till date.
A lot of people have viewed this in different ways but there is nothing wrong about it. The most important thing is that the child bears as many names as he or she can. But one thing is certain, the child must bear one name in school.
Should circumstance determine a child’s name?
Women who are more emotional are always eager to name their children considering the circumstances surrounding the child’s conception and arrival.
The issue of grandparents naming a child comes up mostly when it is the first of the family.
In naming children by some parents in the olden days, they named their children according to the days in the week in which they were born, like Sunday, Monday, Friday and so on.
You may be shocked to hear that whether a child is given 10 names by parents or grandparents, when he or she grows up, will decide to change. There are several cases where some persons decided to change especially when they feel that the names given by their parents and grandparents do not give them joy. If they are not doing well in life, they may claim that their misfortune is caused by the name their parents.
Competition among children in schools be it primary, (kindergarten) and secondary come in different forms. It can be Mathematics , debate, quiz, spelling bee,competition, from organisations like Cowbell, multi-national companies, faith-based organisations among others.
They are organised mostly for selected intelligent ones, the best among their peers to represent a class, school or group. Prizes are normally set aside for the best as well as consolation prizes for runners-up at the end of each session.
The question is, are children willing to accept defeat when they fail? As parents, guardians, can you encourage your children or wards to accept defeat instead of shouting and comparing them with others who may be performing better either in schools or outside.
Some parents may be blaming their children for not doing well in competitions. They will like to tell their children if others who may perform better have ten heads. Those group of parents blame their children for every failure.
For your children to do better in competition, the parents too must have emotional intelligence. When you continue to blame your children for failure, how intelligent are you?
Some parents always want their children to be in the 1st position and unhappy whenever they secure 2nd position. There were instances where children smashed their trophies because they never got the position they wanted to get and their parents supported them.
Children should be able to accept it whether they win or not. They should be encouraged for every performance. Discourage the issue of “shame, shame, shame, shame”.
A parent says she always tells her children to win even if they will fail. Always give them the mentality that they can win. Children should be given the impression that they can win prizes and laurels in every competition.
Parents should not isolate their children from others in the neighbourhood. Allow them to play with others. Don’t threaten your children that you may not pay their schools fees if they fail. Comparing them with others may encourage or discourage them.
Coming first or getting award as a first class student from the university sometimes does not mean that the person is the best. And if the child does not merit any award in the lower classes, does not mean that he can not merit first class also.
It should be noted that coming first in academic competition may not really mean that the competitor will be the best at work place or business.
Accepting defeat is a way to move higher. Even if a child who competed with others did not come first, there are consolation prizes for runners-up. When you advise the child to accept defeat, you are encouraging her to win in next competition.
Remember all children cannot be on the same knowledge level Their learning abilities defer.
Eunice Choko-Kayode