The primary objective of this M. A. thesis is to correct some false assumptions found in both older and more recent secondary literature on North American Indian narratives. Many folklorists base their folktale criteria on terms of cultural differences instead of similarities which results in an ethnocentric point of view that holds the Grimms' Kinder- und Hausmarchen as a standard against which all other folktale collections falls short. If we want to strive for a world view that will embrace all types of literature, while respecting the individuality of each culture, then we must focus on the essential similarities among world literatures and not the differences. The purpose of using another culture as a comparison, such as that of the North American Indians, is to question the ethnocentric definitions of folktales and fairy tales which have often been too rigid. Perhaps those cultural values exhibited by North American Indian folktales could prove to be beneficial to the world's multi-cultural society, in that these values could enrich and rejuvenate some Western values, such as respect for animals and the environment. These values may offer solutions to urgent contemporary world problems. Through a comparative analysis of the animal suitor motif found in the Grimms' fairy tales and North American Indian folktales, I hope to call attention to the stark cross-cultural similarities in universal folklore and to bring to light the multiplicity of cultural values which are deeply rooted in fairy tales and folklores around the world.

No description available.

published_or_final_version / Comparative Literature / Master / Master of Philosophy

This research is entitled "The historical representation of the praise-poetry of the two Zulu kings, Dingane and Mpande." In this study the researcher is trying to explore the ways in which history is portrayed in these two above mentioned kings. This is done firstly by looking particularly at their historical outlooks and secondly by looking at their praises. In traditional Zulu society, every Royal king has to possess praises. Therefore the praises basically contain historical events. The analysis of the findings reveals that king praises contain largely of the heroic deeds, body features and characteristics of the kings. Based on this statement it therefore stands to reason that the king praises cannot be considered merely as a complete history of the Zulu kings. The data collection was carried out through interviews and through reading books for each king. It must be noted that the king praises are only performed by a bard/imbongi. The king praises serve as a mirror that detects how the king live and perform the duties of the nation. / Thesis (M.A)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, 2007.

Abstract not available. / Thesis (M.A.)-University of Natal, Durban, 1993.

The focus of this thesis is on Xhosa oral and written poetry. The discussion in the thesis is based on the information from existing literature, the responses from the questionnaires and the interviews with some Xhosa iimbongi (person who sings praises) who have reflected on their personal experiences. In addition to this, S.E.K. Mqhayi is at the centre of discussion because as a prominent Xhosa imbongi he features in both the oral and the written world.

The focus of this thesis is on Xhosa oral and written poetry. The discussion in the thesis is based on the information from existing literature, the responses from the questionnaires and the interviews with some Xhosa iimbongi (person who sings praises) who have reflected on their personal experiences. In addition to this, S.E.K. Mqhayi is at the centre of discussion because as a prominent Xhosa imbongi he features in both the oral and the written world.

For sixty-five years hardly anyone in the English-speaking world was aware of the anthropological theories of Marcel Jousse, a twentieth century Jesuit scholar. In 1990, Jousse's seminal work, Le style oral rythmique et mnemotechnique chez les verbo-moteurs. (The rhythmic and mnemotechnique oral style of the verbo-motors), was translated into English and given the name The Oral Style. His anthropologie du geste, called in this study the anthropology of geste, presented his discovery of the universal anthropological laws governing human expression: mimism, bilateralism and formulism. Jousse had sought to understand the anthropological roots of oral style, in particular the phenomenal memory of oral style peoples. In this dissertation, Jousse's theories are summarised and his anthropological laws are used to determine whether three eucharistic prayers of the Roman rite contain elements of oral style expression. The Roman Canon, Eucharistic Prayer 1 and Eucharistic Prayer for Children 1 are set out in binary and ternary balancings. An attempt is made to show that written style expression, an inheritance from the Greeks, houses in its extraordinary complexity the very oral style elements it appears to have superseded. The assertion made is that written style, with its predilection for subordination, actually conserves, preserves and perpetuates oral style balancings, not only in the simple sentence (what Jousse calls the propositional geste), but also in clauses, phrases, words, and sound devices. Support is given to T. J. Talley's view that the Jewish nodeh lekah (thanksgiving) and not the berakah (blessing) is the prayer source that influenced the structure of the early Christians' eucharist (thanksgiving in Greek). The expressions of thanksgiving that are a distinguishing feature of anaphoras from the 1st century AD onwards, continue to shape the eucharistic prayers today. This is offered as one reason why, in a reconstruction of Eucharistic Prayer for Children 1 presented at the end of Chapter 5, it is possible to balance one recitative with another, and the recitation of one prayer component with another. The dissertation concludes by recommending that oral studies of the Christian liturgies of East and West be pursued as they have much to contribute to the orality-literacy debate not only in the matter of liturgical language but also in gaining an appreciation of other gestes of worship. / Thesis (M.A.)-University of Natal, Durban, 1994.