This thesis is an exegesis of the portrayal of deviance in selected post-independence Shona fictional works. The analysis is done within the context of moralisation in Shona literature. The forms of deviant behaviour discussed include prostitution, homosexuality, crime and violence and negligence of duty within families. The fictional works are Mapenzi (1999), Totanga Patsva (2003), Ndozviudza Aniko? (2006), Ndafa Here? (2008), and Makaitei? (2008). All the fictional works are set during the period of the Zimbabwe Crisis and this becomes the context of the criticism of the manner in which deviance is handled by the writers. Particular attention is paid on the causes and solutions to deviance, images of deviants and the implications of such images in attempting to understand the realities of deviant behaviour. The research adopts an eclectic approach through a combination of literary and sociological theories to unpack issues concerning the litigious subject of deviance. The research fully acknowledges that deviance is a fluid and controversial concept as it varies with cultural frameworks and historical periods of certain societies. Thus the research has endeavoured to locate deviance with the ambit of Shona existential philosophy and the period of the Zimbabwe crisis. The research advances the argument that no human being is inherently deviant but there are certain circumstances and eventualities that are responsible for the development of such a personality. Therefore deviance herein is viewed as a response to the situation and in the case of this research it is the crisis which then is responsible for nurturing the people into deviance. In most of the situations, deviance is shown to be essentially a survival strategy by those who engage in it. Prostitution, homosexuality and crime have been shown to be largely economic necessities as the collapsing economy during the period of the crisis came with amorphous challenges and people resorted to anti-social behaviour in an attempt to live contenting lives. With regards to prostitution, homosexuality and crime, the writers have to a larger extent been able to contextualise deviance in terms of the crisis although Mabasa has been shown to display some ambivalence in his treatment of prostitutes in Mapenzi and Ndafa Here? There are instances he castigates prostitutes as social renegades which somehow weakens his vision. Apart from this, it has also been argued that deviant behaviour can be a result of the frustrations people face as they battle the vagaries of life. Violence and negligence of duty within families is argued to be a consequence of the frustrations from the poverty brought by the crisis and the movement into the diaspora as this has its own challenges that disempower people to carry out their duties as sanctioned by culture. Also, the research advances the argument that oral literature continues to impact on written literature and one such area is that of moralisation which continues to be a major priority of the writers. Except for the authors of the short stories in Totanga Patsva, moralisation on issues to do with deviance has been done in an enlightening way as the writers unearth the underlying causes of deviant behaviour and these are found in society and not individuals. The writers of the short stories have shown to be largely influenced by feminism and erroneously blame male deviants for the problems faced by women instead of explaining men`s behaviour in the context colonialism and neo-colonialism which brought various challenges related to gender relations in Africa not experienced hitherto. The direction in terms of qualitative development which Shona literature is taking in post-independence era is positive as the writers are shown to be tackling sensitive political, social and economic issues and their impact on the human condition. / African Languages / D. Litt. et Phil.

O objetivo deste trabalho é apresentar ao leitor brasileiro a tradução do romance Mémoires de porc-épic (2006), de Alain Mabanckou. Para chegarmos à tradução, fez-se necessário entender alguns elementos centrais de sua poética e da estrutura narrativa do romance, assim como sua trajetória de vida e obra. Para tanto, discorremos, num primeiro momento, sobre sua visão de mundo e sobre as principais dimensões de sua poética, relacionando-os, sobretudo, ao pensamento rizomático proposto por Édouard Glissant. Em seguida, analisamos o romance em questão atentando para elementos macroestruturais, relacionados à literatura oral tradicional de algumas sociedades africanas de expressão francesa, nos baseando, majoritariamente, nos estudos feitos por Jacques Chevrier, e em elementos microestruturais, concernentes ao uso de repetições, paralelismos, interjeições, léxico africano, provérbios, responsáveis por criar o que Mabanckou chama de ritmo congolês da narrativa. Por fim, destinamos o terceiro capítulo à discussão tradutória, no qual apresentamos nosso projeto de tradução, baseado na abordagem de viés não etnocêntrico proposta, entre outros, por Antoine Berman; e nossa concepção sobre as notas de tradução, levando em consideração, primordialmente, o pensamento de Ana Cristina Cesar em relação ao ritmo na prosa. Apresentamos as notas de tradução divididas em dois blocos, o semântico e o sintático, ambos em diálogo com o que entendemos ser o ritmo da narrativa. A tradução completa é vista no anexo. / The aim of this work is to present to the Brazilian public the translation of Mémoires de porc-épic (2006), a novel by Alain Mabanckou. In order to arrive at the translation, it seemed necessary to have a more in-depth understanding of some of the central elements of the poetic and narrative structure of the novel, as well as the authors life and work. Therefore, we at first discuss his worldview and the main dimensions of his poetics; relating them, especially, to the concept of rhizome proposed by philosopher Édouard Glissant. Then, we analyze the novel in question, with attention to the macrostructural elements related to traditional oral literature in some African societies of French expression, drawing mainly on studies by Jacques Chevrier, as well as microstructural elements concerning the use of repetitions, parallelisms, interjections, African vocabulary and proverbs, responsible for creating the Congolese rhythm of the narrative. Finally, the third chapter discusses the translation and presents the translation project, drawing upon the non-ethnocentric approach proposed, among others, by Antoine Berman, and our conception of the translation notes, taking into account primarily the thoughts of Ana Cristina Cesar regarding rhythm in prose. The translation notes are divided into two blocks, semantic and syntactic, which are both in dialogue with what we understand to be the rhythm of the narrative. The full translation is located in the Annex.

Plusieurs monographies récentes se sont intéressées à la traduction des littératures africaines europhones (Gyasi 2006, Bandia 2008, Batchelor 2009), faisant valoir le concept d’autotraduction (au sens métaphorique) et insistant sur le fait que ces écritures sont porteuses d’une oralité ou de marques linguistiques issues des langues parlées par les écrivains. Toutefois, la question de l’hybridité comme point de jonction entre littératures orales et écrites a encore rarement été examinée sous un angle poétique et c’est précisément dans cet esprit que cette recherche a été entreprise. Dans un premier temps, à partir des ouvrages originaux de six auteurs, trois d’expression littéraire anglaise (Farah, Hove et Armah) et trois d’expression littéraire française (Waberi, Adiaffi et Djebar), je montre en quoi ces écritures méritent d’être qualifiées de poétiques avant de mettre cette esthétique en relation avec le patrimoine littéraire de chacun des auteurs du corpus; ponctuellement, d’autres affiliations littéraires sont mises en évidence. Cette poétique est examinée dans sa dimension mélopoéique (Pound 1954), c’est-à-dire sous l’angle des structures audibles, appelées aussi figures de style jouant sur la forme phonétique des mots (Klein-Lataud 2001). Dans un second temps, j’examine comment cette poétique sonore a été recréée, tant de manière qualitative que quantitative, dans les traductions de Bardolph, de Richard et de J. et R. Mane (pour les auteurs d’expression anglaise) et de Garane, de Katiyo et de Blair (pour les auteurs d’expression française). Les enjeux associés à la réactivation des structures poétiques sonores sont mis en évidence dans le dernier chapitre qui propose un tour d’horizon des modalités de « consommation » de l’objet littéraire et qui s’achève sur les questions soulevées par la progression du livre audio. La méthodologie élaborée dans ce cadre s’inspire essentiellement de Berman (1995) et de Henry (2003). La conceptualisation de la poétique sonore, telle que mise en œuvre dans le contexte particulier de ces littératures, fait appel aux paradigmes de valence traductive (Folkart 2007) et de traduction métonymique (Tymoczko 1999). Par ailleurs, cette recherche s’appuie sur la récente thèse de doctorat de Fraser (2007) consacrée à la théorisation du sonore en traduction. / Recent publications explore Europhone African literatures as translation and in translation (Gyasi 2006, Bandia 2008, Batchelor 2009) insisting that these texts are better understood as a form of self-translation through oral subtexts, showing evidence of linguistic interplay by drawing on the writers’ native language(s). Yet hybridity as an encounter between oral and written literatures has seldom been explored in its poetic dimension. This lack of attention shapes the blueprint of this dissertation. Drawing on six original texts from African writers publishing in English (Farah, Hove and Armah) or in French (Waberi, Adiaffi and Djebar), I show in which extent these writings deserve to be labelled as poetic and how they are informed by the authors’ native literary background; occasionally I discuss other literary affiliations. In this specific context, I explore poetry in its melopoeic actualization (Pound 1954) as it relates to aural poetic devices (i.e. relying on their audible features). I then analyze, qualitatively and quantitatively, how this audible poetry has been reactivated by the translators: Bardolph, Richard, J. and R. Mane (translating Farah, Hove and Armah, respectively); Garane, Katiyo, Blair (translating Waberi, Adiaffi and Djebar, respectively). The last chapter suggests how reactivating sonorous poetic devices in translation relates to different literary modalities, especially audiobooks, as they represent a rapidly growing trend. The methodology draws on Antoine Berman’s translation project (1995) and Jacqueline Henry’s Traduire les jeux de mots (2003). Approaching the translation of aural/audible poetry in the specific context of these texts was facilitated by calling upon paradigms such as translational valency (Folkart 2007) and metonymy (Tymoczko 1999). Last but not least, this dissertation benefited from Fraser’s recent doctoral thesis (2007) dedicated to theorizing sound translation.

This study examines contemporary Sesotho proverbs with an attempt at establishing whether they perform a significant role in society. The research highlighted the fact that they have a role to play in the 21st century. Although not commonly used as in the traditional setup, contemporary proverbs have their place as a day to day activity. In terms of language development they also add value to language change and providing alternatives in the world of challenges. Through interviews and the questionnaire, the research, indeed, showed that contemporary proverbs' survival is guaranteed. Their survival in this modem world is of great importance in this research. The observation was that some of these contemporary proverbs are the same as traditional proverbs in many aspects which include their origin and structure. Some of the contemporary proverbs use or adopt familiar patterns to express new truths, thus reflecting on new events or aspects of the modern society. The possibility is that those that adopt the structure of the Sesotho traditional proverbs have all the chance of staying in the language. Some of these contemporary proverbs, however, survive on the premise that they are jokes created for fun by youth and other members of the creative section of the society. / African Languages / D. Litt. et Phil. (African Languages)

O objetivo deste trabalho é apresentar ao leitor brasileiro a tradução do romance Mémoires de porc-épic (2006), de Alain Mabanckou. Para chegarmos à tradução, fez-se necessário entender alguns elementos centrais de sua poética e da estrutura narrativa do romance, assim como sua trajetória de vida e obra. Para tanto, discorremos, num primeiro momento, sobre sua visão de mundo e sobre as principais dimensões de sua poética, relacionando-os, sobretudo, ao pensamento rizomático proposto por Édouard Glissant. Em seguida, analisamos o romance em questão atentando para elementos macroestruturais, relacionados à literatura oral tradicional de algumas sociedades africanas de expressão francesa, nos baseando, majoritariamente, nos estudos feitos por Jacques Chevrier, e em elementos microestruturais, concernentes ao uso de repetições, paralelismos, interjeições, léxico africano, provérbios, responsáveis por criar o que Mabanckou chama de ritmo congolês da narrativa. Por fim, destinamos o terceiro capítulo à discussão tradutória, no qual apresentamos nosso projeto de tradução, baseado na abordagem de viés não etnocêntrico proposta, entre outros, por Antoine Berman; e nossa concepção sobre as notas de tradução, levando em consideração, primordialmente, o pensamento de Ana Cristina Cesar em relação ao ritmo na prosa. Apresentamos as notas de tradução divididas em dois blocos, o semântico e o sintático, ambos em diálogo com o que entendemos ser o ritmo da narrativa. A tradução completa é vista no anexo. / The aim of this work is to present to the Brazilian public the translation of Mémoires de porc-épic (2006), a novel by Alain Mabanckou. In order to arrive at the translation, it seemed necessary to have a more in-depth understanding of some of the central elements of the poetic and narrative structure of the novel, as well as the authors life and work. Therefore, we at first discuss his worldview and the main dimensions of his poetics; relating them, especially, to the concept of rhizome proposed by philosopher Édouard Glissant. Then, we analyze the novel in question, with attention to the macrostructural elements related to traditional oral literature in some African societies of French expression, drawing mainly on studies by Jacques Chevrier, as well as microstructural elements concerning the use of repetitions, parallelisms, interjections, African vocabulary and proverbs, responsible for creating the Congolese rhythm of the narrative. Finally, the third chapter discusses the translation and presents the translation project, drawing upon the non-ethnocentric approach proposed, among others, by Antoine Berman, and our conception of the translation notes, taking into account primarily the thoughts of Ana Cristina Cesar regarding rhythm in prose. The translation notes are divided into two blocks, semantic and syntactic, which are both in dialogue with what we understand to be the rhythm of the narrative. The full translation is located in the Annex.

Comment les traditions orales kanak pourraient-elles agir au-delà de leurs frontières habituelles et influencer les processus de construction identitaire dans la société néo-calédonienne contemporaine ? Notre travail explore les interactions entre la tradition orale kanak et la tradition écrite néocalédonienne, en examinant les textes de réécriture, ces lieux de rencontre entre traditions qui constituent un espace de patrimoine commun. Cette thèse retrace les chemins d’une histoire, Le Chef et le lézard (dont on trouve de multiples versions dans les différentes traditions orales kanak), dans la tradition écrite. Sont élucidés les contextes historiques, politiques et littéraires des processus de production de versions de l’histoire, afin de mettre en évidence les forces en oeuvre, et d’éclairer la manière dont les représentations qui y figurent pourraient participer aux processus de construction identitaire. Les outils conceptuels employés sont la « réécriture », la « vā » (l’espace relationnel océanien d’échange et de rencontre),ainsi que la littérature comme « outil de renforcement communautaire ». La contribution originale qu'apporte notre travail consiste en démontrant le degré et l’étendue de l’intégration d'une histoire kanak dans le polysystème littéraire néo-calédonien ; en soulignant le rôle actif joué par des acteurs kanak dans les processus de réécriture ; en créant une métaphore étendue géographique du paysage littéraire néo-calédonien ; en témoignant de la richesse des traditions orales et écrites de Kanaky/Nouvelle-Calédonie ; et en constituant une passerelle entre les chercheurs/lecteurs non-francophones et la littérature néo-calédonienne. / How might Kanak oral traditions move beyond their usual boundaries and influence identity construction processes in contemporary New Caledonian society? This thesis explores the interactions between Kanak oral tradition and New Caledonian written tradition, by examining the (re)writings that are places of encounter between these traditions, and thus constitute a space of shared heritage. This study traces the pathways taken by a story, Le Chef et le lézard, (a number of versions of which are found in different Kanak oral traditions), as it moves into and within written tradition. The historical, political, and literary contexts of the (re)writing processes that produce versions of Le Chef et le lézard are elucidated, to demonstrate the forces at work and shed light on how the representations that figure in the (re)writings might participate in identity construction processes. The conceptual tools used in the study include: rewriting; vā (the relational space of exchange and encounter found throughout Oceania); and literature as a means of building community. The original contribution of this thesis has been to demonstrate the degree and the extent of the integration of a Kanak story into the New Caledonian literary polysystem; to highlight the active role played by Kanak actors in the rewriting process; to develop anextended geographic metaphor for the New Caledonian literary landscape; to bear witness to the richness of oral and written traditions in Kanaky/Nouvelle-Calédonie; and to create a bridge between non-Francophone researchers/readers and New Caledonian literature (oral and written).

Text in English / The study is a sociolinguistic exploration of the pedagogical value of Shona children’s oral art forms on a changing cultural terrain to situate them within contemporary classroom pedagogy. Critical Discourse Analysis, Afrocentricity and Constructivism are theories that informed the analysis of the Shona children’s oral art forms. The study is conducted within the qualitative paradigm as a descriptive study. Data was gathered through observartions, standardised open-ended interviews, focus group interviews, questionnaires and document analysis. The study established that Shona children’s oral art forms have responded positively to the changing environment in which they are performed in terms of form and content. While this is a positive development, this should be done with caution to ensure that indigenous knowledge systems that are the backbone of African societies are not abused on the global stage. The study has also affirmed that Shona children’s oral art forms are useful pedagogical tools for information dissemination and knowledge creation. It is also evident from the findings that the oral art forms are an embodiment of human factor values that enhance development education. Findings from this study established that Shona children’s oral art forms are reservoirs of values and norms cherished by the Shona as a people and can be reconstructed for teaching various concepts across the primary school curriculum. Evident from this study is that both teachers and learners are knowledgeable of the various traditional Shona children’s oral art forms although new creations are coined to adapt to the changing environment. This shows that the traditional forms are able to withstand the challenges of globalisation, and this resilience is a positive development since it creates an opportunity for researchers to document these in their unadulterated form for posterity. Since findings from the study highlighted threats to the children’s oral art forms due to the advent of technology and globalisation, there is need to act so that they are not pushed to the periphery as was the case during the colonial era. There is need for concerted efforts at packaging them and meaningful infusion of these into all aspects of children’s education for visibility within the changing environment to guard against their demise in an era of globalisation which may impact negatively on the Shona culture. / Linguistics and Modern Languages / Ph. D.(Languages, Linguistics and Literature)

Over 50 years ago, Marshall McLuhan (2003), a specialist in communication issues, said that the world is becoming smaller and smaller every starting day, a result of the emergence of modern communication around the world. This situation has given birth to the conept `new technology´. This article will break down this new concept by looking at it through the lens of oral literature, which is used in Swahili communities. However, oral Swahili literature uses Kiswahili language, which is the languagge of communication at different levels throughout East and central Africa. The article will examine the ideals and opinions connected to oral literature described in the existing academic literature, and as one of the genres of narrative literature. It will look at the way in which the concept of new technology is explained by specialists, and in which ways this connects to oral literature. Advantages and effects which came about in the society after the coming of this notion will be discussed. The article ends with a conclusion and possible recommendations.

Video games today represent very widespread medium, which has a huge potential. Majority of games uses for its stories and building of their world rearranged and commodified elements inspired by vernacular folklore. Thanks to that kind of games, they were able to preserve and spread some manifestations of oral tradition, mainly representation of oral literature, specifically the representatives of demonological legends, not only in collective memory of certain group, but also in the general population thanks to the mass culture of popular culture. Based on the identification, processing, study and documentation of these manifestations in a selected sample of video games with folklore themes and subsequent research among players and developers about the knowledge of these manifestations, it can be determined whether is the manifestations or folklore, or whether these manifestations are related with folklorism or folkloresque. The thesis aims to examine these statements and to explore the possibilities of preserving the manifestations of oral literature in the collective memory of the subculture of computer game players with an overlap to the general population. Keywords oral tradition, oral literature, storytelling, popular culture, demonological legends, video games, case study, folkloresque,...

In this study, I expand the scope of the scholarship that Walter Ong and others have done in orality-literacy relations to examine the often uneasy juxtaposition of the oral and written traditions in the literature of the Victorian pulpit. I begin by examining the intersections of the oral and written traditions found in both the theory and the practice of Victorian preaching. I discuss the prominent place of the sermon within both the print and oral cultures of Victorian Britain; argue that the sermon's status as both oration and essay places it in the genre of "oral literature"; and analyze the debate over the extent to which writing should be employed in the preparation and delivery of sermons.