Traditional Stories in Sierra Leone: What Role for Librarians?
INTRODUCTION
Stories are as aged as language, as previous as the earliest societies. A few of the earliest tales even survive: people explained to in pictorial variety on walls of cave in Lascaux, in France or in the Mpongweni Mountains in Lesotho. And others have appear down to us in the world’s myths and folklore to which we now have entry on the printed age. Storytelling is older than printing, older than creating, and the initially stories to be established down on paper, papyrus or parchment ended up not the do the job of these authors but information of the oral traditions of past centuries. In Sierra Leone as it is in most African international locations storytelling is an integral section of the country’s lifestyle whilst oral traditions have quite mostly yielded to the prepared word.
We learn as we are living whilst we are young children, youthful individuals and adults. Discovering is not confined to the classroom on your own: it can consider area anyplace. Ethical values and social norms, beliefs and codes have to be transmitted from technology to the next, whether or not modified or not. Informal studying options are related and may possibly be dominant even currently when far more formalized and distinct establishments have partly taken above.
Even though Sierra Leoneans guard by themselves from their past each educationists and librarians see a large amount in storytelling that could be applied as foundation to orient and establish the younger in the faculty program. There are quite a few indications that an huge richness of conventional pedagogy in regard to the concepts, contents, techniques and institutional preparations existed and still exist in Sierra Leone. Tale tellers, their tales and tunes, proverbs and riddles are even now essential property and subjects for indigenous studying and training. Oral traditions do not only move the mores and expectations of a society. They established out to make clear the earth and behaviour of the persons in it. Oral traditions supply accounts of how the environment commenced and these development myths are portion also of the Holy Publications of all the world’s very long-recognized religions these kinds of as Christianity and Islam. Also spelled out in allegorical terms is all human conduct in which very good does not generally triumph above evil.
Stories which do not rely on literature in convert do not count on literacy. They can arrive at all of the neighborhood and their interactive quality is by itself electric power, for it facilitates the capabilities of stories in social instruction, what Leeson (1985) referred to as “passing on the country’s shared knowledge and values to the upcoming era.” Regrettably there is a lacking link in Sierra Leone as university heading young children are effectively acquainted with the tales of Fantastic Britain, the United States of The us, Canada and Italy to cite a few examples but know quite very little about their classic tales.
STORYTELLING IN SIERRA LEONE
Sierra Leone includes sixteen (16) ethnic groups. The greatest of these is the Mende uncovered in the Southern and Japanese Provinces. Following to them in number is the Temne in the North. The third largest group is the Limba, also in the Northern Province, followed by the Kono in the Eastern Province. There’s also the Koranko in the North as very well as the Yalunka, Loko, Soso, Madingo and Fula. On the coast, North and South are the Bullom and Sherbro adopted by the significantly more compact groups of Krim, Vai and Gola, with the Kissi additional inland in the Jap Province. The Western Area, including Freetown, is far more mixed in inhabitants, but is mainly the residence of the Creole group. In all these ethnic groups storytelling is frequent as portion of their culture.
Ogutu and Roscoe (1974) experienced this to say about storytelling in Africa: “The continent has its individual fiction traditions it has the tradition of storytelling, narrated orally… the medium as a result of which Africa down the centuries has bared its soul, taught its people and entertained by itself” (pp. 43-44).
Regular stories in Sierra Leone are perceived as embodiment of the beliefs, customs, rituals and structures of society that will need to be taken care of. Tales function in modern society to insure conformity to the recognized cultural norms of continuity from technology to generation through their position in instruction and the extent to which they mirror tradition. Most classic storytellers claim to derive their art by goals, spirits, and apprenticeship to specialist storytellers some others assert to receive the art immediately from God though some say they paid out to get it. Storytellers possess the following options:
• Fluency in the area language and mastery of a broad variety of vocabulary for all degrees of audiences
• Creative imagination and capability to set up rapport with their audiences
• Awareness of their audiences and their demands
• Familiarity with and ability to refer to their culture and setting to enliven their stories and make them enchantment to their audience
• Good memory of exact retention and narration of a massive corpus of content and
• Candour.
The contents of traditional stories can be grouped into:
• Myths-stories tinted with religion, superstition and common beliefs specifically about the origins of mankind and phenomena
• Legends-tales about historic events and memorable persons such as war heroes, outstanding medication adult men and migration
• Fiction-imaginary tales categorized into allegory, fables, fantasy and parables.
These can be further more categorized by social functionality or establishment specifically:
• Political tales-stories about leadership and the romantic relationship concerning leaders and their subjects
• Tribe stories-these expose the buildings, family members and communities i.e. relationship and genealogies
• Religion and deities-stories about development and phenomena these types of as demise and rain
• Moral virtues-tales intended to deride these vices as pride, greed, thievery, murder, dishonesty, foolishness and absence of perception
• Economics-tales that offer with operate, borrowing and lending, industriousness and laziness.
Figures in normal standard Sierra Leonean tales variety from people today to animals, stones, trees, crops, deities, spirits and birds. These people are symbolic: Bra rabbit- trickery tortoise-knowledge elephant-nobility vulture-patience lion-bravery and power sparrow, parrot and crow-intelligence dove-good fortune spider-cunning. Stories are advised purely for evening entertainments. Often storytelling classes could be any time of the working day with audiences in non-public verandahs, ‘court barries’ or other general public destinations. Having said that, the regular environment where 20 to forty people today sit with each other close to a kerosene lamp or fireplace at night time immediately after a day’s work is done and food stuff has been cooked and eaten. Storytellers are also invited to cultural social features these types of as weddings, burials, solution modern society celebrations and crowning ceremonies. Tobacco is usually offered for without having cigarette smoking storytelling suggestions will not movement.
Stories go alongside one another with tracks a tune begins off a story an critical line in a tale would make up a new story a proverb ends a tale a music in the center of a story is employed to wake up listeners or to put together for the coming climax. Incredibly typically tracks do invite participation, and listeners become lively supporters of a chorus, clapping their palms, achieving to lies and jokes of the tale teller, who in flip responses the feedback often with a different story. Tunes are backed by the beating of conventional musical devices like ‘kaylain’, ‘sira’ ‘seigureh’ and ‘sangba’ (area drum) to insert rhythm. Tale telling viewers is usually active. It catalyses the narratives by spontaneous exclamations, thoughts to the narrator, echoing of the narrator’s voice, and joining in the singing of choruses. For all these to consider position self-control is managed. The audience is made to laugh and exclaim but with no jeopardizing the continuation of the narration.
SOCIAL Functions OF Traditional Tales
Foremost is socialization. The telling and listening of stories is a social action that delivers folks jointly to share in inventive and innovative affair. The celebration is intended to entertain so that individuals could fail to remember the drudgery of day-to-day daily life. Individuals are transplanted to a globe of make-perception. As the narration goes by means of the nuances of recreating the fictional earth the audience is carried alongside like travellers on a flight. The satisfaction derived is facilitated by the social corporation of the viewers. The ambiance is frequently casual with no coercion or harassment everybody is on equivalent footing irrespective of gender and age.
Participants have a possibility to narrate and hear. The situation underscores the value of social cooperation. The self-control inherent in the narration is inevitably reworked to spheres of lifestyle. Members master to respect other folks, appreciate particular discrepancies in talents and temperament and be ready to relate in a prevalent activity.
Mental stimulation is derived from storytelling. Tales are advised and obtained through the ear. The demand they put on the narrator is to recall the story and convey to it for a attainable retelling in upcoming. This is fantastic instruction for the memory. A person has to be attentive to get the necessities of a story and assimilate it into repertoire. Thus the intellect have to be extremely lively to accommodate the new knowledge or kinds of what is now recognized. As nicely as coaching of memory the narratives sharpen significant appreciation. Just one has to inquest the information of the narrative and evaluates the situations related.
Tales are not just advised for their individual sake but have critical pieces of social instruction to impart. The allegories of occasions and figures mirror on human lifetime and are a source of mastering. In the people of tales the viewers will see laziness, sages, cowards, agitators and the arrogant to cite but a few examples. Tales give hints as to how to respond to them. The narratives give recommendations on what is cherishable. In other phrases they look for to modify life.
Tales are cultural records. The society of a persons is the totality of their techniques of lifetime which involve religion, beliefs, customs, practices, songs, literature, attitudes, and philosophy. By remaining didactic tales present to folks the philosophical essence of the society. The contents of oral traditions epitomize the foundations of that group. The tales of religion, generation and supernatural give the spiritual foundations of that team. Biographies and historic tales current the mundane landmarks in what is the modern society today. By the common heroes, individuals enjoy what the society admires.
INCLUSION OF Common Stories IN THE College CURRICULUM
Stories are prosperous in custom and a worthwhile heritage which are the country’s supply of oral literature. Storytelling is like record: it reveals the previous, educates the present and throws lights on the long run. Stories touch the soul of society and jolt them into an recognition of their condition. In Sierra Leone nonetheless these treasures of oral tradition are in risk of becoming disdained, forgotten and buried. By advertising the collection and publication of these oral sources of information school librarians will not only lead to a worthwhile revival of curiosity in a hitherto neglected industry but will make certain that posterity will derive utmost rewards from these an endeavour.
Sierra Leone is, in political parlance, a fairly new condition adhering to a decade-extended civil war (1991-2001). Recording stories and together with these in the college curriculum could uncover solutions to the country’s complications of non-integration. Just as the country’s Nationwide Dance Troupe more than the many years advanced into a spouse and children nationwide ensemble so will recording regular tales current a considerably less heterogeneous origin and believe a really nationwide and homogenous character.
Standard tales teach moral classes prevalent to all the ethnic groups in Sierra Leone. Sir Winston Wilson after noticed that the more back again we seem into the past, the far more into the upcoming we can see. Recording traditional tales could assist Sierra Leoneans to glance back again to their earlier with a look at to observing into their long term. Other than, educational institutions together with public libraries are the most well-liked spots to explain to tales to young children. The kind of audience determines the variety of story to be informed. For instance little ones from ages 3 to 5 delight in tales about animals and about kids by themselves. When college-age kids go in for very long tales. Junior Higher Faculty pupils like myths and epics. They are fascinated by heroes and appreciate experience and romance.
The correct to go through one’s have globe is an necessary component of the correct to find out. Tales and tunes are the media by which Sierra Leoneans have been to go to their small children the traditions, customs, culture and oral historical past of their culture. Indigenous literature nonetheless is required to prevent the literate man or woman from becoming alienated from his possess culture and tradition. It strengthens the appreciation of one’s very own cultural values and cultural identification in a rapidly shifting natural environment. In Sierra Leone the place for a very long time instruction has been based on textbooks that relate to other cultures this is extremely vital. Like just about everywhere else in the entire world the awareness of people’s cultural heritage is also a prerequisite for the continuity, cohesion and development of their modern society. Around and higher than all the prosperous oral traditions of Sierra Leoneans with their different languages can very easily get lost with the propagation of modern day signifies of interaction, if not preserved.
Purpose OF LIBRARIES
Libraries are the gatekeepers to the earth of information and facts and knowledge. Kinnell (1992) opined that Very good libraries empower. Working with their assets can unfetter our imagination, disclose hitherto unrealized worlds encourage know-how induce satisfaction make us giggle insights obstacle our misconceptions assuage fears prick our conscience impact our sensibilities and offer specialist refreshment. “What we understand from excellent guides and other means become part of us”(p.5).
Libraries are the neutral grounds on which the specific little one may well mature by means of impartial and unhindered discovery. They are places to study and practice data abilities. Libraries deliver sources of info for youthful persons, enabling them to explore and use the electric power of entry that information and facts capabilities can provide in the society of today and that of tomorrow. Amonoo and Azubuike (2003) opined that libraries are catalysts for human development as they help the advancement and transmission of information and tradition, and foster civic recognition in help of democracy. Libraries preserve and endorse cultural heritage and range, and foster mutual knowing and regard for cultures and peoples. For Johnson (2013) “good college and college or university libraries can greatly enhance the academic encounter, inspire examining and fostering the critical imagining that learners will demand to survive and prosper in an more and more sophisticated modern society”(p.295).
An advantage that libraries delight in is that they are centrally placed in communities. As such they are properly put to satisfy a role as cultural centers. They are all-natural places for the marketing of literature which include poetry, drama, prose and storytelling. They also provide location for visible arts and tunes. In addition they are cultural centers in the accurate feeling of the word, highlighting local tradition and equipped to spotlight the culture of kids symbolizing the several teams in the group.
Le Roux (2005) averred that the school library is very little significantly less than the conscience of the curriculum. Educational institutions libraries supply relevant and up-to-date elements and solutions for teaching employees and pupils to assist the curriculum. Implicitly the collection so formulated should really be a single that demonstrates not only the known desires of users but also anticipated needs of possible instructors and pupils. By presenting their buyers with a representative selection of children’s literature libraries could stimulate academics and pupils alike to build imaginative use of storytelling components that could be passed on to pupils in subsequent yrs.
Provision and marketing of services presupposes a know-how and knowing of the globe in which small children dwell on a international, national and foundation. Small children can derive from libraries pleasure of story experience, of language, and of involved artwork. The sources of the library may foster information of a wider globe and an knowledge of other folks with regard to actions, culture, or conditions (Johnson,2013). Young children can attain self-expertise via relating to conditions, gatherings and figures. Libraries can present for kid’s info desires. Superior providers could enable to engender assurance in the acquisition of vocabulary, speech and language. Libraries present alternatives for shared practical experience amongst grownups and young children. Central to the philosophy of library provision for youthful individuals is to help official and casual education.
College libraries are communication centers. They constitute an best signifies of disseminating / know-how. Their objective is to facilitate access to the clientele they provide to the applications of expertise to guide their cultural and qualified advancement (Wehmeyer, 2005). Ultimately this purpose is affiliated with the mental enhancement of pupils and their attitudes in direction of circumstances of all types, moral, intellectual, social, realistic and recreational.
Crucial Duties FOR LIBRARIANS
Standard tales are aspects of peoples’ indigenous know-how systems and thinking about their social capabilities in modern society there is every will need for these to be preserved. The actuality in the key is that considerably of the art of storytelling is owned by grownups most of whom are expanding aged and dying. And in Africa for instance when an old human being dies it is believed that a library is burnt. This is in which college librarians really should come in to participate in a vital job. Conventional storytelling is an inexplicable phenomenon of Sierra Leonean lifetime and is indispensable for upcoming progress. Now actions have been carried out by some corporations like Associates in Grownup Training (PEA), the Division of Historical past and African Experiments and the Division of More-Mural Research (DEMS) at Fourah Bay College or university to document some conventional stories, music, proverbs and riddles for upcoming use. School librarians ought to be aspect of these initiatives by recording regular tales utilizing traditional facts and conversation systems these kinds of as telecommunications (cell telephones), computers, microfiche, and audiovisual technologies( e.g. cassette recorders, slides, movie tapes, tape recorders and CD-ROMs) to record, repackage and disseminate tales for their intended audiences. Supplied the value of net technology in facts collecting and dissemination librarians can also record tales in net OPACs so that academics, pupils, and scientists can browse distinctive tales as properly as biographies of renowned tale tellers in the place (Kochtanek and Mathews, 2002).
Even further faculty librarians really should be transcribing and publishing tales into booklets and anthologies for use in faculties. Such attempts will contribute to the modest inventory of created products in the place offered for educational facilities, youths and even older people. Translating conventional stories into many languages will lead to intercultural being familiar with in the place. Via these efforts the country’s cultures would come to be the content material of understanding and even the kind by using it from its roots.
As common tales and songs are dwelling in specific contexts rudiments of these could be offered in photos: village lifetime, arts and crafts, landscapes, peoples and vacation routes. Central in all these initiatives will be photographs of story tellers and their audiences, dancers and artists. The visible impressions developed by photographs will additional bolster children’s comprehension and curiosity in school. Story telling periods should really not only be filmed / videoed but librarians ought to compile biographies of storytellers for use in colleges. These kinds of strides will enrich kid’s understanding of the various ethnic groups in the country and could go a very long way in lowering illiteracy.
In college librarians need to advocate for improved slots for storytelling on the time table. They really should also foyer for the introduction of classic storytelling up to Junior Secondary College stage as features of Literature. Youngsters need to be brought to the library for exclusive storytelling sessions so that they could not forget their society. Parents and Storytellers ought to be invited to narrate stories in university for the reward of small children. These types of efforts require collaboration with subject matter instructors who greater fully grasp the needs of pupils and the curriculum. University librarians should also preserve back links with community libraries and close by educational facilities in their locations. Children should be taken on pay a visit to to public libraries inside their localities in which storytelling sessions could be held. In all these moves faculty librarians need to possess comprehensive know-how of storytelling acceptable for the assorted requires and levels of pupils in their respective educational facilities. Backlinks should also be built with tertiary establishments and companies engaged in grownup literacy which are by now involved in common storytelling routines as element of their curricula. Lecturers and animators could be invited to school to communicate to little ones about the significance of regular storytelling and even tell stories for the reward of pupils and lecturers. There are neighborhood radios stations all in excess of the place and universities can purchase air time to hold conversations on storytelling. If attainable storytellers need to be invited to such talks to be both interviewed or tell tales. In point the national broadcaster, the Sierra Leone Broadcasting Cooperation (SLBC) could enjoy a leading part in this route by building at minimum a slot in its weekly packages for storytelling.
The school librarians, to be helpful, will need to be equipped to “promote” the art of storytelling in the exact same way other competition for youngsters “promote” their wares. They ought to organize E book Weeks with storytelling periods involved in the actions to be carried out in this kind of Months. For the duration of these sessions storytellers and parent could be invited to notify stories to little ones. Lecturers, mother and father and older pupils should be encouraged to write and browse stories to the younger types. They ought to also demonstrate movie clips or slides/musical variations of renowned common stories.
Conclusion
A very well used faculty library encourages discovering, raises achievement and boosts pupils’ particular and social advancement. It is an asset to the faculty, both in terms of physical resources and the wider sources through the college it will harness for the benefit of its buyers (The Library Affiliation (1998). Invariably, classic stories have passed from the ancient to existing day generations by word of mouth. They have survived the take a look at of time because of the universality of their messages across time and boundaries. Hence Sierra Leoneans nonetheless locate traditional tales pertinent and adoptable to their experiences nowadays. As time passes on traditional tales nevertheless have to be passed down to their descendants. Significantly this need to not be only by the oral term. Literacy and other areas of modern-day life come in to support the preservation and even further transmission of classic tales. And this is where faculty librarians ought to arrive in. By compilation of anthologies, recording stories into audio tapes, CD ROMs, and cinema films and generation of networks to cite but a handful of examples, college librarians will be able to generate a additional long-lasting file of this useful asset for long run use.
