Kultuurverwerwing by Suid-Sothogesinne in 'n stedelike konteks

[摘要] English: This thesis focuses mainly on three subjects: The nature of the process ofculture acquisition as it is encountered amongst selected Southern Sothofamilies in an urban neighbourhood of Greater Bloemfontein; the extent towhich the child develops a clear cultural identity within the urban familycontext; and the family as primary context of culture acquisition.The study is qualitative, holistic and interpretative in its approach. The datacollectiontechniques (in-depth interviews, semi-structured interviews andparticipant observation) as well as data-analysis techniques (categorisation,comparison, generalisations, theoretical explanations) have therefore beenemployed to gain reflective and theoretical insight. The families in the study vary in structure to include the typical nuclearfamilies, single-parent families, male-headed multigenerational families andfemale-headed multigenerational families. The mean income level of familiesis average to below average but all the families show an inclination towardssocial and economic mobility. The majority of the parents are full-time employed in non-professional positions while only 22,72 percent receivedtertiary education. It has been established that the majority of the parents areurbanised in their way of thinking and acting and that they feel positive aboutcity life in general. Marriage relationships within families were discussed in terms of threecharacteristics, namely jointness, closure and fidelity. With regard to closurethe question was posited: To what extent is the marriage couple's involvementin their marriage and consequently their relationship with each other, inconflict with their relationships and obligations towards their relatives? Itseems as if married couples in general regard closure as ideal but they areoften forced by custom and circumstance to accept the interference andpresence of relatives in their lives and the rendering of assistance onoccasion also seems unavoidable. The characteristic of jointness refers tomalelfemale expectations of roles in the marriage. Aspects such as decisionmaking,budgeting, sharing of chores and the amount of time spent in oneanother's company were investigated. Spouses differ in their views: the majority of the men perceive chore-sharing as a modem phenomenon andclaim that they are willing to share the household chores of their wives. In themajority of cases, this seemed to be only lip service. The same applies todecision-making and budgeting. Even where husbands and wives both eaman income, it is considered best if the husband makes the decision regardingthe buying of so-called big items, such as a stove. Fidelity of marriagepartners was not directly determined. Couples were however, asked toindicate how they spend their free time. Some of the couples do shareactivities like shopping, going to church and visiting friends together. Sharingfree time is not, however, regarded by the wives as a sign of companionship and in most cases leisure time is organised according to gender.These couples are also parents and as such have certain tasks. It wasestablished that mothers to a certain extent still follow the traditional practicesduring pregnancy and after birth. Parents give an ascribed status to the child.Traditionally it was very important to be aware of one's status and to actaccordingly, but in the urban context acquired status became more important.Thus parents strive to give their children a good school education with a viewto better future prospects. Parents are also responsible for nurturing, trainingand protection of their children. Mothers are still mainly responsible for nurturing and training the children. They emphasise that children should beindependent and assign household tasks that are congruent with children'scapabilities. Fathers are mostly in the background, although the youngerfathers are becoming more involved in the physical and emotional nurture ofbabies and toddlers. Traditionally fathers were expected to see to the moraltraining and ritual protection of children. It seems that this task of the fathersis continuing in the urban context.In the study the profile of the children in families is presented through adiscussion of the cultural identity of teenagers and young adults still in theirparents' home. Identity is subdivided into the three dimensions ofpersonhood, selfhood and individuality. Personhood refers to those cultural forms and social forces that together confer on the individual an array ofsocial positions and render him/her accountable as a moral being. Inaccordance with this definition the nature of children's social relationshipswas investigated, as well as the moral responsibilities linked to therelationships. In their relationship with their parents, children have a high regard for their mothers as confidantes and advisors. In contrast with relatedliterature, children reported that they also experience a close relationship withtheir fathers, although not of the same intensity as with their mothers. Ingeneral the traditional position and responsibilities of the eldest sister andbrother in the sibling group are maintained. As can be expected, therelationships with their peer group are of paramount importance to childrenand through their interaction with friends they develop a richer understandingof the socio-cultural perspectives of other persons. In comparison theirrelationships with members of the opposite sex are even more important tothem than relationships with friends of the same sex. This aspect is also oneof the points of conflict with their parents because the young people wouldlike to follow the modem trends of a dominant westernised way of courtingwhile their parents prefer a more traditionalised procedure. In analysing the selfhood of children it was noticeable that they mostly usedabstract terms, as well as descriptive references to concrete actions andcontextual qualifications to describe themselves. In the majority of theanswers children indicated a spontaneous and unconscious preference for asocio-centric orientation. With this orientation they emphasise the public selfwhile the private self remains in the background. From the research data itwas clear that children are reluctant to show too much individuality in theirbehaviour. In reaction to questions on certain traditional customs andbehaviour the majority of the children indicated that they are not familiar withtraditional practices or that they do not have any strong convictions on thematter. On the other hand it was deduced that they do not consciously breakaway from their parents' learning and values.

[发布机构] University of the Free State