Exchange practices

In the novel, the Rhodesian community was torn between new European influences and traditional Rhodesian influences. There was a lot of skepticism deciphering the differences between “right” and “wrong” within the Rhodesian community, there did not seem to be a clear line of who felt which way. It seemed that the European settlers did not understand much about the African community and looked down upon many things they did not understand, such as when they saw Tambu selling some crops in a market and called it child labor. A majority of this came from the European settlers introducing new concepts and ideas that the newer generation grasped while the older generation did not. An example of this would be that the new generation valued education over farming and work, while the older generation did not see much value in an education at all, such as Tambu’s mother. Tambu greatly wanted to venture of into Britain and learn and be educated while her mother feared Britain and hated Tambu for leaving Rhodesia. It seemed that much of the older generation feared Britain and the outside world. While education was highly valued it seemed that nobody could ever achieve it.  

Subsistence practices

Rhodesian life is similar to the environment in Things fall apart. Much of Rhodesian’s food was obtained from subsistence farming. In order to get water, one had to walk to a near by river. When the Europeans arrived it became more common to obtain food from local markets rather than farming. Prior to the Europeans arrival, there were always markets at which one could sell their extra produce, however, it became more popular when the settlers arrived because there was more produce introduced to the market.  

Kinship in Rhodesia

The novel is set during the colonization of Rhodesia, during which many European settlers traveled into the country in attempt to change the Rhodesian’s standard of living for the greater good. Their presence greatly influenced marriages and family structure. An example of this is the husband’s ability to have multiple wives. Prior to European influence, it was common for Rhodesian men to have multiple wives and have a different set of children with each wife. However, the European missionaries did not agree with this practice and encouraged a majority of families to monastic relations with their spouse. Rhodesian opinions of marriage were divided, some families wanted to continue their way of life and marry multiple wives while some people were greatly revolted by this idea wished for a monastic relationship, pushing towards a Christian marriage t solidfiy their relationship. However, both Europeans and Rhodesian’s considered the husband to be the head of the family and it was socially accepted to beat both wives and children.    

Authors...

Author biography- Mattie
Map- Dory
 History of the region- Nour
Important information about the region today- Jennifer
Novel itself- Nour
Effects on author's life might have had on the writing of the novel- Mattie
Recommended audience for the novel and reasons- Dory
Reasons the novel should be read in school- Dory
Cultural features:

• Kinship terms- Mattie
• Marriage, mating, courting, dating beliefs and practices- Jennifer
• Gender Roles- Dory
• Subsistence practices- Mattie
• Exchange practices- Mattie
• Belief systems- Nour
• Medicine- Nour
• Status Hierarchies- Dory
• Community- Nour
• Arts- Jennifer
• Vocabulary- Dory

How Tsitsi's experiences have influenced the book…….

I feel as though Tsitsi has written much of herself and her feelings into Nervous condition’s main character, Tambu. One of the biggest similarities is the way they both treat their education. Both Tsitsi and Tambu seem to hold their future and British Education in the highest esteem. For the most part Tambu and Tsitsi lives both follow somewhat of the same path. While Tsitsi was born in Rhodesia and went to Britain at an early age, Tambu left Rhodesia at an older age and attended school in Britain. At certain points in the novel Tsitsi writes with a very disapproving tone towards African education, I received the feeling that Tsitsi believed African education to be less advanced verses Britain education. There was also a clear similarity between Tsitsi and Nyasha (Tambu’s cousin), when Tsitsi returned to Rhodesia after attending school in Britain she forgot her native language along with many other aspects and traditions of her culture and it is said that she felt like an outsider to her own people, this same scenario is represented with Nyasha. She also forgot her language and felt like in outsider. I have read online that many readers and writers consider this novel to be semi-biographical, meaning that bits of Tsitsi’s life have been represented through different occurrences in the novel.

About the Author.....

About the Author…..

Tsitsi Dangarembg was born in 1959 in the small village of Mutoko, located in Rhodesia, modern Zimbabwe. When she turned two years old, her family moved to Britain where she received formal schooling until she turned six. In 1965, she returned to Britain where she began her childhood education at an American missionary school in Mutare. With a lust for knowledge, Tsitsi prided herself on the education she received in Britain and was egger to return to a British education. She was accepted to Camberage University, and from 1977 to 1980 she attended Camberage in pursuit of a medicine degree. However, in 1980 she returned home to Rhodesia after only three years of college due to home sickness and a sensed lacking of fulfillment in the medical field.

When she returned to Rhodesia, she attended the University of Harare majoring in physiology. While attending school she also held a job as a copywriter for two years introducing her to writing and publishing. During this time she also became very active in the theater community at the University. At the community theater her writing blossomed as she began to write plays, many were performed by the theater group. A few of her more accomplished works include; “The lost of the soil”, “The letter”, and “She no longer weeps”. She won the Swedish short story competition, SIDA with “The letter”.

From 1983-1987 she wrote and acting for the theater. After graduating in 1987, she began a new she career working as a teacher, however she found it hard to restrain her creativity in the school environment and returned to writing. When she turned 25, she wrote Nervous Conditions. When it was published it became the first novel written in English by a Black Zimbabwean Women. Five years after it was published, it won the African section of the Commonwealth writers prize. In 1991 she participated in the Faces of Africa festival and further continued her education at the Berlin, Deutsche Film und Fernseh Akademie college where she studied film direction. Since then, she has made numerous film titles included her most recent credit, “Everyone’s Child” which has been shown around the world at various festivals.  

Rhodesia, Zimbabwe (Setting)

http://www.nationmaster.com/country/zi-zimbabwe