From slave times to the present the proverb has been a mainstay in
African-American communication. Such sayings as "Hard times make a
monkey eat red pepper when he don't care for black," "The blacker the
berry, the sweeter the juice," and "Nothing ruins a duck but its bill"
convey not only axiomatic impact but also profound contextual meanings.
This study of African-American proverbs is the first to probe deeply
into these meanings and contexts. Sw. Anand Prahlad's interest in
proverbs dates back to his own childhood in rural Virginia when he
listened to his great grandmother's stories. Very early he began
collecting "sayings," and, in researching this book, he spent five years
listening to proverbs spoken in bars, clubs, churches, and retirement
homes; on street corners, basketball courts, and public buses; at PTA
meetings and bingo games.
To discover the full context of a proverb, Prahlad considers four levels
of meanings--grammatical, cultural, situational, and symbolic. The
grammatical level refers to its literal meanings, the cultural level to
its associations shared by most members of the cultural group, the
situational level to the specific situation in which the proverb is
spoken, and the symbolic to the speaker's own personal associations with
the proverb.
All these operate simultaneously when a proverb is spoken. Since the
speaker may be fully aware of all levels, part of the artistry in using
proverbs comes from the complex interplay of the dimensions of their
meanings.
African-American Proverbs in Context documents and analyzes both
historic and contemporary proverbs. A survey of WPA interviews with
former slaves and of the lyrics of blues songs and the contexts in which
these were performed shows how proverbs have been used as a means of
protest and cultural affirmation. Extensive field research conducted by
the author with both master proverb users and young persons reveals the
myriad functions proverbs perform in modern America. These range from
direct communication of traditional knowledge to aggressive verbal
competition among youths wishing to establish identity and status.
