4.3 THEMES
4.3.1 Appropriate and inappropriate times for using euphemisms in
4.3.1.2 Inappropriate times to use euphemisms in Tshivenḓa
The word inappropriate is synonymous with the word “unsuitable” that is described as something that is not acceptable or right for someone or something (The Cambridge Advanced Learner’s Dictionary, 2008). Participants were asked to describe; to explain; and to identify instances where it is not suitable to use
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euphemisms during conversation in Tshivenḓa. As a researcher it was appropriate to know whether there is time when euphemisms are not required during a Tshivenḓa conversation.
Table 4.19: Participants’ Views of Inappropriate Times to use Euphemisms in Tshivenḓa
Participants Number Inappropriate time
Traditional Healers 5
Talking to young children at home
When giving orders on how to take medication
Talking to a non speaker of the language
When inculcating good manners in children
When you want to be clearly understood
In court
When angry.
Chiefs 5
Talking to young children
When you want to be clearly understood in a meeting
Talking to a person who is not a native speaker of Tshivenḓa,
When passing judgement on an offender/ wanting to be heard
In court
When drunk
Pastors 5
When teaching during couples conferences
Talking to a person who is not a native speaker of Tshivenḓa,
When guiding and teaching children in Sunday school
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When you wanted to be clearly understood
In court
Elderly Men 5
Talking to young children,
Speaking to a person who is not a native speaker of Tshivenḓa,
When inculcating good manners in children
When you wanted to be clearly understood
In court.
When angry
Elderly Women 5
Talking to young children,
Speaking to a person who is not a native speaker of Tshivenḓa,
When inculcating good manners in children
When you wanted to be clearly,understood
In court
When angry
From the evidence in Table 4.19, above, it can be seen that many participants agreed that there are instances where euphemisms cannot be used in Tshivenḓa.
The themes suggested by participants where euphemisms cannot be used include the following: when talking to young children at home; when giving orders on how to take medication; talking to a non-speaker of the language; when inculcating good manners in children; when you wanted to be clearly understood; when angry; and when people are drunk. Important themes identified as inappropriate to use euphemisms are listed in Table 4.20, below, using frequency and percentage in terms of considering various participants’ responses.
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Table 4.20: Comparison of Responses of Inappropriate Times to use Euphemisms Given by the Participants
Response Frequency Percentage
Talking to children 5 100%
Wanting to be understood 5 100%
When angry 5 100%
In courts 5 100%
Talking to a non-speaker of the language
4 80%
Inculcating good manners in children
3 60%
When drunk 1 20%
From the above table it is evident that for the participants the most important times in which euphemisms cannot be used are: when talking to children; when you want to be understood; when angry; and in court (100%). These were followed in importance by when talking to a non-speaker of the language (80%) and when inculcating good manners to children (60%). The least appropriate time to use euphemisms is when drunk (20%).
All participants agreed that when talking to young children who do not know the basics of language, euphemisms should be avoided because they will just confuse them and prevent them from grasping the meaning of what is said. The following table contains examples of euphemisms that children would find difficult to understand.
Table 4.21: Euphemisms Difficult for Children to Understand
Euphemism General meaning Literal meaning in English Vha a khada zwiṋoni U penga To chase birds
U ḽa matanda U daha mbanzhe To eat herbs
U fura mavhele U kambiwa To fill the stomach with mealie-meal
U ri sia U lovha To leave us behind
U sala fhedzi U lovhelwa nga ṅwana To be left with nothing
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If children are spoken to using the above mentioned euphemisms, the speaker will end up talking in isolation because the children will not understand what is being said. “U khada zwiṋoni” (to chase birds away) is a euphemism for the general expression “u penga” (to be mad). Children will be confused because they would be looking for birds that are being chased away - not knowing that it is a euphemism used to refer to somebody who is “mad”. “U ḽa matanda (to eat herbs) is a euphemism with an idiomatic origin which replaces the general expression “u daha mbanzhe” (to smoke dagga). For children these expressions would be difficult to comprehend; they would be amazed to hear about a person eating “wood”. Even if you explained to them that “matanda” refers to “mbanzhe” they would end up confused concerning what you are taking about. “U fura mavhele” (to fill stomach with mealie-meal) is a euphemism for the blunt and unacceptable expression “u kambwa” (to be drunk). Children who have not been taught idiomatic expressions would not know that it means to be drunk. As it is not acceptable to tell someone that he/she is drunk, it is important to avoid euphemisms when talking to children who do not know them.
The fact that it is not suitable to use euphemisms when talking to children because of their lack of knowledge of euphemisms in a language is confirmed in the study conducted by Abdullah (2014), The Awareness of Euphemism by Kuwaiti Speakers of Arabic. One of the study’s aims was to answer the following question: To what extent does the age of Kuwaiti speakers of Arabic influence their awareness of euphemisms? This study had two hypotheses and the second hypothesis was that there are statistically significant differences between the old and young participants with respect to their awareness of euphemism.
Sixty participants, randomly chosen, were involved in the study. The participants were from Kuwait and they were all native speakers of Kuwaiti spoken Arabic. Their ages were between 25 to 65 years. A euphemisms test to discover the level of understanding of different euphemisms was administered to those participants. At the end of the study the second hypotheses was confirmed. The older participants performed better than the younger ones; it seems that old people transfer their knowledge and experience into their language both in speech and in writing.
Therefore, it is important that young people should be made more aware of the different uses of words that could be regarded as harsh and unpleasant. This
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awareness may help them accomplish a better understanding of other language speakers and, thereby, improve their communication and speaking skills. This could be achieved by having lessons and exercises that target this issue during their school education.
According to Alireza (2012:554), euphemisms and figurative language pose significant problems for young and foreign learners as they often lack the background knowledge needed for making sense of euphemisms and words used figuratively in different contexts. Echoing the views of the above-mentioned authors, Hammond and Bransford (2012:21) note that euphemisms can pose problems, such as confusion and failure to adequately interpret information, not only for language learners but also for language teachers and, therefore, the authors emphasize the need to prepare today’s language teachers to cope with the many complexities of language-teaching - including those dealing with euphemisms - in a rapidly changing world within a changing language landscape.
Participants suggested that when a person wants to be clearly understood or when an important message is to be delivered to an audience, euphemisms cannot be used. The same applies to a person who is angry; some said that an angry man is a mad person. According to the participants, when a person is angry, he/she no longer takes care of what he/she utters and is unconcerned whether his/her words cause pain for the listener or hearer.
Traditional Healer A related an instance when women are angry - especially when they are accused of not being faithful to their husbands; there is an old saying which they usually utter and they usually say it when angry: “Mukovha nnyo u kovha yawe”
(he or she who is involved in extra marital affairs is using his/her penis/vagina). This proverb is unacceptable as it hurts the listener or hearer. All participants agreed with this view and maintained that people utter this proverb when they are not in their right state of mind.
Another example of unacceptable words that are usually uttered by women without using euphemisms because they are angry includes the following cited by the participants: Vhone vho dzula hangeo makhuwani na makhaḓa avho ngeno riṋe ri khou nya maḓi (you are settled where you are in the city with women of other tribes while here at home we are starving from hunger). From the example given, the word
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in italics “u nya” is not a polite word; in this context it means starving or suffering, especially from a lack of food. It is uttered by a person who is angry in Tshivenḓa and it reflects how angry the person is. It is related to othe Venḓa euphemisms that a sober person could use, namely: “u tambula”, “u shengela” and “u ḽa damba” (all mean to suffer or starve from hunger).
Another example of an expression that usually comes out of the mouths of people when angry, especially men, is “Vha ḓo nya vhone” (you will defecate). This expression is unacceptable to listeners. A sober minded person is a person who is not drunk who cannot use this expression; only an angry person uses this expression without being euphemistic. A person who is not angry can use a euphemistic expression, such as “vha ḓo luga vhone” (you will come alright).
The examples given above confirm that when a person is angry, and wants to be heard and understood he/she is likely not to use euphemisms because there is no longer any care about another’s face. Chief A asked:
Can you see now, there are places where a spade should be called by its name, where you are expected to call a spade a spade, places like courts, euphemisms are not allowed?
The court is responsible for trying civil cases, such as assault cases, insults, divorces, rape cases, pregnancy and accusations of witchcraft, among others. All the participants agreed that euphemisms are not allowed in court as the two parties in the cases are supposed to understand what is being talked about in plain language.
Traditional Healer B explained that in a case of pregnancy, phrases such as “No nyovhana ngafhi?” (Where were you having sexual intercourse?) were used. Some times common euphemisms, such as “no lalana ngafhi”? (which literally means, where were you sleeping each other?) and “no ḽana ngafhi” (where were you eating each other?) are used. Table 4.22 contains some words and their euphemisms given by the participants that are uttered using plain language without the use of euphemisms in order to avoid misleading the court.
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Table 4.22: Some Words used in Court without Euphemisms
Ordinary venḓa word Euphemism English translation U ṋea thumbu U tshinya musidzana
U mu ṋea mihwalo
To impregnate a girl U nyovhana nae U lalana nae
U ṱangana tshihulwane nae U vhonana nae
U kana muroho noṱhe
Having sexual inter course with her.
U fa U lovha
U ri sia
U fhambana naḽo
To die
U sa vutshelwa U vha ngonwalurandala Impotence/ no erection
Muvhulahi Phondi,
Tshigevhenga
Criminal
U beba U vhofholowa To deliver a baby
Phongwe Phiranawe Prostitute
U sula U ponyokwa
U bvisa muya
To fart
U guba U gidima
U shela
Diarrhoea
Matshimba Malaṱwa Faeces
As far as the participants were concerned, talking to people or addressing an audience of non-speakers of the language using euphemisms is unacceptable. They argued that by addressing those using various figures of speech would result in them not understanding. Elderly Man B asked:
What is the need for addressing people using a language that is difficult to your audience if you want to be heard? This leads to an instance where you find audience slumbering while a person is addressing them because they would not get your message.
The participant’s view is echoed by Dana and Allen (2015:5) in their article, Appropriate Language: Overview, which covers some of the major issues with the use of appropriate language. They emphasise that when writing or speaking, it is
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important to use language that suits an audience and matches the purpose of doing so. Inappropriate language filled with various kinds of figures of speech could damage the speaker’s credibility, undermine the argument and alienate the audience (Dana & Allen, 2015:5). They maintain that speaking and writing in a style that the audience expects and that fits the speaker’s purpose is the key to successful speaking and writing. They warn speakers to avoid using slang or idiomatic expressions in general academic writing and when addressing audiences of foreign language speakers and avoid using euphemisms (words that veil the truth, such as
"collateral damage" for the unintended destruction of civilians and their property) and other deceitful language.
In conclusion, this section has covered the appropriate and inappropriate times to use euphemisms in Tshivenḓa. The appropriate times to use euphemisms, according to the participants, include when speaking about topics, such as menstruation, urination, sex, sexual organs, disgusting substances, sperm, ejaculation, death, disease, virginity, faeces, when an attempt is made to conceal reality as well as when discussing other embarrassing topics. However, talking to young children at home; when giving orders on how to take medications; talking to a non speaker of a language; when inculcating good manners to children; when wanting to be heard and understood clearly; when angry; and when drunk were identified as themes that do not need to be euphemised.