Symbolism Interpretation of Marriage Rites: Kom Marriage

Symbolism Interpretation of Marriage Rites: Kom Marriage ABSTRACT This paper will take a look at kom traditional marriage rites and the four stages the constitute the actual marriage in Kom. It will begin by citing where Kom is situated, the various 8 satellite villages that made up the Kom tribe, which are Achain, Akei, Baiso, Baicham, Bueni, Mbesinaku, Mbenkas and Mejang. How they perceived marriage, how marriage is practiced in this society. This ethnographic work will also look at the four stages of marriage in this community which comprises of courtship, Si Lun Ibi ( to ask for Kola- which means ask the girls hand for marriage), Ndo Wi ( the house of the wife) and finally the actual traditional marriage which is the Ncha Wi ( the chains of the wife). During the course of collecting data I will take in to consideration the symbolic interpretation of marriage rites during the four stages of marriage particularly the use of imagery. The paper will also focus on the importance of marriage and the factors that prohibits marriage in this society. La stly, the paper will look at the socio cultural evolution of marriage in kom, trying to compare the past and present marriage, the effect on the Kom tradition and its individuals. Also the ways of over coming transgressors involved in this marriage To effectively carry out and communicate this ethnographic work, different sources and techniques will be used to collect and analyze the data respectively. Different secondary source will be efficiently utilized. As regards primary sources, field trips, interviews, direct observations, questionnaires and other methods used to carry out ethnographic research will be exploited, the use of native narration. Finally, data will be analysed with the use of both qualitative and quantitative techniques. Tables, percentages, charts and graphs will be used after sorting, classify analyzing and interpreting the data. INTRODUCTION Marriage in Kom is believed to be the oldest social body that has ever existed invented by man. Marriage ceremony in Kom consuetude four stages and a series of rites, these rites are very symbolic in traditional marriage process.Marriage in kom begins with secret seeing between the boy and the girl until they have decided to make it official for their families. The union of man and woman in Kom compulsorily begins with introduction which is not a form of marriage but the path to marriage; this is the very first step which makes marriage as institution. A man or woman can obtain a prestigious traditional title when he/she is married. This goes alongside with three important aspects that accompanied marriage. Wain (a child), ifuonjini (food) iyamngvin (the jungle animal). These three Kom three fingers are very important any married couples lives in that a successful family must have children food and the head of the family must be strong to defend and protect and fend for the family. W hile the woman must provide food take care of the children and be strong as the jungle animal to carryout her matrimonial duties. Marriage in Kom can either be polygamous or monogamous it depends on the individual concerned. Apart from the traditional marriage which comprises of three main phrases of which families choose either to do all or just one, there are also some other forms of marriages the civil marriage, and the religious marriages. These two other marriages are choices of families thus; they are not of traditional importance to the Kom society. What can be defined as a marriage procedure is the marriage rite which plays an important role in marriage ceremony. With the absence of these rites the marriage procedure is considered fruitless. As time is passing by the Kom people have experienced evolution in marriage procedure and rites, that is why this paper will seek to find out while marriage have evolved? What have caused the evolution? and the effect of it on traditional marriage rites and Kom tradition as a whole which the people see it as problematic to their culture. PROBLEM STATEMENT In matrilineal societies like kom bride-wealth is not transferred because the children belong to the wifes clan or lineage and will inherit from their mothers group the husbands heirs are his sisters children, and not his own children who instead inherit from his wifes brothers, their maternal uncles. In Kom tradition, the groom is asked to pay bride price in cash and in material form like the various drums of oil, meat fire wood and host of other subsidiaries. This huge demands scared many young men from marrying. Some migrate and work in the plantations for year to get the necessary items for marriage, this make most of them to marry late since they have to work for years to obtain what will be demanded from them by their prosperous in laws. Another factor that hinders marriage is the cultural notion of witchcraft, the period given to the grooms family to wait, is usually the time the brides family consults a diviner to know the social background of the groom. The things they always look for are witchcraft, murderer, illness like madness, and mysterious death. When any of these ills are found they proposal will be turned down. The fact that marriage at times is strategic it is a problem to these people because background survey must be done to accord marriage which means it is not based on love. Intercultural marriages are also a hindrance to marriage in Kom, parents do not allow their child to marry out of the tribe because some cultural ideologies. For example daughters and sons are no suppose to get married to Bayangi tribe this because the tribe is noted for sorcery. A kom daughter or son that does this, invites evil into the tribe thus some people remain unmarried because the only companion suitable for marriage is from this tribe. Forceful marriages also hinders to marriage, in this society people are forced to marry because of poverty. For example the familys only way to recover its investment in a daughter may be to have her married in exchange for a dowry. Some fathers forced their daughters into marriages with men wealthy enough to give cattle, goats and money; in some cases the father owns the responsibility to get a wife for his first son. Thus he forces his girl child to a man who will pay her bride wealth so that it can be transferred to his sons wife. The preference of the individual is considered insignificant, in this situation even if the marriage holds it does not last for long, the couple end up in devoice. Education brings about class segregation in the society, people who are educated go for educated partners for marriage .Those who suffer the weight of this cultural practice are the females, and there is the problem of discrepancies in social values: some parents, especially in Kom, prefer sending only their male children to school and keeping the females at home. They argue that female education is a bad investment, the educated female child would later grow up and marry into another family, and so all her education would only benefit her husband and her new family. With modernity these girls suffer a set back in marriage because they educated men go looking for learned women even out of the tribe. RESEARCH QUESTION To what extent has the socio cultural evolution of marriage affected traditional marriage rites and Kom culture? With respect to this main research question the following specific questions can be asked. What is marriage to a Kom man? Why do people marry? Who is entitled to marriage? What age is one suppose to get married? Is marriage same today as the past? What are the changes? What are the causes of these changes? What are the impacts of these changes on marriage? OBJECTIVES To answer the above questions, the following objectives shall be considered. Specific objectives To point out the evolution of traditional marriage rites from past to present To assess the effect of evolution on Kom culture To investigate the strategies they are using to maintain these rites Finally to evaluate the positive effects of evolution in this institution of marriage. METHODOLOGY This investigation will be carried out in different parts of the eight satellites villages that make up the Kom kingdom. The methodology use will be divided into two parts; data collection and data analysis. Data and Information Collection Data for ethnographic work will be collected from primary and secondary sources Acquisition of Secondary data Data will be collected from both published and unpublished secondary sources. They will include documents and relevant web sites on the Internet. These documents will include textbooks, archives, dissertations thesis, journals, periodicals, magazine and native narratives. Acquisition of Primary Data This will involve fieldwork. Fieldwork constitutes a major source of data in anthropological research. That is field trips, interviews, direct observations and questionnaires. This will be in light to obtain information symbolic interpretation of marriage rites different parts of the eight villages. Approximately 130 people will be interviewed, random sampling methods will be used to interview those concerned. This will be accomplished by informal interviews and interaction with the main actors. Participant observation will not be lift out since this will help to get first hand information on how the marriage rites is being carried out. This information will be collected with respect to the social, cultural and historical perspective of the tribe Data Analyses After collecting these data, it is going to be sorted, classified, analyzed and interpreted. The data will be analysed with the use of both qualitative and quantitative techniques. Tables, percentages, charts and graphs will be used. DELINEATION RESEARCH DOMAIN Thematic Delineation of Research Domain Marriage is a social, religious and traditional legal union of individuals that creates kinship. It is the oldest institution which can be found in every human culture, although the forms and rules differ either polygamy, monogamy etc. All traditional marriages ceremonies have rites that give it a special grandeur. These rites are having symbolic meaning attached to the people of a particular culture. The word symbolic comes from the word symbol which can be anything such as objects, picture, sound, sign, mark, or any gesture that represents a different meaning, for example cam wood symbolises blood or danger and white stands for purity. Therefore, symbolism is the ironical representation of something that carries a particular meaning. Marriage rites are all symbols and meaning of different things in different cultural context. Evolution is simply the act of change from one stage to another for example the change of traditional marriage rite from past to present. Geographical and Socio-Cultural Delineation of Study Area Kom is one of 250 indigenous ethnic groups or tribe of Cameroon which is situated about is 50 miles from the North West capital of Bamenda. There almost 126,000 inhabitants with an area of about 300 square miles. Kom is found in Boyo division with its administrative capital Fundong. It has three sub divisions Belo, Njinikom and Bum. There are 8 satellites villages that make up this tribe Achain, Akei, Baiso, Baicham, Bueni, Mbesinaku, Mbenkas and Mejang. The people speak Itaing Ikom as their language; it is the only unique tribe in the province that practice matrilineal line of descend where succession and marriage enthronement lies in the mother line. LITERATURE REVIEW Traditional marriage is a very interesting topic and has been of great concern to researchers and writers. They have tried to know what married is all about, those involved in married, the rites performed during traditional marriage that identify as members of that community, and the problems they face in married. They are also seeking to identify some proposed solutions to these problems. The works of these researchers or writers will be analyzed in regard to this ethnographic research work in the subsequent paragraph. According by the (Journal of Religion and Science Published 15 2005 @2010 by the joint publication Board of Zygon, rituals serves to express those cosmic beliefs not for the scientific purpose of explaining or controlling the cosmos but for the existential purpose of giving human beings a placein it. This journal points out that it expresses beliefs about society not only by keeping human beings in their social place but giving them a social place. The traditional rite perform during traditional marriage in Kom gives the couple concern a place in the society of Kom. It gives them the base to perfom other rituals within their marriage and out of the marriage unit also thus it gives them a wider place in the social unit in the society. (Jayaram V @2000-2010 Hinduwebsite.com). He potrays the marriage rite perfom by the Hindu society during traditional wedding, the fire ceremony ( homam). The sacred fire is lit and the priests chant sacred mantras offering obligations to various gods to make marriage a succes and bless the couple. This is in line with the Komtraditional marriage rite where fire is the only objectthat lits the house when the bribe is being bnrought forward to the would be family. This rite symbilse unity and love between the two families, to the Kom people is the source of food and food brings love and unity to families andthe society at large. (John Wall 2000 ) in his writing states that marriage is a sacrament of marital love which finds its further expression in parents love for fruit of their sexuality. This was the case in Kom in the past, marriage was considered to be fruitful if their union was blessed with children. Today, this statement is far fetch people get married not because the want to get children but because they have some other particular strings attached to it for wealth and adventure. Thus children are not really important in marriage in kom as compare to the past. You can find a family without children, therefore marriage as a sacrament of marital love which finds its further expression in parents love for their sexuality is barely exist. (Kramers K Gthinji 2008 ) view point about traditional marriage , is a marriage between between a man and woman which is the most acceptable form of marriage in the society. To him traditional marriage conforms to the traditional culture and religion and this can be polygamy or monogamy. These marriage categories is cultural accepted by it depends on individual to chose which type of marriage to go in to. In Kom polygamy was the highly practiced marriage this was because a large family means wealth. Those who could not afford enough to go for many wives practiced monogamy. With the evolution of time and modernity,marriage in this society is monogamy people hardly do go for polygamous marriages again. CONCLUSION Marriage is a union between people and it is the oldest institution that has ever existed since from creation when God created man woman as husband and wife. Marriage should be based on love it should not be a trade where human beings are sold as commodities as the case of bride price, where men are tasked to pay higher bride price if the bride is educated. Some traditional rites should be modernised, traditional leaders should put a moderate price for bride price and a fixed amount of material goods for this purpose if only if the goods are of important to the marriage. Some rite should be kept out of the scene of marriage. In a nut shell marriage rituals are good because they attaches a lot important to marriage, some of them are prayers for a fruitful marriage. The evolution of marriage its rite has played a very tremendous role in the Kom society both positively and negatively. REFERENCES Carol Ann Muller 1999: Rituals of Fertility and the Sacrifice of Desire. Nazarite Womens Performance in South Africa. Publishing House .the University of Chicago Press Chicago and London. J.L Comaroff 1980: The Meaning Of Marriage Payment. Linda.S Cordell, Stephen J. Beckerman 1980: The Versality of Kinship Roy Willis 1975: The Interpretation of Symbolism. S.E Smith 2006: Marriage Past and Present, Future? Pro Devisch Rennat 2008/2009 Course Document. Wayne Jackson July 28, 2004: As Designed by God. Goody, Jack, and S. J. Tambiah. 1973. Bride wealth and Dowry. Cambridge, U.K.:Cambridge University Press. J. L. Cmaroff 1980: The Meaning of Marriage Payment. Kuper, Adam. 1982. Wives for Cattle: Bride wealth and Marriage in Southern Africa. Meyer Fortes 1972: Marriage in the Tribal Societies Sheila Ellison 2000: The courage to Be a Single Mother: Becoming Whole Again after Divorce. S E Smith 2006: Marriage past, and present, future. Wayne Jackson, July 28 2004: Marriage As Designed by God Maggie Gallagher, 2001: What is marriage for? Public purposes or Marriage Law.

Freefall and Projectile Motion

Freefall and Projectile Motion Introduction and Objectives This lab experiment was done to determine the characteristics of free fall and projectile motion in Physics. The motion in which a body is thrown or projected is called Projectile motion while free fall is any motion of a body where gravity is the only force acting upon it, at least initially. In this experiment, a photogate, a chopper, and a Universal Lab Interface were used to determine the free fall motion of the chopper as it was released. A ball, carbon paper, and an L-shape projector were also used to determine the range of projectile motion of a ball being released from a horizontal yet slightly vertical slope. At the end of the experiment, one will know how velocity and time affect the acceleration of a free falling object and its projectile motion. Thoery Aristotle stated in his theory of motion that the fall of a heavy object toward the center of the earth is a natural motion because the object is just returning to its natural place. He also stated that heavy objects fall faster than lighter ones because increase in the rate of motion is proportional to the weight of the object. Galileo’s theory states that the when a ball was rolled down an inclined plane at fixed angle? ; the ratio of the distance covered to the square of the corresponding time was always the same, but that when the angle of inclination is changed, the constant also changes but remains the same for the same angle. The constant d/t2 is also the constant for falling object (refers to the acceleration due to gravity). The experimental range used in the experiment is 45 cm, and the expression of the range of the projectile was found in terms of Vg and h. The horizontal distance traveled by the projectile for the total time of flight is given simply by R=vxt where t is the total time of flight and vx is the constant horizontal velocity. The time of flight was found using the equation for vertical motion, which is y=yi + viyt-1/2gt^2. After each experiment, the Logger Pro software determined the curve of the time vs velocity graph to determine which had a better Linear fit, either the Quadratic or the Linear curve. http://physicse-book8. blogspot. com/) Results and Discussion A. Free fall Motion Trial NumberAcceleration Value (m/s^2) 119. 32 219. 46 319. 57 419. 61 520. 58 Ave acceleration (m/s^2)19. 71 The quadratic curve proved to give a better fit because the points formed a curved line and are constantly increasing. The percentage error calculated . 56. This is because the heights from where the picket fence was dropper was different in every trial. B. Projectile Motion Highest Point TrialDistance (m)Velocity (m/s) 1. 455. 98 2. 461. 04 3. 435. 97 4. 435. 96 . 441. 01 Mid-Point TrialDistance (m)Velocity (m/s) 1. 365. 79 2. 36. 793 3. 365. 78 4. 368. 78 5. 358. 79 Conclusion This lab experiment proved helpful in understanding free fall. It was shown that under the influence of gravity, an object falls on its own with its velocity accelerating at a constant pace. It is said that when the only force acting on an object is the Earth’s gravitational force,it is in free fall. There cannot be any other force acting upon it, especially air resistance, which should either be absent or ignored by its minute size. The force of gravity on an object is nearly constant when the object in free fall is near the earth’s surface. Because of this, the object accelerates downward at a constant rate. This acceleration is usually represented with the symbol g. In this experiment, a precise timer was connected to the computer and a Photogate was used to measure the acceleration due to gravity. â€Å"The Photogate has a beam of infrared light that travels from one side to the other. It can detect whenever this beam is blocked. † A Picket Fence or a chopper, a piece of clear plastic with equally spread out black sections on it, was dropped. As the Picket Fence passes through the Photogate, the computer will measure the time from the leading edge of one bar blocking the beam until the leading edge of the next bar blocks the beam. † This timing continues as all eight bars pass through the Photogate. From these measured times, the program will calculate the velocities and accelerations for this motion and graphs will be plotted. http://www. waukeshasouth. com/physics1/photo. html http://www. oppapers. com/essays/Picket-Fence-Free-Fall/567967

The Importance Of Electric Computers - 714 Words

Around the time I was five, my parents decided to invest in an electric keyboard. My brother and I were captivated by this new, mysterious box, and were insistent on an immediate opening. Over the next few minutes, the keyboard was pieced together, and everyone gathered around to gaze upon the masterpiece. The night wore on, and the excitement wore off. The masses migrated to the other room and my brother scurried away to play with more interesting toy. After a few dissonant keys cut their way through the air, a perfectly played rendition of â€Å"Fur Elise† could be heard gracefully floating into the other room. At my father’s revelation that his daughter must be a musical genius, he jumped to his feet, and rushed into the room to greet the†¦show more content†¦An average jock playing in the NFL makes $1.9 million. The millennial youtuber makes a wide salary range, but is definitely portrayed as being wealthy. The popular, preppy people have probably just gon e and married some rich doctor with his/her own private island. In addition this major skewing of the representation of the average, we often see a photoshopped, an extremely built, or an excessively altered body as an average body. Point being, no representation of average depicted by the media is actually the true, scientific average. What does this overload of information mean for us? Does the time I spent researching all of this information mean anything? Well, If i was speaking to a group of political science peeps the numbers would mean a lot,but we are not. At least, I am not, but I am a highschool student, and highschool student are always portrayed as teenagers â€Å"who just want to fit in†. The media portrays this by telling us that in order to do this we need to become the average which we have already discussed isn’t actually the average. 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Romanticism A Literary And Artistic Movement - Free Essay Example

Sample details Pages: 3 Words: 947 Downloads: 5 Date added: 2019/06/24 Category Art Essay Level High school Tags: Romanticism Essay Did you like this example? Romanticism was a literary and artistic movement that emphasized individualism by inspiring a social change. It was considered a period that increasingly portrayed new, mass cultural views, such as emphasizing an individualrs ability to remove themselves from a restricting society. Writers, such as Walt Whitman, Edgar Allen Poe, and Fanny Fern, used their works to draw attention to how individuals fit into their society. Don’t waste time! Our writers will create an original "Romanticism: A Literary And Artistic Movement" essay for you Create order They contributed to the Romantic Era by acknowledging the relationship between social or political events and the emotional attachment that individuals have towards them. Therefore, the following writers and their literary works expose the individualistic rights of people, as opposed to being subjected to the whims of society. Imagination is a significant quality in Romantic literature. This helped to hone in on the emotional aspect of individualism. Walt Whitman used this creative technique in his poem, Vigil Strange I Kept on the Field One Night. Whitman explored the bond between two comrades who each faced loss. In doing so, he also explored the idea that some situations limit how people can, and should, act in society. In the second line of the poem, the narrator states, When you my son and my comrade dropt at my side that day (1454). This shows that the narrator viewed his comrade as family because the war brought them together. It also tells that the son was injured and that the narrator Found you in death so cold dear comrade (never again on earth responding) (1454). This exposed two losses The one man lost his life and the other lost his dear friend and loved one. Further, the Vigil of silence, love and death, was during the night in starlight. The stars portray a light in the darkness, ab ove all the destruction of war. This poem is of a Romantic time because it illustrates the celebration of love, but also notes the discrepancy between private and public moments through symbolic representation. Finally, the abrupt way that the poem ended emphasize that society tends to overtake individuals in society, but the vigil itself portrays the united stance that people can take even if it romanticizes the war. Whereas Whitman portrayed lightness, following destruction, in his poem, Poe portrayed the darkness of the Romantic period as a whole. His work was associated with the subgenre Gothic literature. This subgenre included elements of emotion through ideas such as fear, isolation, illness, and superstitions. One of Poers most popular short-stories, The Tell-Tale Heart, captured the insane characteristic of the narrator through the concept of isolation. This individual was considered unique because he did not follow the mainstream societal views. This story, also, acknowledged the anxiety of society during this time period regarding the increasingly popular views that favored independence and individualism. Therefore, one of the most significant aspects of the narrator in The Tell-Tale Heart is the way that he is trapped within his mind, which portrays the fear of individualrs standing out against society the internal self versus the external self. An example of the narratorrs str uggle with sanity, [V]ery, very dreadfully nervous I had been, and am I heard all things in heaven and in the earth observe how healthily- how calmly I can tell you the whole story (1186-87). Right from the start, he contradicts himself by acknowledging how nervous he was, to hearing supernatural things, and then believing himself able to tell his story in a collected manner. Further, his reason for grotesquely murdering an innocent individual in this story was illogical. He claimed it was due to his eye! He had the eye of a vulture, and contrary idea that the man never wronged me. He had never given me an insult, the narrator still murdered him as though he had (1187). This establishes the sin in which an individual illustrated by being unique, or in the narratorrs case, insane. His guilt overcame him by the end of the story which concluded in him confessing to his crime because he believed he was hearing the manrs heartbeat under the boards. This represents societyrs stance over an individual, which meant that it attempts to control the individual and oppress their uniqueness (sin). Similar to the works of Whitman and Poe, Fanny Fern used her works to emphasize the need for individualism. However, her work A Law More Nice than Just, focused solely on acquiring womenrs rights. In this way, she revealed the unequal, patriarchal society that dismissed womenrs activism. She used humor to lighten controversial issues she exposed in her work. For example, in her column, she criticizes a recent news article that specifies a woman had just been arrested for wearing menrs pants. She offers a humorous story in response about wearing her ?husbands pants because it was a lot easier in the rain. She states, Ill do it, said I Do what? asked Mr. Fern Put on a suit of your clothes and take a tramp with you (1216). She continues by emphasizing the husbandrs hysterical laughter about the matter, which acted as a representation of the absurdity society felt about such direct change. This story acknowledged the unjustified laws that women encountered, showing that both s hould be considered equal. This story also showed that the laws reflected the customs of society, further acting on past stereotypes, as Fern tries to accomplish new standards for womenrs independence. Through each of these literary works, Whitman, Poe, and Fern all try to advocate individualism. They use them as a means to reflect on the relationship between the individual and society by suing emotional elements and imagination. Each represents that individuals have the ability to remove themselves from the restrictions that society poses on their attempts of social and independent change.