Some Local Thinking about Femininity and Masculinity


By

Obododimma Oha

INTRODUCTION

Some of us make the mistake of thinking that there are no local thoughts on gender. Every society has philosophies and has ways of articulating and using them. It is important to remember this and probe local articulations of issues we are exploring. The main excuse sometimes is that they are not written and cannot be easily found. But they can and can be expressed in material culture, proverbs, tales, etc.


There are some local ideas of gender, such Molara Ogundipe-Leslie's STIWANism and Catherine Acholonu's "Motherism." We also have Chinweizu's *Anatomy  of Female Power, *which is a masculinist interpretation of gender. But these are seen here as strands of European ideas on gender. Our focus is what local African cultures say about gender. It is far from being a comprehensive account as there are many more. What is rather important is how they have been used in managing gender relations in our context.

In this lecture, we simply ask: What are some of the local thoughts on femininity and masculinity ? We will privilege African ideas in this case.

Masculinity as the Overseer

One African theorization on masculinity that is common is the construction of masculinity as the overseer or as the force in charge. The sociologist, Jeremy Bentham, would term this the "panopticon." The panopticon is the observer and is at work in the seminary, schools, prison yards, etc. Anywhere you have rigid control. The function is to regulate behavior, to make sure members take to compliance.

The panopticon of masculinity in Igbo culture is the "ịba" or "obi." The "obi" could be a separate small building or part of the main building. There the man of the house sits and thinks or observes what goes on in the compound, who comes in and who goes. Indeed, he interpellates movement and is backed by the culture and the "ọfọ" of authority.

So, masculinity is seen as the general power in charge. Overseeing is control and is direction. This is because this overseeing function is seen as a  way of preventing the unacceptable from gaining entrance into a family and into a society.

The positions of the family radio and the television also narrate masculine panopticon.

Femininity as Sensual, Unreliable, and Weak

Femininity is alternatively stereotyped as weak, unreliable, and comparable to children's way of life. Stereotypes associated with these and which could be found in many proverbs, folktales, etc include the perception of women as emotional, irrational, etc. This may be expressed in material culture and may have women as transmitters of the ideas.

Femininity as Protective and Preservative Force

One area where the feminine is understood as a protective and preservative force is in the Igbo "ụmụada" culture. The "ụmụada" are a powerful all-married daughters' force in Igboland, checkmating patriarchy and its excesses. This is fully articulated in Ifi Amadiume's *Male Daughters, Female Husbands*.

Perhaps, such strong feminine ideas can be traced to the perception of female things ("nwunye") in the culture as being well-ordered and the masculine as "wild," useless, and too free. The "ibe nne" (mother's relatives) even further consolidates the idea of the feminine as protector and final refuge.

Masculinity as the Strong

This understanding of the masculine as being strong or stronger is not really local. It is even universal and is not acceptable. Strength is relative and some men can be beaten up by some women. Indeed, it is  a misleading stereotype. It is also the use of biology in narrating gender.

Other Local Assumptions

There are many other local assumptions and it is important to note how they influence the lives of the local people who use them. They could be illogical.

The Consequences of Theorising Gender with Orality

-- the perception of the gender issues as normal or natural,
-- the trivializing of the problems,
-- the inaccessibility or difficulty in obtaining the ideas in their oral forms,
-- the stereotyping of oral-transmitted theory as inferior or rudimentary.

Concluding Remarks

Gender is a global issue. Feminism appears more suitable to European citizens and it is important to know that local Africans, too, have their own assumptions which may be similar to those of Europe. That is not to say that whatever that is harvested in the Western garden can be planted or can in other gardens elsewhere.

Further, there are masculinist thoughts also available.

Consult:

https://www.premiumtimesng.com/entertainment/artsbooks/217933-omolara-ogundipe-leslie-literary-feminine-cultural.html

Ogundipe-Leslie, who introduced STIWANism, was actually working within feminist thinking.

https://en.m.wiktionary.org/wiki/Stiwanism#:~:text=Noun,of%20colonial%20and%20neocolonial%20history.

https://www.macmillandictionary.com/buzzword/entries/motherism.html#:~:text=noun%20%5Buncountable%5D,not%20go%20out%20to%20work

https://www.researchgate.net/publication/291355506_Synopsis_Chinweizu_I_1990_Anatomy_of_female_power_a_masculinist_dissection_of_matriarchy_Lagos_Nigeria_Pero

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