Masters Degrees (African Languages)

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Browsing Masters Degrees (African Languages) by browse.metadata.advisor "Dlali, Mawande"

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    An analysis of persuasive messages in Shona family set-up
    (2018-12) Mutsvairo, Jack; Dlali, Mawande; Stellenbosch University. Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences. Dept. of African languages.
    ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Persuasion is an interesting, integral yet complicated communication field that has received little research in Shona. Persuasion in Shona family set-ups has shown that conversation partners engage in arguments and counterarguments that result in either the success or failure of the compliance-gaining attempts. Of much interest are the message dimensions of explicitness, dominance and argument which characterise these persuasive messages. An understanding of how and why compliance-seeking and -resisting strategies are used may help persuaders like advertisers, politicians, family counsellors, teachers, and evangelists to promote cohesion in families. Findings in this study will be useful to the study of persuasion by future students. Also, the knowledge of Shona persuasion may come in handy when non-Shona speakers engage in persuasive conversations with Shona-speaking people. This qualitative research study analyses interview notes, audio recording transcripts and observation persuasive messages in Shona family set-ups. For the first two, content analysis is done. For persuasive messages, source arguments and target arguments are identified and compared, and then the clinching compliance-seeking argument or compliance-resisting argument for the influence goal is identified, followed lastly by an analysis of the message dimensions. The study found out that a range of compliance-seeking and -resisting strategies are used by different members of both nuclear and extended families when they pursue certain influence goals. It also found that the sequencing of compliance-seeking strategies differs depending on the influence goal the source will be pursuing and the relationship of the influence interactants. The study also found that proverbs, clan praise names, reference to the Bible and silent treatment are strategies used habitually by Shona persuaders. My hope is that my research findings will stimulate interest among persuaders to improve their persuasive skills since it has shed light on the use of persuasive strategies among the Shona. Students of persuasion will find it as pioneer work from which they will launch further investigation in this area.
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    The effects of persuasion in W.K. Tamsanqa's (1958) Buzani Kubawo and A.M. Mmango's (1964) UDike noCikizwa
    (Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2018-03) Nozewu, Asithandile Esona; Dlali, Mawande; Kondowe, Zandile; Stellenbosch University. Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences. Dept. of African Languages.
    ENGLISH ABSTRACT: This is a study that looks at the way in which parents persuade their children into arranged marriages as well as the psychological effects that such an act has on the children in selected isiXhosa literary texts, namely Tamsanqa’s (1958) Buzani kubawo and Mmango’s (1964) UDike noCikizwa. The first Chapter of this this study includes the introduction, which divulges what the study is about. In this chapter, the researcher reveals the aims as well as the purpose of the study. Also, the researcher discloses the methodology that will be used to approach the study as well as the significance, the scope and delimitations and the organization of the study. In the second chapter, the researcher engages with the theoretical background of the study. Here, the researcher looks at different theories that are relevant for the heightening of every premise that the researcher makes. Theorists such as Gass and Seiter (2011) who define what persuasion is and Masina (2000) who engages the concept of traditional marriage are the backbone of the study. In Chapter 3, the researcher does an intense analysis of the selected texts; Buzani kubawo and UDike noCikizwa and applies some of the theories that are in chapter two (2). The focus is to do a psychoanalysis of selected characters, namely Sando, Dike, Gugulethu and Nomampondomise, who play a pivotal role in enhancing the arguments that the researcher makes. Chapter 4 engages intensely with the selected texts of analysis and looks at the psychological factors that lead to suicide. Theorists such as Steel, Doey (2007) play an important role in airing the psychology behind the final acts of the selected characters who end up either killing themselves or dying. Chapter 5 is the general conclusion of the study, which includes the summary, the findings as well as the recommendations.