libraries in oral-traditional societies

Znt. Libr. Rev. (1979) 11, 321-339

Libraries in Oral-Traditional Societies

MAGNUS JOHN*

In order to consider objectively the value and the problems of libraries in societies that are oral in tradition it is essential to understand the characteristics of such societies. What I propose to do in this short paper is to highlight the main problems, suggest the causes that give rise to the problems facing libraries in societies of predominantly oral tradition, and offer proposals which will attempt to provide a much wider range of services than has hitherto been the case. My argument will be of a general nature. Looking at libraries, it seems appropriate that the kind of service offered in relation to the societies they serve should reflect a level of effectiveness and efficiency which takes cognizance of such potential clientele who, though not literate, might, nevertheless, make use of additional non-book oriented services if they were provided.

ECONOMICS OF EDUCATION AND ITS RELATION TO

NATIONAL DEVELOPMENT

If we take economists seriously, then we must accept the view that human resources are part of the wealth of a nation. Indeed, the higher the level of literacy in a country the greater its per capita income tends to be in relation to other countries. One can, therefore, appreciate why development planners have urged governments that economic progress can only be achieved by investing huge sums of money in education programmes. International bodies, UNESCO among them, share the same view that only with a major undertaking by politicians to eradicate or reduce the level of illiteracy can there be any hope of rapid industrial development. With an increase in the level of education within a society the necessary stimulus can be generated whereby economic and social progress can become possible. However, a recent challenge to this kind of thinking cannot be treated lightly:

* Liaison Librarian, Arts, Open University, Milton Keynes, England.

0020-7837/79/030321+ 19$02.00/O 0 1979 Academic Press Inc. (London) Limited

322 M. JOHN

“This issue has been broadly debated in economics and the conclusion is that education as we know it at this point in the twentieth century is one of the benefits which has accrued to those societies which have first achieved a certain level of economic development. The idea that education can even increase the rate of economic development is relatively new and has so far no evidence in its support”.’

Waters’ argument takes the traditional viewpoint derived from history. Available evidence does not always support the views he makes, especially when we reflect on the educational situation in Britain during the period of the Industrial Revolution when the level of literacy was low indeed. It has been said that the “Industrial Revolution exposed not the effectiveness of (British) education, but the serious lack of it”.2 As Kelly also points out the 1867 Reform Act led even Robert Lowe, who bitterly opposed the extension of the franchise, to admit to the educational implications contained in it unreservedly. “It will”, he said, “be absolutely necessary to compel our future masters to learn their letters”.3

We can say therefore that the reverse situation of what took place in England during the Industrial Revolution has now been suggested for the economic transformation of the developing countries. Whereas in Britain the setting up of mechanics’ institutes resulted from the economic boom of industrialization, African politicians have now been urged to invest substantially in education to make transformation possible. Waters’ scepticism could only be justified if the kind of planning in operation in these developing countries fails to take into account job prospects of those being educated. In addition equally enlightened views are required for library provision as well as for improved social and health facilities. It would be a futile exercise to raise the level of literacy in a country, the aspirations and expectations of the people, without adequate adjustment being made in social and health services.

The consequences of what took place in nineteenth century Britain made it possible for education to be provided for the mass because of the wealth which industrialization brought with it, and the level of education was accelerated to match the level of increased national affluence. It also arose out of a greater demand for skilled and, therefore, literate staff required to cope with the boom which industrialization brought with it.

Seen even from this viewpoint, Waters’ argument can hardly be

1 A. R. Waters (1975). Rewards and incentives in Kenya’s education system. Universities Quarterly 29, 209.

2 E. G. West (1975). Education and the Industrial Revolution. London: Batsford, p. 3. 3 Cited in T. Kelly (1973). A History of public libraries in Great Britain, 1845-1965. London:

Library Association, p. 19.

LIBRARIES IN ORAL-TRADITIONAL SOCIETIES 323

justified. Even if we concede the point he makes that a country only benefits from education after having first achieved a certain level of economic development, why then do economists talk about alternatives where resources are limited? The art of economic planning will be no art if historical models form the major consideration from which all other development plans are worked out. Also the circumstances which gave rise to the growth in education in industrial Britain are different from the situation now facing developing countries. It stands to reason, therefore, that UNESCO and development planners in Africa can expect accelerated national growth with an increase in national education programme.

Perhaps Waters has shown caution where UNESCO and Black African governments are not prepared to. The programme to increase the level of literacy is well in hand in many states but from it can arise snags as well. If the introduction in education of revolutionary methods -seen as a prerequisite for rapid economic expansion-should fail, then the entire exercise would not only have been financially disastrous it would require some other planning strategy which could take some time to emerge. The economic underdevelopment of the various states in Black Africa is by itself enough reason to justify the UNESCO proposal. One of the constituent elements of this problem is the rate of illiteracy which is as high as 80% in most Black African states.1 Given such a situation the traditional concept of libraries can hardly be said to be of much use to a large proportion of the population.

It is true to say that the progress made in education in advanced countries over the last hundred has been evolutionary rather than revolutionary. In Black Africa huge sums of money, in some cases as high as 40% of the budget, have gone into education.2 Nigeria very recently introduced universal primary education throughout the country and some state librarians have seen this as an opportunity to raise the issue about adequate provision for school libraries. Ghana too has had compulsory primary education in operation for many years. School libraries have now come under the responsibility of the Ghana Library Board, following the report of a joint committee of members drawn from staff of the Ghana Library Board, British Council and the Ministry of Education. Thus one might say that the awareness of the importance of education to accelerate national development is much in evidence. In the case of Nigeria and Sierra Leone, however, this awareness has not been

1 1963 figures for Sierra Leone show an average of 91.4%. See UNESCO Stutisticalyenrbook 1973, p. 56.

2 Eastern and Western regions of Nigeria, in particular, spent over 40% of their budget in the late 1950s and the 1960s.

324 M. JOHN

matched with an equal concern for the introduction of libraries in schools. It might have been a different matter, perhaps, if government officials and politicians had, in their school days, enjoyed library facilities. Their attitude for maintaining the status quo has its roots in the colonial tradition. Instructional education is a colonial legacy which dates back to the nineteenth century, but libraries and librarianship in West Africa are a recent phenomenon. Thus the introduction of libraries cannot be seen in isolation from the education service, since libraries came into being for no purpose other than as a complementary and supplementary service to instructional education.

To put education programmes and the development of libraries in perspective, therefore, it is essential to look at the growth of education, the structure of traditional societies, and the impact of education on this kind of community.

IMPACT OF FORMAL EDUCATION ON TRADITIONAL SOCIETIES

Traditional societies have an oral culture; that is to say that, tradition- ally, in such societies communication is principally oral and face-to-face. It is also true that in such societies messages can be carried over long distances by word of mouth, by special drum or whistle languages.1 Within the family structure-and it is common to find two or three generations of a family in one household-older members of the family “school” the children in the history, norms and taboos of their society. The whole teaching process is informal and its essential characteristic is its practical nature. Thus formal teaching is not only in direct conflict with the traditional style of life, it also has a disruptive social influence. An exception are the Koranic schools of Northern Nigeria where, until recently, the Koran formed the basis of formal education. This point will be taken up and discussed more fully at a later stage.

The informal type of teaching to be found in traditional societies spans over many years and deals with the varied aspects of existence prevalent in such societies. What is taught represents a cultural tradition which is almost static and which goes back hundreds of years and, sometimes, more. The relative continuity of the categories of understanding- their mode of behaviour, goals, aspirations-which form the cultural repertoire of traditional societies is transmitted from one generation to another primarily by speech, which is the most direct and compre- hensive expression of the social experience of the groups in such societies.

1 R. Finnegan (1975). Communication and language In DlOl, Unit 8. Open lhhersity, Social Sciences: a foundation coum. Making ~eme of society. Open University Press, p. 8 1.


Thus print hardly plays any role in the existence of most people in a community of this kind. Consequently the sum of knowledge that can be stored in the mind over any length of time is limited. Whatever printed matter impinges on the existence of such people usually stems from either local or central government or, even sometimes, from the church. With these apart it is what continues to be of social relevance to their existence that is stored in the memory while the rest is usually forgotten. And as Goody observes “language-primarily vocabulary-is the effective medium of this crucial process of social digestion which may be regarded as analogous to the homeostatic organization of the human body by means of which it attempts to maintain its present condition of life’.1 By this process of continuous adjustment to traditional beliefs, values, and thought, the changes which occur become lost to posterity. In a literate society, however, the existence of records of social changes enforces a more objective recognition of what was and what is, and makes possible a variety of alternative uses to which such information can be put. How best then can traditional societies salvage the changes which occur in their societies? The use to which such information can be put is varied and its value to posterity priceless.

Groups living in traditional societies of the kind described above make themselves self-sufficient by communal effort. Alongside this style of existence which is common in rural areas of Black Africa are a few large towns and cities which provide better amenities than could be found in the rural areas: piped water, electricity, commercial houses, industries, government offices, etc. The educational opportunities as well as job prospects attract rural dwellers to town and city life. As a result of this influx of people from rural to urban areas, the extended family structure becomes less close-knit in the latter areas.

Since every country in West Africa was, and still is, predominantly rural in land use, it had been regarded as necessary in the days of British rule to provide educational facilities in areas of high population density. Even today the situation is very much the same in that the distribution of schools, particularly secondary schools, remains unevenly based in towns and cities. Thus children living in sparsely populated areas either attend boarding schools or move to live with relations in areas where school facilities are provided. The extended family structure of societies of predominantly oral tradition makes this possible without causing any social imbalance in such children’s upbringing.

The reason for setting up schools, secondary schools especially, in this way is because the cost of providing education in thinly populated areas can be colossal. Even in Tanzania, where novel methods have been

1 J. Goody (ed.) (1968). Literacy in traditional societies. Cambridge: University Press, p. 31.

326 M. JOHN

introduced to bring education and economic progress to the rural areas, smaller groups of inhabitants have had to be moved and combined in order to create larger communities, and thus reduce the cost of educational schemes.

When Western-type education is introduced into rural and urban areas the reaction with which this type of change is received is different in the two settings. In the rural areas the resistance is much stronger than in the large towns and cities. In the former areas the ability of pupils to assimilate new techniques-that is, knowledge imparted by Western- type education methods-imposes demands on their traditional culture and way of life to which they are unaccustomed and for which they are, more often, unprepared.

For example, the introduction of print requires a change in their way of life because,

“print allows individuals to withdraw, to contemplate and meditate outside of communal activities. Print thus encourages privatization, the lonely scholar and the development of private, individual points of view”.1

The implication for members of pre-literate societies withdrawing from the group for private reading could thus result in psychological problems. The introduction of formal education in predominantly rural areas does cause social upheaval to the various groups. For instance the introduction of another language in a community brings with it a new kind of communication process when it causes members of that community to exclude themselves from group activities for private reading. This not only requires a change of attitude from individual members of the group it requires a different way of life. Members who belong to the group would not only view this change in attitude of some members as a threat to their solidarity, it could rouse suspicion in the minds of some of them. Moreover for a group whose communication process is dependent on the face-to-face approach, and hence essentially on speech, the structure of the group can be seen as a unity through its language, its social activities, and its communication process.

Consequently any introduction of formal education which makes use of another language and which is provided for only a part of the group, can only be beset with problems. And whatever difficulties the introduction of formal education poses will be reflected in libraries if, and when, they are set up. But the unique quality of the language used for formal education is that it ultimately unifies the various groups within a nation. In Sierra Leone, as in Ghana and Nigeria, the official language is English. But in Sierra Leone there are about fourteen indigenous

1 J. W. Carey (1967). Harold Adams Innis and Marshall McLuhan. The Antioch Review 27, 5-39.


languages, whereas in Ghana there are about twenty-two major ones. In either country there is no single language which is as widely understood as is English by the various groups in each country.

One also finds that certain communities, regardless of their geographical location, offer less resistance to new ideas than others. A case in point is Nigeria where the Federal State, the Western states, and what was Eastern Region before the Civil War, have made greater strides in educational advancement than the Northern states (which until 1968 formed the Northern Region) of Nigeria. The resistance in Northern Nigeria began in the nineteenth century when Moslem communities opposed the establishment of schools in the area. The strong religious movement in the North had its own culture which it sought to preserve. The point of view of the Northern religious leaders had the support of the British administrator of the area, Lord Lugard, and has led to a situation where an area with half the population of Nigeria has a literacy level much lower than that of the rest of the country. Nigeria has an estimated population of 60 millions and an area of 356 000 square miles. The Northern states (previously Northern Region) make up a geographical unit of 281782 square miles, with a population of about 30 millions. The Eastern Region is the most densely populated with 12 388 646 people occupying an area of 29484 square miles.1

Let us now look at some five-yearly school enrolment figures by region which gives force to the point being made.2:

Year East Lagos North West Total

1955 1960 1965

1955 1960 1965

(a) Primary school enrolmentjgures

742 542 37 038 168 521 811 432 1 759 533 1430 514 74 468 282 849 1 124 788 2 912 619 1 199 692 129 894 492 829 1 089 327 2 911 742

(b) Secondary school enrolment jgures

10 584 31 57 2 671 10 935 27 347 18 263 4 953 6 264 25 735 55 235 58 556 13 535 15 276 121 648 209 015

Some may argue that in view of the rich Arab culture and influence in the North it was a good thing that they were granted the opportunity to refuse Western-type education. Whatever the merits of the argument Nigeria is now committed to a type of education system which is less favourable to the Northerners in terms ofjob prospects than to Nigerians

1 L. J. Lewis (1970). Schools, society andprogress in Nigeria (reprint). Oxford: Pergamon Press, pp. l&-18.

2 A. B. Fafunwa (1974). History ofeducation in Nigeria. London: Allen & Unwin, Appendix 12(a) & (b), pp. 245-246.

328 M. JOHN

living in the rest of the country. It is difficult not to lay some blame on the ‘Quoranic type of education which puts emphasis on rote learning. While the Imam may have a reputation of being a learned teacher, a walking library, the success of his pupils is determined by their ability to recite parts of the Koran.

With growth in education seen as a prerequisite for rapid economic development Northern Nigeria will not be able to keep pace with the growth rate of other states in Nigeria unless foreign expertise is engaged to help with their development programmes. This is the case at the moment. What is also evident is that whereas new ideas and practice are more readily assimilated in urban areas of traditional societies, and whereas communities living in rural areas within the same society tend to respond to changes much more slowly than those living in towns and cities, a strong religious culture, regardless of size and physical location of the area, can have a decisive influence in the way a group of people responds to a new idea.

THE LANGUAGE PROBLEM AND ITS EFFECT ON LIBRARIES

Although the impact of education meets with varying levels of response from traditional societies within a state and among states one common problem to all is the language of instruction used in formal education. And this problem manifests itself in the level of borrowing from libraries. In advanced societies the language of speech and the literary language are invariably the same. In developing countries the language problem which educationists and librarians face begin to emerge when we are aware that the language of instruction is not only different from the language used in conversation outside formal institutions but that such languages within each state are so numerous that no government in West Africa has ever seriously considered the use of an indigenous language as a lingua franca.

In order to appreciate the seriousness of the language problem in West Africa some facts need to be highlighted. A glance at the pass rate of candidates offering English Language at G.C.E. ‘0’ Level examina- tion of the West African Examinations Council reveals that between 1956 and 1970 the national success rate was below 40% in Ghana, Nigeria and Sierra Leone. Such a situation cannot but improve if an observation such as this can be brought to the attention of politicians to effect the necessary changes:

“I was, of course, most fortunate in gaining admission to a government college, one of those rare schools which the colonial administration built and endowed


lavishly, for obscure reasons of its own . . . their most valuable asset was books. It is no doubt significant that besides myself, almost all of the first generation of Nigerian writers had gone to one of the four or five government colleges. . . .“I

When an education system forces children to express themselves in a language which is not their own, it not only becomes difficult for them to articulate their ideas but they also tend to lack the confidence which they would show when using their native tongue. The difficulty which language thus poses for the African child is analogous to the situation which might arise if Britain were to adopt Hausa as official language. The analogy might seem outrageous but the inference to be drawn is, nevertheless, relevant. It would become obvious in time that those who were proficient in speaking Hausa would do better than those who did not. It would also mean a sudden reduction in the hitherto constant flow of publication that went through the press, because some of those who aspired to become writers would now be frequently frustrated by their inadequate command of the new language. Not surprisingly the level of borrowing in libraries would drop significantly.

However, this analogy holds only in so far as the introduction of a different language from that which is spoken locally affects reading and writing. The kind of social and psychological problems which people in oral societies experience with the introduction of reading would also persist in the context of writing. In an already literary society a change of official language does not change the status quo of writers. Their problem will not be an inability to detach themselves from the subjects they wish to write about, but rather one of difficulty with using another language. In a traditional society where writing is a rarity because speech is the dominant form of communication the social adjustment necessary to detach oneself in order to be objective in one’s writing is both a social and psychological barrier to overcome along with that of language. Thus when we look at the problem of language and literary output in Africa it becomes evident why there is a dearth of indigenous imaginative writings. This scarcity not only limits education planners in their ability to incorporate local material into their curriculum but also affects the provision of indigenous creative literature by libraries.

Since, in West Africa, a greater priority is given to primary and secondary education than to adult education, it is worthwhile looking at the implication of the use of a foreign language in schools for instructional purposes, since whatever problems schools face in this respect manifest themselves in library provision and in the use of libraries.

1 C. Achebe (1972). What do African intellectuals read? Times Litera Supplement May 12, 1972, p. 547.

330 M. JOHN

During the early stages of a child’s school career in traditional societies, say from between the ages of five and seven years, the vernacular is used and, thereafter, teaching is done in English. The restriction which a foreign language imposes on the mental development of the child has implications not only for libraries and the education system but also for the society as a whole. Ultimately, other forms of communication become affected, including broadcasting. Books written for children steeped in Western culture are unlikely to stimulate a similar response in children living in traditional societies. More common is the situation of a child in a traditional society being able to read the words on the page. Because he is not part of the audience for whom the author wrote the book, because what he reads about is outside his immediate experience, the substance of the book cannot be understood or appreciated to any great extent. Ideally, I consider it essential, therefore, for a child to have been exposed to writings on local life which give meaning and force to his everyday experience before being introduced to foreign literature.

What is needed is to get national governments or some government sponsored body to encourage imaginative and creative writings on a large scale. While emphasis may be placed on children’s literature, material written for readers at all levels must bc encouraged. With few indigenous writers available to provide suitable material for local consumption book provision of the kind necessary for local needs cannot be but limited. It is for this reason that some financial incentive should be awarded to those whose efforts are selected by a panel of judges. Apart from the enjoyment to be derived from books dealing with pertinent cultural experience, the children will gain a cohesive view of their own locale and enjoy an artistic representation of the disparate occurrences in their daily experiences. Their ability to discriminate then, to be aware of the differences in the setting of the book and theirs makes for a better appreciation of books from overseas.

The situation which existed in the early 195Os, when hardly any appreciation was shown for the pupils’ cultural environment, has begun to change. Much effort is now being channelled in this direction in curriculum development, particularly in Ghana and Sierra Leone. In addition, teachers, trainee teachers and secondary school pupils are encouraged to write short stories and poetry about their locale for publication. Often the Ministry of Education sponsors the scheme or undertakes publication, and the books thus produced become useful reading material for children as well as teachers. In Nigeria too literary competitions are organized at various levels and the British Council involves itself by providing some of the prizes. All these are recent innovations which have so far moved successful and credit must be


given to the education planners and their sponsors for the initiative shown.

Much as this kind of encouragement is necessary to improve the literary skills of school children, ways must be found to encourage children to make greater use of libraries at their disposal. In this way teachers could guarantee the constant use of libraries where available. In Black Africa the position is such that the language of instruction is used only during school hours, with hardly any opportunity for further practice outside the school. Children must not only be taught, or be made to read, they should be able to talk about what they have read or have been taught. To this end investigations can be made into the use of the vernacular, explore the extent, comparatively, to which the official language as a medium of communication in schools inhibits the child.

At the moment it cannot be denied that the use of French and English as languages of instruction in schools in Black Africa tends to do this. In the early days prior to the introduction of Western-type education in traditional societies, teaching was a process by which continuity of tradition was maintained, and interest was consistently taken by parents in their children’s upbringing. Now, not only do most parents find it impossible to talk to their children about their school work, children too find it difficult to discuss problems of school work with their teachers.

This difficulty has been highlighted by the findings of a research project conducted by a Ghanaian among school children in Ghana. We are made aware of the difference in the levels of concepts expressed by the two groups of Ghanaian children when using Ga and Twi (their native languages, both of which the Ghanaian conducting the experiment speaks) and their school language, English. The findings are revealing :

“The bilingual problem explored from the conceptual perspective reveals that when English is the language of education, the majority of the experiment subjects were not able to exercise their conceptual potential. On the other hand, the vernaculars. . . were more fruitful media for enhancing the language-thought interaction”.r

Again,

“The quantitative data indicate that when children used the vernacular as opposed to English, they made more statements, their statements were more often at the complex and preconceptual level, they reported more relationships based on non-obvious linkages, and they used models more frequently. The qualitative

1 G. 0. Collinson (1974). Concept formation in a second language: a study of Ghanaian school children. Hawasd Educational Review 44, p. 454.

332 M. JOHN

data suggest that the vernacular statements were also structurally more complex. involved more dimensions simultaneously, and more free of error. . . .“I

In his conclusion Collinson had this to say: “The language problem is not entirely educational; the cultural, social, economic and political aspects cannot be overlooked. The multi-lingual nature of most developing societies inevitably creates the need for the second language, English. Possibilities therefore exist for the development of a local language to replace English in the various functions it serves”.2

Whilst this research project highlights some of the issues which affect the choice of language used as medium of instruction, the possibilities of introducing indigenous languages as media of instruction win favour with the author. The level of confidence shown by the children when using the vernacular reflects the extent to which language affects thought.

BOOKS IN SCHOOL LIBRARIES-HOW TO USE THEM

Although the implications of the findings here have relevance in education planning and library provision the decision to effect any change is political. Whichever decision is taken it is essential to ensure that much effort is expended in making texts suitable for local conditions. To this end a systematic collection in tape form of traditional aspects of local life could eventually become useful. Also teaching can be made more interesting and more imaginative by setting projects which would require frequent use of libraries. Teachers themselves should have enlightened views about libraries and their use, and they could seek the guidance of librarians who know their stock and what they contain about how best to utilize the resources available. The situation in Nigeria where children are reported to make little use of books provided in school libraries3 can in part be explained as resulting from the situation discussed above.

The books which libraries provide should be interesting enough to stimulate the inquirer to pursue any subject further. Only in this way can libraries fulfil the function of providing supplementary material necessary to complement instructional education. And in traditional societies where the reading habit has to be nurtured in order to encourage growth in readership as well as the idea of reading for pleasure the books provided should be both stimulating and attractive for them to be popular.

1 G. 0. Collinson Ibid., pp. 454-455. 2 G. 0. Collinson Ibid., p. 455. 3 J. 0. Fader0 (1970). The problem of unused books in Nigerian school libraries. Library

Association Record 72, 204-205.


USE OF THE VERNACULAR IN SCHOOLS

Let us now look at the extent of the use of the vernacular as a language of instruction in schools, and the growth of its use in literature. After about the age of seven, English Language supersedes the vernacular as the language of instruction in schools in traditional societies. In Ghana and Nigeria, however, it is possible to pursue certain indigenous languages in schools to G.C.E. ‘0’ Level standard. I was informed that in Sierra Leone Mende was taught in some secondary schools, but the practice of teaching vernacular languages is not as widespread there as it is in Ghana and Nigeria.

Also in these two countries writing in the vernacular is not only encouraged it is also thriving. The existence of local presses willing to undertake the financial risk is a major consideration. Perhaps the competition would have been keener if the commercial viability of such an enterprise were more lucrative. In Sierra Leone, however, writing in the vernacular is not common. As far as I am aware there is no published imaginative work in the vernacular. Plays have been written in Krio and these have been staged as well. None of these has ever been published, however. So it seems that in the case of Ghana and Nigeria some of the vernacular languages can become potential rivals to English in the future. The real difficulty in adopting one in each country will be the problem of choice.

Furthermore, it is not difficult to appreciate the potential of the vernacular if used in schools beyond its present stage. One requires a certain level of confidence in the use of a language to look at an aspect of one’s society objectively and imaginatively. The same can be said about the teaching situation where a certain level of rapport would be required for the teacher to ascertain whether the lesson is being understood. The language aspect is so vital to a nation in preserving its national culture that serious consideration must be given by the West African governments either to improve the level of literacy in English or to adopt a native language. They seem to be unaware of the correlation between the level of national literacy and that of national literary output. However, much more work needs to be done to ascertain the relative problems of major indigenous languages in comparison to English in order to come to some decision on whether there is any advan- tage in using indigenous languages in schools beyond the primary level.

READING AND WRITING

In spite of what has been said about cultural barriers and foreign literature there is no denying that it is only when children are exposed to

334 M. JOHN

different styles of writing, when they encounter language in its most complex and varied forms, when they come upon feelings and experiences of people which are outside and beyond their daily awareness, that they become conscious of books and have awakened in them the desire not only to continue reading but to react to their creative instinct for the benefit of society as a whole. When that happens the growth of libraries in terms of readership is assured.

Traditional societies in West Africa cannot at this time boast of a large output of imaginative writings. This is why a collection of material in tape form could also prove useful. Aspects of social life could be taped to provide the necessary raw material capable of igniting the imagina- tion of some listeners with the potential to becoming writers. By stating the case that there is a dearth of indigenous imaginative writings will not alter the present position. It is up to librarians to initiate ways of exploiting the situation by ensuring that existing stock is adequately used and that the growth of indigenous writings is encouraged.

UNIVERSITY LIBRARIES

The problems of university libraries in traditional societies are of a different kind from those of public libraries. Recent articles132 on libraries in Africa have been notably silent about the state of university libraries :

“ . . . the picture of Nigerian university libraries is not all that bleak. There are several good and developing collections, especially in Africana, including many books and manuscripts rarely found elsewhere.“3

This view can be said to be equally true of most, if not all, university libraries in Africa, particularly those which were once affiliated to British, French and American universities. The reasons for this state of affairs are obvious. In general university libraries have enjoyed (and still do) a privileged position in Black Africa and have therefore been able to set up libraries of the kind that suit their teaching curriculum. The initial influence, be it British, French or American, has always led to a pattern similar to that in operation in the country of influence. Even more recently-founded universities, with a much higher proportion of indigenous staff, have always looked on their home predecessors

l M. Kwakwa (1972). African libraries in search of an image. Library Association Record 74, 72-73.

2 K. Nyarko (1973). Education and library awareness. Library Association Record 75, 107-109. 3 A. Adegoke (1973). The evolution of libraries in Nigeria. Zntemtional Library Review 5,

p. 426.


as models. Thus the autonomy which universities enjoy, the privileged position accorded them by politicians and the strong Western influence -all these factors have made it possible for university libraries in Africa to compare favourably with the libraries of the newer British universities.

What seems lacking at the moment is any conscious attempt on the part of public libraries in traditional societies to want to break through the restricted subject areas in which undergraduates and academics concentrate their reading effort. A conscious effort on their part is so necessary when we compare the situation of traditional societies with that in literate societies. In Britain, for example, public libraries existed on a large scale before the conventional universities, as they are known, were set up. Literacy had become widespread before the setting up of these universities. Thus any special study encouraged in universities can be seen as an extension of literacy (and hence of the reading habit) already in existence. In traditional societies, however, most of the undergraduates are coming into contact with organized libraries for the first time in their lives.

As potential teachers and parents there is much to be said for th’e influence they are likely to have in the immediate future. There is every reason, therefore, for public libraries to try to influence the reading habits of these students. In the case of indigenous academics there is also a strong case for public libraries to make their presence felt in these university towns because of the high concentration of literate population, if not for testimonies of this kind:

“In the last few months I was told separately by two university professors about my own generation . . . that they never had time to read fiction. . . . Many of them are eminent in their various academic disciplines and seem none the worse for their shaky literary beginnings. . . .“I

In my recent visits to West Africa it was evident that in all countries visited no attempt has been made in providing a local service, be it a mobile or static library. To ignore such a collection of literate people encourages the bias of reading to specialist material and in no way enhances the idea of reading as a cultural activity.

SOME PROBLEMS AFFECTING LIBRARIES

The difficulties in encouraging reading in homes in traditional societies have been highlighted elsewhere. 2 Domestic chores (for children),

1 C. Achebe (1972). What do African intellectuals read? Times Literary Supplement, May 12, 1972, p. 547.

s UNESCO (1954). Development of public libraries in Africa: the Ibadan Seminar. Unesco Public Library Manual 6, pp. 68ff.

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frequent informal visits, noise level, humid conditions-all these add up to an unpleasant environment hardly conducive to leisured reading. But with the new elites emerging from the professions-those who have been successful academically-a new class of potential clientele could emerge. Furthermore, the prospect of economic development via massive investments in education is still a possibility. Already, however, children living and attending schools in large towns and cities are now committed to reading, and successful parents living in pleasanter surroundings would seem to be a potential target for librarians. The breakthrough can still happen.

Nowadays librarians working in advanced countries not only have incunabula and other rare works among their collections, they also acquire new publications as they become available. The vast store of knowledge contained in Western libraries accumulated over centuries, and at a faster rate only with the advent of printing in the fifteenth century. In pre-literate societies of West Africa, where the struggle to eradicate illiteracy began, at the earliest, in 1950, revolutionary methods are being used in education in order to achieve rapid economic development. It seems proper, too, that if librarians are to cope adequately with the supplementary aspect of instructional education, governments should be more liberal in their attitude towards library demands than they are at present. Public libraries require varying levels of expertise to meet the different levels of demands from readers: children, new literates, students, professionals. Governments seem to be unaware that whatever problems affect instructional education, be it language, curriculum, quality of teaching, local resistance to change, they also have repercussions on the demands made on libraries. It will indeed be a reasonable idea if governments were to consider providing libraries (public, school and college libraries) with funds equivalent to a minimum percentage of the budget expenditure on education.

With the campaign against illiteracy it is inevitable that attitudes, values, morals, traditional beliefs and habits change. The two types of societies, the rural and the urban, evolving in traditional societies following changes brought about by education, reflect differing attitudes. Unfortunately, however, the extent to which these changes are recorded is minimal, almost non-existent in some countries.

For instance, until 1975, there was no active indigenous novelist resid- ing in Sierra Leone. It seems proper, therefore, that libraries should play a more active role and extend their activities beyond what Benge has observed as the cultural role of libraries:

“The traditional function of culture is to enable a group of people to survive, and this implies the conservation of the past. Not only do libraries conserve our


culture, but as agencies of communication, they play an important role in its transmission.“l

In traditional societies, libraries should themselves be active partici- pants in promoting the written word by encouraging young promising writers. To conserve and transmit our culture should not be enough. Libraries in traditional societies should relentlessly encourage growth in the literary output of the nation. Moreover, to restrict the role of libraries in traditional societies to the written aspects of their nation’s cultural heritage, not only deters providing a service for non-literate clientele of the nation but also ignores an important contribution to the nation’s cultural heritage.

PROPOSAL TO EXTEND SERVICES IN PUBLIC LIBRARIES

What librarians in traditional societies should try to do is to attempt to convince governments about the limited scope of present library provision. It should be made clear that for 80% of the population no service is offered and how uneasy they feel about the situation regarding a supposedly public service. Proposals should be made about the ways in which some of the needs of the majority section of the population could be met and about how librarians feel they could tackle the task.

When we look at the progress made over twenty years of huge investments in literacy campaigns, it becomes evident that the oral aspect of traditional life is so strong that even if the written word was as widely enjoyed than hitherto it would still take second place to the spoken word. Since pre-literate societies are still largely rural, school provision and industrial development should be located in a planned manner throughout areas at present rural.

Furthermore, for the majority of Black Africans who have attained primary school or part-secondary school level of education bare literacy in French or English has so far not resulted in their use of these languages for the purpose of conversation. For them the official languages remain languages for use in schools and at work. Therefore, if librarians in traditional societies ignore what is traditional and seek only to collect and preserve written records of their existence then the whole concept of librarianship would need reappraisal.

On the other hand, if librarians in traditional societies set themselves up as guardians of the changes currently taking place in the society and want to conserve the oral aspect of their cultural heritage then standards

1 R. C. Benge (1970). Libraries andcultural change. London: Bingley, p. 13.

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for setting about it would have to be laid down before the task is set in hand. A committee of “experts” would have to be set up to decide what aspects of traditional life would be preserved for posterity. The tech- nical aspect of recording such material-type of equipment to be used which would withstand frequent use and local climatic conditions- would also require serious consideration by experts.

A possible opposition to setting up this kind of service in traditional societies may stem from librarians themselves. It will not be an oddity for local librarians to link literature with writing. This link has been referred to as an accident and the point made that “writing is un- essential to either the composition or the preservation of literature; the two arts are wholly distinct”.1 Finnegan also refers to this association as an “ethnocentric preoccupation” which “scholars in other spheres have had to revise-the study of modes of political organizations or religious practices-as they are viewed in the light of wider research and thus greater comparative perspective”.2 Consequently there are stories, proverbs, songs or other religious and social aspects of traditional life which are relevant for inclusion. Perhaps preference should be given to cassette recorders in that they are easy to operate, particularly from the user’s point of view. Such a collection of oral material would not only be of use to academics making a special study but could be available on loan to listeners and readers.

At the moment in Black Africa librarians live in a society in which, by their attitude and policy, they have excluded the vast majority of their potential clientele because they have defaulted by not collecting, preserving, and disseminating unwritten attributes of their societies’ cultural heritage. This attitude is not only dangerous for the image of the profession it is divisive in its implications. If traditional societies cannot document much of their cultural activities at the moment, librarians in the societies should ensure that at least some of these aspects of social life are recorded for posterity. We can then ensure that future generations have access to material which could be consulted if required. Obviously we can anticipate the difficulties which could deprive future users from enjoying all the responses which could be derived from an original rendering in full view of the audience-the gestures, and facial expressions-but this is inevitable and, in any case, some of these qualities of oral literature become lost when written down.

If culture is a resource rather than a determinant, then traditional societies are that much poorer when librarians exclude the oral aspect

1 N. K. Chadwick (1939). The distribution of oral literature in the Old World. Journal ofthe Royal Anthropological Institute 69, p. 77.

2 R. Finnegan (1970). Oral literature in Aftica. Oxford: Oxford University Press, p. 18.


of their cultural heritage from their collections. As librarians they seem to have defined their objective as being the collection and preservation of such material which promotes education and written culture. They seem to have restricted their definition to the written word and, by so doing, have excluded from their remit a much larger, richer and valuable aspect of their cultural heritage.

In traditional societies they will not for some time yet be able to boast of valuable first editions of published works, as can libraries in Western and other literate societies. But if they begin to change their thinking about what they should be doing, about what they should be providing for the community, in time librarians in traditional societies would enjoy the library power Thompson talks about:

“ . . . library power arises from the connection of libraries with culture in the intellectual and artistic sense. Libraries not only contain creative and imaginative works in literary forms but must widen their role to encompass the whole range of cultural actiaities”l [my italics].

If librarians could begin to think seriously about the other cultural activities for which no services are yet provided and could begin to make some attempt at rectifying this error then librarianship in traditional societies would gain a much wider dimension than it has at the moment, and traditional societies would gain by it. It is not yet too late to make a start.

1 J, Thompson (1974). Library power: a new philosophy of librarianship. London: Bingley, p. 8.

libraries in oral-traditional societies

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