But that has changed over the years as Setswana culture is affected by the invasion of modernism. Worried by the development, three local writers have published a book on Mainane.
Authors Emmanuel Boefelo, Edwin Moroka and Dr Nankie Ramabu launched the book last Saturday at Thapong Visual Arts Centre. The event that was graced largely by children to signify the importance of Setswana tales on the development of young people.
The title of the book is Legaleng. The publication of this book is a welcome development and has been described as another milestone towards preserving the Setswana way of life.
It is not so often that we find young people with interest in the preservation of things that have been part of our culture for years. Many young people believe Setswana is outdated as they adopt the English or modern ways.
Credit to the authors for coming out and leading the way in showing the society that while modernisation has taken over, the olden Setswana tales still matter, especially in the moulding of children.
The title of the book reflects on how these tales were normally narrated. Children would sit around the fire at night while they listen to an elderly person, (mostly grandmothers) narrate the tales.
The cover design also compliments the theme and title while illustrations are easy to understand especially for children who are targeted through this book. The authors have gone out to make it an easy read without using strong or deep Setswana language. They also make sure that after each and every tale in the book, there is an explanation of the lesson or moral of the narrative.
It makes things easy for the reader to understand the purpose of that tale. While the book is not a big bundle, it only has a few of some of the common tales such as Masilo le Masilonyana, the tale of Tlhware, Tshwene le Mmutla, Botlhale jo bo paletseng kgosi and Phoko le Phokoje. The authors could have expanded and had many tales.
The tales would also do a lot with a lot of illustrations as they are an attraction to children. Although mainane are important in the upbringing of children, there is need by writers to appreciate that they have undergone profound changes. It is important to find better ways in which mainane can be adapted into contemporary Botswana and continue to serve their functions.
Like the guest speaker at the book launch Barolong Seboni said, there is need to package Setswana culture and make it appealing to the global world. One of the authors, Boefelo said the aim of this book is to relive the past and share the story of Botswana through mainane in the current situation. Illustrations were done by Mokwaledi Gontshwanetse while the layout and design were done France Mothusi. The 40-page book sells for P100.
