An Ethnographic Analysis of Proverbs in Christian Films: ‘The Missing Link’ as a Case Study

Authors

  • Oluwadọr ọ Jacob Oludare University of Ibadan, Ibadan

Keywords:

Proverbs, The Missing Link, Hymes’ Ethnography of Communication, Films, Religious Discourse

Abstract

Much scholarly research has been carried out on proverbs used in Yoruba traditional plays and films. However,

little attention has been devoted to the use of proverbs in Christian films. This study, therefore, examines the use

of proverbs in “The Missing Link”, a Christian film produced by EVOM, a prominent Christian film producer

in Nigeria in order to reveal their aesthetic and utilitarian values in religious discourse. Hymes’ Ethnography of

Communication was used as the theoretical framework. Fourteen proverbs, as employed in different contexts of

the film were purposively selected for analysis. One major discovery is the fact that these proverbs were employed

in the film to project the Yoruba socio-cultural ideologies and orientation. King Adegbite, the custodian of the

people’s custom and culture used 6 of the 14 proverbs captured in the film. This represents 42.8% of the total

number of proverbs used in the film. The priests used 4 between themselves, which constitutes 28.5%. Chief

Balogun used 1, which constitutes 7.1%. Alamu and Ajadi used 3 proverbs between themselves, which constitutes

21.4% of the total number of proverbs in the film. All the proverbs used in the play were used by elderly men

who are typical traditionalists. None was used by children or women. All the users of the proverbs were village

dwellers, the urban dwellers represented by the missionaries did not use any proverb, instead they used quotations

from the Bible, characteristic of Christians. Proverbs are a veritable mine full of the collective wisdom of the

elderly people in the typical traditional Yoruba society. Contemporary Christian films producers now use them

abundantly in their works to capture the indigenous local settings of their plays.

Author Biography

Oluwadọr ọ Jacob Oludare, University of Ibadan, Ibadan

 

 

 

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Published

2017-09-01

How to Cite

ọ Jacob Oludare, O. (2017). An Ethnographic Analysis of Proverbs in Christian Films: ‘The Missing Link’ as a Case Study. Journal of The Linguistic Association of Nigeria, 20(2). Retrieved from https://jolan.com.ng/index.php/home/article/view/111