- Title
- Challenges experienced by xhosa single mothers during the traditional circumcision of their adolescent sons
- Creator
- Mdunyelwa, Akhona
- Subject
- Circumcision
- Date Issued
- 2020-07
- Date
- 2020-07
- Type
- Master's theses
- Type
- text
- Identifier
- http://hdl.handle.net/10353/21004
- Identifier
- vital:46891
- Description
- Culturally, amongst Amaxhosa, traditional male circumcision is known to be a men subject and that women are supposed to be passive and submissive in the entire process (Kang’ethe & Nomngcoyiya, 2016). Women play a huge role in nurturing children, however, when it comes to traditional male circumcision of their sons, their role is limited to preparing food and traditional beer for the initiation ceremony. These women include single mothers, therefore, the interest of this study is on how Xhosa single mothers encounter challenges in the traditional circumcision of their sons, thus the main purpose of the study was to investigate the challenges experienced by Xhosa single mothers during traditional circumcision of their adolescent sons. The following three objectives were set out to guide the investigation A. To investigate challenges experienced by Xhosa single mothers during the traditional circumcision of their adolescent sons. B. To determine the extent to which Xhosa single mothers participate in the plans and decision making during the circumcision of their adolescent sons. C. To explore the support that Xhosa single mothers require during the process of their sons’ circumcision. A purposive sampling procedure was employed, and ten Xhosa single mothers were interviewed on a one-to-one basis. In addition, a focus group consisting of four men was conducted. The following are the main findings of the study: •Traditional male circumcision is the most respected custom amongst the AmaXhosa nation. Women are in fear of speaking publicly about the challenges they experience in traditional male circumcision processes. • There are various challenges experienced by Xhosa single mothers which include the need for involvement of men to usher their sons into the ritual. • The absence and lack of support from the biological fathers of the sons results in aconsiderable burden for the Xhosa single mothers that includes financial challenges. • The religious orientation or Christian faith of some of the Xhosa single mothers clashes with the request of their sons to participate in traditional male circumcision. • The individuals and societal drop in cultural standards and being stormed by the dominant Western culture as opposed to Ubuntu was identified as the greatest challenge in the Xhosa communities. • There is a clash of cultural norms and values with the current equality lifestyle as well as the enjoyment of constitutional rights by the Xhosa single mothers during traditional circumcision of their sons. There is a lack of support for Xhosa single mothers in relation to traditional circumcision of their adolescent sons from the families, community, and the government. Much of the support is directed to strategies to preserve the custom, improve the procedure and to curb the casualties. • The study proved that, traditional male circumcision is a stressful process for the Xhosa single mothers which inflict strain and anxiety. Some of the concepts from Bowen`s family systems theory were proven and discussed as part of the findings.
- Description
- Thesis (MSoc) -- Faculty of Social Science and Humanities, 2020
- Format
- computer
- Format
- online resource
- Format
- application/pdf
- Format
- 1 online resource (115 pages)
- Format
- Publisher
- University of Fort Hare
- Publisher
- Faculty of Social Science and Humanities
- Language
- English
- Rights
- University of Fort Hare
- Rights
- All Rights Reserved
- Rights
- Open Access
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UFH Department of Social Work & Social Development
| Thumbnail | File | Description | Size | Format | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| View Details Download | SOURCE1 | MDUNYELWA AKHONA THESIS.pdf | 1 MB | Adobe Acrobat PDF | View Details Download |