Glasnik Etnografskog Instituta SANU (Jan 2005)
The gender in Bulgarian proverbs
Abstract
We have chosen the paremiology as the object of this article because it is the area where phraseology and folklore are closely related. This fact makes the study of proverbs significant from the lingua-cultural point of view. The subject of the Bulgarian proverbs is an important source of interpretation because most proverbs are "prescriptions-stereotypes of folk self-consciousness" (Telija). We can see proverbs as cultural stereotypes reflected in common language. The analysis of different proverbs (more then 5000) makes it possible to draw valid conclusions about the dominating tendencies and assessments. We concentrated on proverbs connected with the gender issues. They reflect the social aspects of relationships between a man and a woman. The analysis was seriously hampered by the natural semantic richness of proverbs. Our article focuses on the inner form of proverbs. Our first obvious conclusion will be as follows: the gender factor does not play the leading role in the majority of the Bulgarian proverbs. We can see in some proverbs the reflection of the masculine mentality and the power of man, which in itself is not the dominant factor. The negative female stereotype exists alongside the male one. At the same time the female character does not always have negative connotations. Very often the feminine beauty, mind, positive housewife image and patience are in focus. In addition, the indisputable fact of the presence of the „female“ voice, in which sorrow and suffering dominate, and the female consciousness becomes apparent in the understanding of the world created by Bulgarian proverbs. They characterize her emotional side and decisiveness, as well as her expression of resistance. The above in-depth analysis allows us to make the conclusion about certain independence of women even in those past times which are reflected in the proverbs. Confirmation of our main conclusion can be found in some historical facts such as: a married woman had the right to manage her inherited property on her own.
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