The Identity of a Tanzanian Woman = a Potentiality Under explored

다국어 초록 (Multilingual Abstract)

This paper focuses on the identity of a Tanzanian woman and addresses several questions: what is the really identity of a Tanzanian woman; how does her identity reinforces woman’s oppression; will the identity of a Tanzanian woman change; what efforts are taken by them to improve their identity; is the potentiality of a woman’s power under explored? Accordingly, my experience as a Tanzanian man, researcher (rather anthropologist), teacher, consultant and program manager dealing with women and indeed a witness of many potentialities of Tanzanian women, is important and is used in this paper. In other words, methods such as participant observation, informal interviews and conversations with men and women, including 300 students, from Tanzania have been an important part of this paper. Moreover, the paper is nourished by in puts from my bellowed wife currently confused by the way American women wear and smoke; a behaviour considered unacceptable and only embraced by immoral women in Tanzania. Again, my daughter Miriam kept ignited my heart to write the article- her mother says “how comes a girl behaves like a boy: she is active destroying her dolls and often wants to touch our expensive digital TV instead”. Tanzanian women are expected to be calm. My Tanzanian experience, a lens of its own, has been facilitated by critical discourses on identity, feminism, beauty, globalization, post-colonialism, history, culture, nationalism, philosophy, development, colonialism and gender focusing on Tanzania and abroad. Social sciences data bases and references from UB library have been utilised and analysed using content analysis. Secondary data from NGO and Unpublished research, whereby I participated as team member or principal researcher, has also been used. Simply stated, Tanzanian women are diverse yet they have achieved great success as far as empowerment is concerned. However, challenges such as early marriage, modernization, domestic chores, acculturation, female genital mutilation, patriarchal values, and globalization remain a hurdle in women empowerment. Comically, dismissing of Tanzania women, by middle class feminists, western and local, as homogenous has led to under exploration of the potentiality of Tanzanian women. In fact, the role of Tanzanian women living in rural areas has not been accorded the required scholarship.

목차 (Table of Contents)

• 1. Background
• 2. Methodology
• 3. The History of Tanzania
• 4. Formal Identity of Tanzanian woman: the weaker sex.
• 5. Informal Identity of a Tanzanian Woman: A Powerful Sex
• 6. Conclusion
• 〈References〉
• Abstract