A dog is a dog. The average African dog is a little less than that. The average African dog is a creature to be kicked, scolded and have missiles thrown at it - an inconvenient extra mouth that threatens precarious supplies in seasons of drought, or on rare munificent occasions such as Christmas, will efficiently devour the mounds of leftovers. For some women, the dog is still a handy convenience for quickly getting rid of the babys steaming stool, a reliable voice that, shut out of doors, will warn off strangers, potential intruders and creatures of the night. It will shepherd cattle to the dip, hunt down hares and buck - a companion, tolerated, but kept hygienically at a distance. Before the advent of inoculation it was a creature that survived on its own resilient biology, fighting off new and accustomed viruses while succumbing to disasters, physical and otherwise. Now dont say Im cruel or heartless - Im only telling you what I know and you can make of it what you will. A European dog is more than a dog. (And European - even in these post-colonial times - is understood to mean white people as well as that small but resolute class of blacks who have padded their way up the social ladder with wads of money.) Not just the dog or that dog, it is a member of the family with a personality, name, a kennel, a veterinary-aid card and, of course, a budget. It is bathed, shampooed, combed, patted, hugged, kissed, smiled at, loved, talked to, apologized and appealed to, argued and pleaded with, taken out for walks and pampered. It usually has a family tree, probably a place in its masters (or mistresss) will and is guaranteed funeral arrangements. When all is said and done, its status is on a par with that of the domestic worker in the household, the gardener or the maid. Such are the economics and the morality of the times. A suburban African dog in an aspiring middle-class household is something between the two. While it probably benefits from the example of its white neighbours, it remains a household appendage. The status of domestic workers in African households is more blurred. Many are kith and kin and out of a communal fellowship the maid will probably live and eat with the family, so there can be no question of a separate budget for the animal. Humans unite in an outward display of kinship, so Kutu or Spot will have to make do with the leftovers, or leftovers enriched with a soup or meal supplement. Bathed or not bathed, trained or not trained, inoculated or not, this dog is a dog, promoted one notch above his village cousin. It will not be allowed in the house and while the children may play with it, it will not be allowed to lick them. It may be allowed to be friendly but it is not a friend, only a contracted worker hired to bark and keep the car and the precious colour television and video safe. Such are the economics of the other camp. - Shimmer Chinodya in his short story, Strays in the collection Can We Talk and Other Stories first published in 1998.
Posted on: Sat, 29 Nov 2014 12:38:10 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015