Tuesday, December 12, 2017

Sexism in proverbs, another one from Lebanon!

Artwork by Tarek Chemaly
"A boy and his joy even if stillborn" this is the metaphoric translation and literally this means "a boy and his announcement even he does not survive his first hour (as opposed to the glum news of having a daughter)". Now if you want a rhyming transposition, "Having a boy is worth the pain, even for an hour even if in vain" (thank you Patrick).
So, how about this for sexism from Lebanon and its proverbs?
Look, I know in certain circles this stigma is going slightly, but let us face it - Lebanon is a society "a deux vitesses" (a two speeds - actually scratch that, a ten different speeds). Proverbs indicate how a nation thinks and behaves, this one is just a shameful one!