SPEAKING IN SIGNS

Commercial signage always says a lot more than is evident on the surface. Signs not only indicate the goods and services of the establishment, but they also convey information about society, culture, and worldviews. And I discovered that they are great starting points for conversation during language lessons. The turns that our conversation took when discussing signs was actually pretty mind blowing. So, let's decode!

What sort of social structure conclusions can be ascertained by these signs? The most evident one regards literacy and language. Benin's literacy rate of tk percent means that business needs to communicate in pictures that clearly convey the goods and services rendered. These graphic devices are silent testimony, as well, to the fact that many Beninois speak no French whatsoever, but may be monolingual in one of the 50 local dialects native to this small nation. If you live in a big city, you might find similar signage techniques in poor neighborhoods with heavy concentrations of recent immigrants or high school dropout rates.

How about on the cultural front? Any insights conveyed here? A hint of gender relations are reflected in these signs. For some reason, one of the most prevalent business in Ouidah is the hair dresser and barber shop (they far exceed restaurants or convenience stores). In addition to cutting and styling, however, the shops also provide gift wrapping. That is the shops that are for and by women. Pretty paper and ribbon is not appropriate material for a man's hands. I wonder if an extension can be drawn, as well, regarding gift giving and gender. The stratification reflected in these signs can be seen across the city. Women's domains: the produce market, food vendor, itinerant sales. Men's domains: "zem" (motorcycle taxi) driver, mechanic, brick maker, construction.

Finally, what sort of worldview might be reflected here? This is a tuffy, but I'm wondering what sort of mind couples the activity of cutting hair and wrapping gifts. My language instructor, Eli, told me, "Because that's where you get a gift wrapped. At the hair dressers." OK, let's come back to that later. How about the store with all the road signs? A clever  and amusing sign for a sign store, right?  Eli: "Driving school?" Wha!? Why not a picture of someone driving a car? Eli, "Car rental."

So, what can we conclude here? I don't know if I'm on the right road (haha), but I'm thinking that all of these signs mean that the African worldview is characterized as strongly visual, concrete, and rooted in experience. We may be able to use this to help us relate to our community more effectively.