Question

A Telegu expression states: ‘Bringing up a daughter is like watering a plant in another’s courtyard’. Find out other such sayings that are contrary. Discuss how popular sayings reflect the social arrangement of a society,

Answer 1

Based on the prompt in activity, here are examples of contrary sayings and a sociological discussion on how idioms reflect societal structures:

Contrary Sayings (Valuing and Empowering Daughters):

• “A son is a son till he takes him a wife, a daughter is a daughter all of her life.” (English Proverb): This directly contradicts the Telugu expression by suggesting that daughters maintain enduring emotional ties and loyalty to their natal families, whereas sons may drift away after marriage.
• “Mulgi shikli, pragati jhali” (Marathi Proverb: “A girl educated, progress achieved”): This modern saying reflects a shift away from viewing daughters as a drain on resources, instead highlighting their education as a catalyst for broader societal and family development.

How Popular Sayings Reflect Social Arrangements:

• Patriarchy and Patrilocality: The Telugu expression (“Bringing up a daughter is like watering a plant in another’s courtyard”) perfectly encapsulates a patrilocal kinship system. In this social arrangement, a woman relocates to her husband’s household after marriage. Consequently, her natal family views the financial and emotional investment in her upbringing as an economic loss, since her future labor and offspring will entirely benefit her marital family (the “other’s courtyard”).
• Agents of Socialization: Popular sayings act as powerful, informal tools of socialization. By repeatedly hearing phrases that frame them as temporary guests or “paraya dhan” (someone else’s wealth), girls are psychologically conditioned to accept secondary status, unequal distribution of household resources (like food or education), and their inevitable displacement.
• Shifting Social Realities: Just as patriarchal idioms reflect traditional agrarian inequalities, the emergence of contrary, empowering sayings reflects changing modern social arrangements. As societies urbanize, women enter the workforce, and nuclear families replace joint families, language evolves to reflect the increasing economic independence of women and their continued support for their natal parents.