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CNN Sunday Morning
16-Year-Old Author Helps Preserve Ancient Traditions
Aired November 10, 2002 - 08:50 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
RENAY SAN MIGUEL, CNN ANCHOR: Legends, myths and religions play an important role in just about every society. And one small corner of the world is going to extra lengths to preserve its heritage with a project that could yield a future laureate. In our "Faces of the Week," CNN's Charlayne Hunter-Gault has the story of a 16-year-old author who may be on her way to great success.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CHARLAYNE HUNTER-GAULT, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): See their dances. Observe their rituals. Uniquely Venda. The people who, according to legend, descended from a large python. Until now, most Venda folklore, history and culture has been handed down orally, in danger today of being lost to the younger generations.
But that could change, thanks to these members of the younger generation who are being encouraged to write their own stories. Some, like 16-year-old Muneiwa Ramantswana have succeeded better than most. Her book, "Saved by a Mamba," one of the first written as part of the Chicabo (ph) Christian school's program to encourage students to write books.
It was eventually chosen to be published, and with the help of Oxford University, distributed to disadvantaged rural schools in Venda.
ANNE-MARIE PRETORIUS, LIBRARIAN: Because it is quite traditional. It has to do with the Venda people and the Venda tradition.
MUNEIWA RAMANTSWANA, AUTHOR, "SAVED BY A MAMBA": One of you must go and fetch them so that we must quickly finish up this kid.
HUNTER-GAULT: Muneiwa's book tells the story of a young boy kidnapped by thieves planning to kill him. In a bizarre twist, they run over a mamba snake and before dying, he bites them and they die.
RAMANTSWANA: I really like the part because they are getting paid for the evil work they want to do.
HUNTER-GAULT: Muneiwa tells us the book was inspired in part by the culture she loves.
RAMANTSWANA: There are a lot of mountains, and nature plays a very important role in our culture.
HUNTER-GAULT: But, she says the reality of new threats to the traditional culture, like child abductions, also played a role.
RAMANTSWANA: Taking kids away and such stuff, and killing. That's the most important thing. Actually, in villages like ours.
HUNTER-GAULT: Both Muneiwa's parents, school principals, are proud of their daughter. Her father, a poet, who has helped pass on Venda history through the oral tradition of praise singing, believes youngsters like his daughter hold the fate of the Venda nation in their hands.
JACKSON RAMANTSWANA, AUTHOR'S FATHER: For them, I encourage them to write things about their own culture, because even if things are not written, they're not long. That culture will be dead.
HUNTER-GAULT (on camera): Teachers here told me that when the writing project first started, not a lot of students were interested in it. But Muneiwa's success has been infectious, prompting more and more students, like these, to want to tell their own stories.
Charlayne Hunter-Gault for "INSIDE AFRICA," (UNINTELLIGIBLE), South Africa.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
Aired November 10, 2002 - 08:50 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
RENAY SAN MIGUEL, CNN ANCHOR: Legends, myths and religions play an important role in just about every society. And one small corner of the world is going to extra lengths to preserve its heritage with a project that could yield a future laureate. In our "Faces of the Week," CNN's Charlayne Hunter-Gault has the story of a 16-year-old author who may be on her way to great success.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CHARLAYNE HUNTER-GAULT, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): See their dances. Observe their rituals. Uniquely Venda. The people who, according to legend, descended from a large python. Until now, most Venda folklore, history and culture has been handed down orally, in danger today of being lost to the younger generations.
But that could change, thanks to these members of the younger generation who are being encouraged to write their own stories. Some, like 16-year-old Muneiwa Ramantswana have succeeded better than most. Her book, "Saved by a Mamba," one of the first written as part of the Chicabo (ph) Christian school's program to encourage students to write books.
It was eventually chosen to be published, and with the help of Oxford University, distributed to disadvantaged rural schools in Venda.
ANNE-MARIE PRETORIUS, LIBRARIAN: Because it is quite traditional. It has to do with the Venda people and the Venda tradition.
MUNEIWA RAMANTSWANA, AUTHOR, "SAVED BY A MAMBA": One of you must go and fetch them so that we must quickly finish up this kid.
HUNTER-GAULT: Muneiwa's book tells the story of a young boy kidnapped by thieves planning to kill him. In a bizarre twist, they run over a mamba snake and before dying, he bites them and they die.
RAMANTSWANA: I really like the part because they are getting paid for the evil work they want to do.
HUNTER-GAULT: Muneiwa tells us the book was inspired in part by the culture she loves.
RAMANTSWANA: There are a lot of mountains, and nature plays a very important role in our culture.
HUNTER-GAULT: But, she says the reality of new threats to the traditional culture, like child abductions, also played a role.
RAMANTSWANA: Taking kids away and such stuff, and killing. That's the most important thing. Actually, in villages like ours.
HUNTER-GAULT: Both Muneiwa's parents, school principals, are proud of their daughter. Her father, a poet, who has helped pass on Venda history through the oral tradition of praise singing, believes youngsters like his daughter hold the fate of the Venda nation in their hands.
JACKSON RAMANTSWANA, AUTHOR'S FATHER: For them, I encourage them to write things about their own culture, because even if things are not written, they're not long. That culture will be dead.
HUNTER-GAULT (on camera): Teachers here told me that when the writing project first started, not a lot of students were interested in it. But Muneiwa's success has been infectious, prompting more and more students, like these, to want to tell their own stories.
Charlayne Hunter-Gault for "INSIDE AFRICA," (UNINTELLIGIBLE), South Africa.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
