The Life and Words of an !Kung Woman

             The Life and Words of an !Kung Woman 

Nisa, now 50 years old, described her experience living in the !Kung society.  Nisa talked about her living experiences in the villages of !Kung bushmen or Zhun/Twasi during 1969.   Nisa described that there were no cows or goats.  She had narrated her experience from childhood to adulthood.   She contributed her own interpretation of how !Kung women married and their stages of reproducing, pregnancy, and childbirth.

            During Nisa’s childhood, she was faced with hunger.  Food became her happiness as a child.  Nisa described her excitement when she saw her father bring home honey or meat.   Nisa elaborated the two different roles of the male and the female.  Men were the hunters and, thus, held the authority of the tribe. The customs and the traditions of the women’s role held the responsibility of taking care of the family. This tradition lied solely on many factors from the tribe’s elder members.   The women’s duties were to collect food, such as berries and tsin beans. The !Kung society influenced Nisa to mature faster than she wanted to sexually.   Nisa experienced marriage and sex for the first time as a child.  She articulated her fears while losing her virginity. She was faced to grow up quickly.  Nisa described the women’s role was to give birth to increase more members of the society.  However, she disclosed painfully her hurt of the death of her parents, husband, and children as equal.  Nisa seemed to find comfort in blaming God for the loss.  Nisa described her method of healing in the !Kung society. She described her own experiences going through the n/um, a Trance-medicine. She further elaborated how she eventually broke free of the trance that enabled her to become stronger.

            Finally, Nisa’s life inside !Kung society enable us to identify how women’s roles were different than the men.  Nisa’s society was based that men and women were equal.  Women and men held responsibilities.  Furthermore, Nisa’s story helps us to compare and contrast the differences women face through maturity.