PIG METAPHOR MAY HAVE BEEN AN INSULT TO SOME COMMUNITIES IN KENYA By John Thinguri Mukui, 15 May 2013, Nairobi,

Kenya Activists in Nairobi protested outside Kenyas parliament buildings on May 14, 2013, calling on Members of Parliament to drop a proposed law that would increase their perks and allowances. To symbolize what protesters called the MPs greed, they released nearly three dozen pigs and covered the pavement in blood. The use of pigs by demonstrators as a metaphor for greed by Members of Parliament (christened MPigs) and County Representatives adds to the growing body of literature on zoosemy, defined as animal metaphors through which complex and abstract entities in human behaviour are understood. Zoosemy is viewed in linguistic ideology as an expression of themes and values, and is dictated by the context and position of the person using the metaphor. In zoosemy, divine beings are at the top of the chain, followed by human beings, animals (e.g. horses then rats then reptiles), and finally by lesser living forms such as insects. The rat metaphor was used by the late Muammar Qaddafi to refer to political deserters and traitors who abandon you to work with foreign nations to destroy your country. In the West, rats as viewed as filthy animals that cause diseases, while the Chinese even celebrate the year of the rat. In many cultures, the dog metaphor is used to denote a worthless, despicable, surly, or cowardly fellow, although in Australian slang, the word is also used to describe an informer or a traitor especially one who betrays fellow criminals. The use of stray dogs by Qaddafi was also used to describe protestors as people who had wandered away from their homes and are therefore not Libyans but foreigners out to disrupt peace in Libya. Puppet is sometimes used to describe a little dog or puppy, but normally refers to a person whose actions are really actuated and controlled by another. While mongrel is generally used to describe the offspring of two different breeds of dog, it is also used to denote people of different nationalities or of high and low birth; or a person of mixed or undefined opinions or official position. The donkey metaphor is sometimes used to typify clumsiness and stupidity, and are hence misused and exploited because of their foolishness and gullibility. The late Qaddafi used the donkey metaphor to imply that the protestors were being misused by political activists and nations opposed to his rule. In his characteristic use of animal metaphors, Qaddafi described mercenaries as a pack of weasel with no agreement amongst themselves, in an attempt to paint the mercenaries as cunning, sneaky, treacherous informers of the west who should be exterminated. 1

As argued by Ben Nyongesa Wekesa, a Kenyan researcher, in his article, When metaphorical language use fails: A case of Zoosemy in the late Qaddafis political speeches during the uprising, it is generally agreed that Qaddafis use of metaphorical language failed as it dehumanized Libyan people, and reminded Libyans of the bitter experiences that most Africans underwent in the hands of colonialists in their fight for freedom. It is also instructive that Qaddafis failure of metaphorical language is attributed to overuse of some metaphors, which ended up fuelling animosity than inviting mercy for his leadership since many saw it as manipulating language for personal interests. Other examples of zoosemy are sheep for someone who is unsure of what action to take; black sheep for someone who brings shame to a family; and cow for a person who is lazy, stubborn and not bothered of the goings on in his surroundings. It is however important to note that semantic use of animals is not universal. For example, while dog is normally associated with loyalty and vigilance (as in watchdog), they are also used as epithets and curses at enemies. There is also a tendency to use animal metaphors as a derogation of female human beings. For example, although the neutral meaning of mare is the female of any equine animal (e.g. horse, ass or zebra), it is sometimes used in contemptuous reference to women as sex objects to be mounted. Nag, which originally referred to a small, inferior horse, is now used to denigrate and ridicule all women. Hackney, whose primary meaning is horse of middle size and quality, is now used to describe servile work for hire. Other examples include bitch to describe a malicious, treacherous human. The same word can also have different meanings, e.g. a tramp is used to describe a male drifter, but may mean a prostitute in reference to females. Foodsemy, on the other hand, refers to the use of food metaphors. For example, tendril (young shoot or sprout of a plant) is sometimes used in the secondary sense of young girl; rose for a beloved female; honey as a term of endearment; peach for a sexually attractive female; cheesecake for female charm; sack of potatoes as a woman who is inactive during sex act; bread as synonym of money (as in breadwinner of the family); sugar for pleasant or handsome person; apple of someones eye for someone or something much loved; melon for a large pair of breasts; rotten apple for troublesome and destructive person; sausage for shoplifter or pickpocket; mutton dressed as lamb to denote an old woman trying to look younger than her age; pumpkin for empty-headed; couch potato for someone who spends too much time sleeping, eating or watching TV; cabbage for stupid or ignorant; cheeseball for stupid or obnoxious person; and cheesecake for a scantilyclad female. Among the Kipsigis, pigs were not eaten because they were viewed as filthy and eaters of waste, and pig could therefore be used to describe morally filthy people, while Chinese use it as an attribute of strength and Germans as a symbol of luck. The case of the Kenyan demonstrators is in line with semantics in many cultures that equate gluttonous people with pigs, courageous people with lions, and inconsiderate/selfish people with hogs.

Pig and its flesh are a taboo in Islamic dietary laws (Halal), while Jewish law considers pork a non-kosher food forbidden from consumption by Jews. A kosher animal must be a ruminant and have split hooves. While some non-Muslims may have a mild dislike for pigs as food, the use of pigs by demonstrators may have been a source of disquiet and antipathy among Kenyan Muslims due to association of pigs with evil.

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