The Moral Basis of the Relationship of Parent and Child

When Tale parents are asked what the special difficulties they had to overcome in rearing their children, they always mention sickness first. In many ways the ritual relationships of the Tallensi with the spirits of their parents give a truer insight into the parent–child bond than their visible behaviour towards one another. It is the axiom, clearly stated by the natives and apparent also in Tale values and usages, that the fact of having begotten or borne a child creates an absolute moral bond between it and its parents. The counterpart of parental duty and devotion is filial piety. It is regarded by the Tallensi as an equally binding moral principle and an equally strong motive of individual conduct; and they trace it back, also, to the tribulations parents undergo in bringing a child into the world. Tallensi say that the bonds between parent and child can never be obliterated and may not be repudiated.

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