Title: The Prophet and the Virgin: The Masculine and Feminine roots of teaching
Author: Dr. Errol Miller
Reviewed by: Billy Hall
DR. ERROL MILLER, since 1981 the Professor of Teacher Education in the Institute of Education, University of the West Indies, Mona, in what is clearly his magnum opus, has produced a book of world class scholarship for a worldwide audience.
In this book, he identifies the origin of schooling, and traces it historically through continents and cultures, noting permutations, with disciplined, riveting focus on his theme of the masculine and feminine roots of teaching.
Of course, it is not possible in any attempt to provide a work of such gigantic scope with treatment in depth on every aspect, and so he makes and justifies his selections of focus, with persuasiveness.
Yet, it is difficult to get away from the breadth of the concerns he comments on, even within those select historical periods of civilisations, and select political and cultural trends and interests.
With scholarly aplomb, he traces the masculine and feminine roots of teaching to the beginning of schooling in the emerging city-states of Mesopotamia, where writing was first developed.
Inevitably, religion comes to the fore, for it frames and fashions much of schooling, and so Professor Miller has to make his way through the nuances of Judaism, Christianity and Islam, the three world religions.
SERVING THE NATION STATE
When, as he advances historically, and his inquiry shifts to school in the emerging nation- states, his focus shifts accordingly for in the nation-states the concept of schooling is less concerned with serving religion and more concerned with serving the ends of the nation-state.
In this regard, he focuses on the largest and most extensive example of this, the United States.
Particularly interesting, even if for chauvinistic reasons, is chapter seven of his eight chapters, for here he addresses the issues in the Caribbean.
His focus is the Commonwealth Caribbean, which he identifies with analytic sharpness. In the process, he produces an excellent synopsis of the history, as well as sharply identified and delineated aspects of the cosmology, deformation, and creolisation of the Caribbean as a cultural entity.
Of course, issues of class, colour, and patriarchy are all treated. In regard to patriarchy, a term much in vogue, he traces the use of the concept, and discusses definitions, then produces his own with clarity and soundness.
Indeed, nothing in this work can be accused of merely regurgitating information. He writes with command of the ideas he encounters, summarising and analysing.
MULTIDICIPLINARY
It is a work that involves and integrates several disciplines - history, sociology, cultural anthropology, social psychology, systematic theology, political ideology, formal education.
But, throughout, he maintains his authoritative stamp on the whole, displaying knowledge of the main players and their theories, analysing them and stating their case as sharply and as succinctly as may be found in any literature on the various subjects.
Miller writes well. In the tradition of the Commonwealth Caribbean's foremost intellectual writer, C. L. R. James, he likes the short sentence. However, he is not as addicted to it as James was inclined to be.
Another attractive feature of his writing talent is the way he produces summaries of ideas, and enumerates points.
This is no doubt evidence of pedagogical gift and practised art, laboriously achieved, for he has written several other works, regrettably not noted in this one.
Also regrettable to some extent is the title and cover. The cover depends more on words than art to attract attention but the main title is at best, enigmatic.
This is regrettable for the striving for subtlety might have led to loss of clarity, and so many who would benefit greatly from this monumental academic work might fail to even reach for it on the shelves. The statue on the inside might have been better used on the cover.
Late in the work comes some sort of explanation of this enigmatic title when the author declares that his objective in writing the book was to explore the masculine and feminine roots of teaching in the ancient civilisations of the city-states and in the age of the monotheistic religions, with a focus on "the roots of masculine and feminine participation on the prophets in Judaism, Christianity and Islam and the tradition of the virgin or pure woman in Christianity and to a lesser extent in Islam" (p. 410)
The subtitle, however, is direct and indeed an excellent summary of the theme developed in the 435 pages of this richly analytic work.
Yet, from a broad perspective, the work achieves more than perhaps what the author intended, for it is the nearest thing to what may be accurately termed 'A World History of Education'.
Indeed, it is this dimension that makes it extraordinary, for in making assessment of any performance 'degree of difficulty' must be accounted for as a crucial criterion.
Miller has attempted a great task, and he has succeeded with distinction. No other Commonwealth Caribbean intellectual comes to mind for comparative assessment of what has been both attempted and accomplished.
This is a monumental work, and the writing is in content and style magnificent.
Publisher: Ian Randle, 2003
