Week 7 Reading Notes: Nigerian Folk Stories (Reading A)

From "The Fish and the Leopards Wife" 


As week 7 focuses on stories from Asian and African cultures, I finally decided to explore African tales. Both of these genres are wildly intriguing to me as both cultures are beautifully vibrant and unlike any other. After reading the vivid descriptions of Indian folk tales, I look forward to seeing the difference in how they present morals. So, as I begin week 7, I chose to read Nigerian Folk Stories

Reading A: 
  1. Of the Pretty Stranger Who Killed the King
    • Only narration 
    • Moral: Never marry a stranger, no matter how pretty she may be
      • very random moral seems irrelevant 
    • Easily written and to the point 
  2. Why the Bat Flies by Night
    • Short Narration 
    • Good idea to take common knowledge and make a fun story behind it 
  3. The Disobedient Daughter Who Married a Skull
    • Again mentions not marrying a stranger
      • must be a big custom to stay within the tribe 
    • mostly all narration
    • Spirit world, Ju Ju Man
      • Cultural elements 
  4. The King Who Married the Cock's Daughter
    • Odd story, King actually marries a chicken
      • Gets humiliated when she ate corn
        • but not when he's married to a chicken 
    • Mostly all narrative
    • Told people not to marry any bird or animal  
  5. The Woman, the Ape, and the Child
    • Most stories have been based around the town Calabar 
    • Tells the tale of why humans fear apes
    • No slave is allowed to marry the slave of another house 
    • Narration 
  6. The Fish and the Leopard's Wife
    • Fish live in water as punishment for sleeping with a leopards wife
      • did I really just write that sentence?
    • Gives a creative backstory to common knowledge 
  7. Why the Worms Live Underneath the Ground
    • King Eyo mentioned many times, like Calabar 
    • Ants vs. Worms 
      • Worms live underground out of fear 
  8. The Elephant and the Tortoise
    • Tortoise stole Elephants eyes so he would stop eating food
      • eyes used to be big 
    • Elephant got the worm to lend his eyes
      • thus why worms do not have eyes and why elephants eyes are so small 
    • Both narration and dialogue 
  9. Why a Hawk Kills Chickens
    • Hawk married a chicken 
      • the chicken fell in love with another chicken 
      • could not repay dowry
        • King said you can eat any of their children as payment 
    • Simple, short 
  10. Why the Sun and the Moon Live in the Sky
    • Good inspiration for another story
      • A tragic love story between the moon and the sky
    • The clever backstory of earth creation
  11. Why the Cat Kills Rats
    • The rat got the cat in trouble so the king let the cat deal with it 
    • Another added backstory to common sense 


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