Reading Diary A: South African Folklore

South African Folklore

The Lost Message: I thought the title of this story was very fitting, but did not give away the ending. I read the Nigerian Folklore Unit last week and enjoyed it so much I wanted to read similar stories. This is why I chose to read the South African Folklore this week. The Lost Message was the first story of the unit and it met my expectations. The story had a purpose. We now know why the ants live in discord because the beetle never delivered the message of unity to them. The names of the ant groups were entertaining so that made the story more interesting as well. For example, the last paragraph introduced the Insect-king. His name spoke right to his title and role in the ant’s lives.

The Monkey’s Fiddle: This story incorporated the infamous Brer Wolf, which was one of the other units I thought about choosing. Brer Wolf’s jealousy allows the reader to learn more about the animal democracy. The court of the Lion, Tiger and other animals get introduced and the court hearing begins. With the monkey about to be convicted of a crime he did not commit, he uses his wits and plays his fiddle. This is one of my favorite parts about these folklore stories is the cunning qualities and wit about the characters.

(Vervet Monkey - Photo by Landfair)

Tink-Tinkje: This whole story was about a game between the birds of the earth. The dialogue was easy to follow, and I learned some attributes about birds of today. This story, like The Lost Message, taught the reader something about reality of animals in the last paragraph.