Reading Notes: Week 2 Nigeria (B)

As I explained in my first reading notes post, I'm adding notes to the stories in the Nigerian unit! So, here are the stories I read this time, and the notes that I added. The aetiological story about the elephant's small eyes is so cool; I want to include that in the Story of the Day for sure, especially since it also has a trickster tortoise.

And now Reading Part A of the Nigerian unit has notes for every story! I hope that will make it a better reading experience for everybody who might choose that unit last this semester. :-)

(elephant)

The Fish and the Leopard's Wife. This is an aetiological story about why the fish lives in the water. As the story explains, the fish used to live on the land, and he used to be a friend of the leopard. Then, things got... complicated.

Why the Worms Live Underneath the Ground. You can read about driver ants, also known as army ants, at Wikipedia: "Seasonally, when food supplies become short, they leave the hill and form marching columns of up to 50,000,000 ants, which are considered a menace to people, though they can be easily avoided; a column can only travel about 20 metres in an hour. " So, the story is not exaggerating when it refers to millions of ants marching together!

The Elephant and the Tortoise. This story has two parts: first about the elephant and the tortoise, and then about the elephant and the worms. The part about the elephant and the tortoise is another "fatal imitation" type of story (Why the Bat Flies by Night), and the second part is another chapter in the sad history of the worms: last time, you learned about worms living underground (Why the Worms Live Underneath the Ground), and this time, you learn why worms don't have eyes.

Why a Hawk Kills Chickens. Earlier in the unit you read different stories about marriages and dowries, and here is a marriage-and-dowry story with animal characters, who can also go to the King of Calabar to demand justice when animals, like people, do not uphold the law and keep their promises.

Why the Sun and the Moon Live in the Sky. This is a flood story, but I am going to guess that it is not like any flood story you have ever read before. It is also an aetiological story, explaining why the sun and his wife, the moon, do not live with us here on the earth, like they used to. This is one of my favorite folktales!

Why the Cat Kills Rats. Earlier you read a story about a bush rat (Why the Bat Flies by Night), but this story is about the more familiar type of rat, Rattus rattus. In this case, the rat is a sympathetic character: he is in love, and he acts recklessly as a result. With terrible consequences, as you will see.