THE MAGIC POT

Author Odeen Ishmael reveals engaging tales of Caribbean culture through the pages of THE MAGIC POT: Nansi Stories From The Caribbean.

This book comprises a collection of popular folk stories from Guyana and other countries of the Caribbean region. The starring character in all of them is Nansi whose exploits form part of the folklore of these countries. "Nansi", the starring character in all the stories, is also popularly known as "Anansi". But in Guyana and some other Caribbean countries, Nansi, the shortened form of this name, is usually preferred.

Nansi, who is a spider—but who sometimes takes the qualities or form of a man, or even half-man and half-spider—is originally the chief trickster among the Ashanti and Akan peoples of West Africa. When some of these peoples were forcibly brought to the Caribbean and the American continent as slaves from the sixteenth to the nineteenth centuries, they also brought with them the tales of the exploits of Nansi, who was, and still is, variably regarded as a folk hero, a cunning trickster and also sometimes as a fool.

The stories in this book are no different to the ones told in West Africa or other parts of the Caribbean and the southeast United States, even though the plots and the characters involved may vary slightly. They certainly provide tangible evidence that much of the oral traditions of people of African origin in the Americas remain intact, despite the historical trauma caused by centuries of slavery.

Nansi is always outwitting the forest creatures, humans, his own family, the community in which he lives, and sometimes even deities. His character assumes various patterns. In some cases, he is regarded as wise, but he can be greedy, cunning, gluttonous, stupid, and dishonest. Despite these varying characteristics, Nansi is generally admired for the manner in which he outwits others.

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Paperback: 170 pages
Publisher: Xlibris, Corp. (July 30, 2010)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1453539034
ISBN-13: 978-1453539033

Category:

Comedy

Tags:

• Anansi
• Nansi
• Guyana
• Odeen Ishmael
• folklore