Four Edo Fables

Abstract

Among the Edo tribes which inhabit the Benin Province of Southern Nigeria are found in each village men corresponding to the old medieval troubadours, the repositories of the stories and legends of the past. They are not, of course, peculiar to the Edo tribes, but are found in most African societies. Sometimes these persons are the elders of the village, sometimes the telling of the tales is left to the young men, who amuse themselves and their friends by relating fables of the Aesop variety, or by describing with a wealth of pantomime and gesture some event round which a mass of legendary detail has arisen. The narration holds the audience enthralled, though most of the tales will be familiar, and the eloquence of the teller receives instant appreciation. The various actions described are imitated, and onomatopoeic sounds are freely used. Any misfortune to the characters of the story, particularly if caused by the tricks of the ‘villain’, draws forth roars of laughter, and any magical or mysterious happening elicits a chorus of grunts and exclamations of surprise.