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Since the earliest years of the slave trade
Africans and African Americans have struggled to recognize
and preserve the great contributions of Africa to world civilization.
Storytelling and the oral tradition have provided the basis
for dynamic artistic expression and the transmission of knowledge
about Africa. This tape was designed to introduce and reinforce
the integral importance of the oral tradition in helping to
understand African culture. These are tales of wit and subtle
humor: tricksters who try but do not triumph, evil-hearted
characters like the crocodile, the clever monkey, and others
who come alive in spirited and dramatic performance. Each
of the stories was carefully selected from different areas
of Africa, including Ghana, Nigeria, Kenya, Uganda, and Zambia,
to illustrate the traditional use of folktales as teaching
tools. Through storytelling, Africans have taught young people
rules of behavior, morals, and values. In addition, African
folktales have also been utilized to explain complex human
experiences and superhuman phenomena. The verbal and artistic
skills of the African people are revealed in the acquisition,
structure, and retelling of the tales. This audiocassette
tape was produced by Alan Govenar and, funded by Documentary
Arts, Inc. |
