African Storytelling
Africans are rooted in oral cultures and traditions; therefore they have admired good stories and storytellers. Since ancient times, storytelling in the African culture has been a way of passing on traditions, codes of behavior, as well as maintaining social order. Writing had not been developed in ancient Africa, but there were ways for Africans to transmit their thoughts, beliefs, and feelings. Africans utilized various forms of art, myths and ceremonies. The tradition of African storytelling is one of the most ancient in African culture.
Emmanuel Matateyou contends that storytelling is an integral part of the cultural life of the African people in Cameroon. "Storytelling like rhetoric is the exercise of the mind. The words have great power."3 In Cameroon folktales keep the community united. They help reserve the knowledge, wisdom, and techniques which are part of the society. The narration of the tales takes place at night after the evening meal. The oral folktale can be recited, sung, and adapted to various circumstances. Taboos in many cultures of this area prevent people from engaging in any serious work at night. Each tale retold enlightens the consciousness of the audiences. In the western region and south of Cameroon, night-time gatherings provide an opportunity for the affairs of the land and family to be discussed or planned. Problems are resolved through recourse to folktales..
Matateyou describes the important elements of the storytelling events. The folktales are divided into three sections which include the opening formula, the body/expository section, and the conclusive formula.4 The storytelling session begins with an opening formula. Next there is an exchange of jokes and riddles. After engaging audience participation, the storytelling event sets in motion with a solemn beginning. After the opening formula, the storyteller starts the narration of the tale. The storyteller sets the scene, introduces the characters, and defines the conflict using all sorts of techniques. In many areas in Cameroon the people perform a real dramatic play. The storyteller sings, dances, shouts and invites the audience to dance or sing. The storyteller uses a language full of images and symbolism. The performer imitates many characters in the story. During the conclusive formula, the closure of the story is indicated by a moral or final statement about an issue that was indicated in the body/expository section. The order of the events illustrates the importance of structure as a literary quality of folktales.
Storytelling has been a ritual for the people of Ghana in the evening after a hard days work. Telling the Ananse folktales help the children grow up to be responsible members of the African society. "The psychological intent of exposing the children to storytelling justifies the reason for telling folktales in Ghana."5 Ananse folktales are usually told creatively by adults. The audience includes family members and children of the neighborhood. The serene nights and sitting around the fire set the tone for storytelling. The attention and enthusiastic response of the audience make the stories interesting. The Ananse folktales do not follow any sequential order. The stories are told subjectively once the description or theme of the story is decided. The narration of the Ananse stories are accompanied with music, singing, drumming, percussion instruments, clapping, and dancing. The proverbial songs are utilized to highlight the expression of the characters. The Anansi stories are intended to send a moral message to the audience, especially the children.
Storytelling in Film
African films focus on social problems, personal concerns, and cultural issues. They offer the audience a glimpse of African concerns, traditions, and pride. The African cinema is an expression of cultural autonomy. The filmmakers give the films an ageless look and tone by often using rural landscapes and conventional characters. The filmmakers choose situations where they would not need artificial lighting because they didn't have sufficient technical materials or money. African films tend to be creations of intense stories, rich in emotion rather than spectacle and special effects.
The film, Abouna, directed by Mahamat Saleh Haroun in 2002, is beautifully shot. The film provides a glimpse into a dusty village in Chad. It is similar to many African productions in its visual and aural style. It begins with a recognizable situation, the loss of a father. Two boys, Tahir and his asthmatic brother Amine, wake up one morning to discover their father has disappeared. They sense something is wrong when their father fails to show up to referee their soccer game. Their mother tells them that their father has left them. The boys refuse to believe that their father is gone for good. After the boys cause problems for their mother, she sends them to a Koranic school. The boys encounter love, rebellion, self-determination, and separation. The viewer will be surprised with the later plot development.
The film, Keita: The Heritage of the Griot, directed by Dani Kouyate in 1994, is based on the epic tale of Sundiata Keita, emperor of Mali. The filmmaker skillfully moves the audience from one narrative strand to the next. The beautiful narration and the traditional music help to bridge these transitions. This film allows you to view the Griot's style of narration. The film opens in a village in Burkina Faso. Djeliba, a West African Griot, has a dream which makes him see that he must go to the city to initiate Mabo Keita, a young boy, into the history of his heritage. Djeliba wants to relate the epic of Sundiata to Mabo. The epic recounts the life of Sundiata Keita, the king responsible for turning the land of Mande into the great trading empire of Mali.
Djeliba moves in with Mabo and his family and begins telling the story of ancestry, The Sundjata Epic. Mabo is completely fascinated by the story and doesn't want to go to school. This results in a great deal of tension in the Keita household. Mabo's mother becomes concerned about Djeliba's stories distracting her son from school work. Mabo's father feels that it is important to pass on the stories of the Keita heritage. The story of Sundjata and the magnificent empire is of great importance to the people of West Africa. It provides them with a common identity. From this point on, the film moves back and forth between the mythical world of the story and the modern world of storytelling.
Mabo's modern education conflicts with his desire to be educated by Djeliba. His teacher visits the home and discusses his concerns with Djeliba. He feels that the Griot teachings should discontinue until summer vacation. The difficulties in the Keita household prompted Djeliba to return to his village without completing his mission. The film ends without the story being completed.
The film, Wend Kuuni, directed by Gaston Kabore in 1983, adapts the rhythms of traditional African storytelling. It demonstrates Mossi values as it shows domestic scenes of a village family. The daily routines of the family group consist of the father weaving, the mother doing household chores, the daughter assisting with the cooking, and Wend Kuuni taking care of the goats. In the first scene of the movie, a mother is crying and decides to escape from a village with her child. The next scene focuses on a traveler finding a body of a dehydrated young boy. The boy is mute and doesn't remember anything. The traveler picks him up and takes him to the nearest village, a Mossi village. The village leader agrees to raise the boy.
The village chief decides to send a search party to find the boy's parents. Tinga agrees to adopt the boy, since they couldn't find his parents. The boy is named Wend Kuuni, God's Gift. Wend Kuuni has the job of herding the goats. He makes friends with his stepsister, Pougnere. He is very content in his new home.
There is an argument between one of the village elders and his young wife. Tinga calms both of them down. Wend Kuuni left his knife in the field where the goats were grazing. When he goes later that night to retrieve the knife, he finds the village elder hanging from a tree branch. Wend Kuuni instantly remembers the death of his mother after being chased out of the village. He begins to speak and screams for his mother.
At the end of the film Wend Kuuni tells the story about his mother to his stepsister, Pougnere. He speaks about his sick mother being chased out their village and ending up under a tree in the middle of the field. He talks about his mother's death and running for hours. He remembers falling to sleep and the traveler finding him.
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