The myth of Anansi, the trickster spider - Emily Zobel Marshall
As the sun sets on a plantation
in Jamaica,
children flock to Mr. Kwaku for a story.
They all know he’s full of tales
from Ghana, the land of their ancestors.
But what they don’t know, Kwaku winks,
is how their ancestors got those stories
in the first place.
Long ago, all stories belonged to Nyame,
the all-seeing Sky God.
People on Earth were bored
and knew nothing about their history.
But one creature decided
enough was enough.
Anansi, the tricky, shapeshifting spider,
resolved to bring the stories
down to Earth.
He spun a web that stretched
into the clouds
and climbed up to confront the Sky God.
Crouching at Nyame’s feet,
Anansi shouted at the top of his lungs
that he had come to take ownership
of the world’s stories.
Looking down from his golden stool,
Nyame hooted with laughter
at the spider’s absurd request.
Nyame told Anansi that he could have
all the stories he wished—
but only if he could complete
an impossible task.
If Anansi brought him
Osebo the Leopard, Onini the Python,
Mmoboro the Hornet,
and Mmoatia the Forest Spirit,
then he could take the stories.
Anansi humbly accepted.
Nyame didn’t see him grinning
as he scuttled away.
Back on Earth, Anansi grabbed
his magic bag and set to work.
Anansi found Onini the Python
bathing in the sun.
Anansi scoffed that Onini
couldn’t be the longest animal,
saying he looked no longer
than a piece of bamboo cane.
Enraged, Onini stretched himself across
the bamboo to prove his lengthiness.
Anansi quickly bound him tight-tight
to each end and placed him in his bag.
Next, Anansi dug a great pit
in the middle of the path
Osebo the Leopard usually prowled,
and covered it with banana leaves.
Sure enough, mighty Osebo soon fell in.
Anansi scolded Osebo for his carelessness,
but offered to rescue him.
As he helped Osebo out of the pit,
Anansi swiftly jabbed him with his knife.
Osebo fell back to the ground
where Anansi wound him up
tight-tight in spider thread.
Then, Anansi heard Mmoboro
and his hornets buzzing.
He cautiously approached them.
This would be tricky— their stings
could make someone swell up and die—
but Anansi knew they hated rain.
He filled his mouth with water
and spat it at the swarm.
As they panicked, Anansi urged the hornets
to shelter in his gourd,
where they found themselves trapped.
Anansi had one more task:
to capture Mmoatia
the elusive and mischievous Forest Spirit.
She usually hid herself deep in the woods,
but Anansi knew she was lonely.
So, he made a little doll covered in sap
and left it in her path.
When she came upon it,
Mmoatia spoke to the doll
but became enraged when it didn’t answer.
She hit the disrespectful doll
and her small fists stuck
to its sticky surface.
Anansi wrapped Mmoatia up tight-tight
and scooped her into his bag
along with the other creatures.
Triumphantly, he climbed his web
back into the clouds.
When the Sky God saw that Anansi
had completed the impossible task,
he was amazed.
Nyame told Anansi
that he had earned the world’s stories.
Dancing for joy, Anansi gathered them up,
stuffed the stories into his bag,
and descended to Earth.
There, he scattered the stories
throughout the world for people to share.
And they did, Kwaku tells the children.
Generations have continued
telling and reimagining Anansi’s stories
even after being stolen from Africa
and enslaved.
Anansi may be small, but “cunning’s
better than strong,” Kwaku says,
and tells the children to take Anansi’s
stories with them wherever they go.
Looking at his audience, Kwaku knows
that Anansi will persist
as a symbol of resourcefulness
and resistance in the face of oppression,
and a testament to the enduring power
of storytelling.
