Myth-Folklore Unit: Stories from Congo

Overview. These stories from Notes on the Folklore of the Fjort  were collected in the late 19th century by R. E. Dennett who spent four decades in Africa as a trader. He was also a member of the Congo Reform Association, protesting the British colonial treatment of the Congolese. The stories he collected during his years in the Congo provide important evidence about "fetishes," which are both supernatural spirits and also the power of those spirits embodied in a physical object of some kind, and you will find many fetish stories here in the reading. There are also stories of human drama and family conflict, often centered on rivalry among wives or rivalry among brothers. Finally, there are animal stories as well, including the story of how spider sought to retrieve the heavenly fire of Nzambi Mpungu, the supreme god, in order to win himself a bride.

Language. These stories are told in modern English prose, so the language used should pose no difficulties.

Story Length. These are all single-page stories.

Navigation. You will find the table of contents below, and you can also use this link to see the story posts displayed on two pages total: Stories from Congo. Click "Older Posts" at the bottom of that page to see the second page.

---

READING A:

1. How The Wives Restored Their Husband To Life
2. How Gazelle Got Married
3. The Vanishing Wife
4. Another Vanishing Wife
5. The Jealous Wife
6. Ngomba's Balloon
7. The Wicked Husband
8. How Kengi Lost Her Child
9. The Twin Brothers
10. The Younger Brother Who Knew More Than The Elder

READING B:

1. The Antelope And The Leopard
2. How The Spider Won And Lost Nzambi's Daughter
3. The Turtle And The Man
4. The Gazelle And The Leopard
5. The Fetish Sunga
6. The Rabbit And The Antelope
7. The Fight Between The Two Fetishes
8. The Fetish Of Chilunga
9. The Leopard And The Crocodile
10. Why The Crocodile Does Not Eat The Hen
11. The Three Brothers

(fetishes, photo by H.J.L. Bennett)