comiclife and meeting the challenges of existence by making them into a
game, these misadventures are about survival and defending what one
gains by trickery.
Ananse, a spider, is an example of an African trickster among the
Ashanti. This ambiguous figure is someone who fools others and is a fool
himself, as when he steals some beans, hides them under his hat, burns
his head, and is rendered bald. In other tales, he is depicted as subtle and
gross, wily and stupid, a schemer and thief, and a lecher and an ingrate.
And yet, the Ashanti think that he is wonderful because without him life
would be boring. Even though Ananse spreads cultural forces, agricul-
ture, and human society, he also is responsible for jealously, an anti-
social force. In a risqué narrative, Ananse tricks Akwasi (the jealous
one), an anti-social, sterile husband of Aso, with whom Ananse success-
fully schemes to have sexual relations.
The trickster is also a popular religious figure among Native American
Indians, such as the Tricky One of the Winnebago, the spider Inktomi of
the Sioux, and the Old Man (Napi) of the Blackfoot. The Winnebago
figure serves as a mediator between human beings and the gods, gives
culture to humans, creates language, communicates with animals, is
responsible for forms and colors, and plays tricks. The Winnebago trick-
ster can transform himself into any shape, as in the narrative when he
becomes a woman, marries the chief’s son, and gives birth to three chil-
dren. He strangely treats his own body as something foreign, as when he
causes his hands to fight each other, juggles his eyes and goes blind when
he throws them too high into a tree, and he is described as carrying his
penis in a box that he carries on his back.
The narrative pattern of the trickster combines order and disorder,
foolishness and wisdom, history and timelessness, which are indicative
of his ambiguous nature. The trickster is a riddle, who heals the memory
of people and liberates their imagination. His comedic actions are life-
affirming, and he points to the sacredness and worth of life. The trick-
ster’s comedic actions suggest that humans are rooted in the world, but
he also indicates that it is possible to win liberation. To read the often
humorous trickster narratives is to witness an oxymoronic imagination at
play and to see that life is conceived to be a challenge, which the trickster
transforms into a game.
Further reading: Berger (1997); Handelman (1981); Hyers (1969, 1981); Hynes
and Doty (1993); Mandel (1970); Markarius (1970); Morreall (1983); Opler
(1965); Parsons and Beads (1934); Radin (1956); Ricketts (1966); Titiev (1972);
Zucker (1967)